Personality - Personality Traits

Question 1

Trait Analysis

Answer 1

Focuses on trying to identify the underlying structure of personality, and how best to describe that structure

They are identified by looking for underlying relations between peoples willingness to engage in different behaviours, and finding common threads (which we call traits)

High scores in variable mean EXTRAVERTED INDIVIDUAL

low is INTRAVERTED

Question 2

The Big Five

Answer 2

Trait analysis tends to identify 5 clusters of behaviour tendencies

1. EXTRAVERSION

Tend to be social and lively

2. NEUROTOCISM

Tend to be tense and moody (Strong emotional reaction to events)

3. CONSCIENTIOUSNESS

Tend to be careful and responsible

4. AGREEABLENESS

Agreeable people tend to be friendly and easy to get along with

5. OPENNESS

Open people tend to be intellectually curious and unconventional

Question 3

Tendencies Vs Characteristics

Answer 3

Dispositional factors (tendencies) manifest different behaviours (characteristics) for different people, depending on their environmental context.

Prisoners and firefighters both score high on metrics of SENSATION-SEEKING (Dare)

Question 4

Morality

Answer 4

Its of moral beliefs does not factor into many modern personality theories