Prelim Exam Flashcards
What is the definition of personality?
The set of psychological traits and mechanisms within the individual that are organized and relatively enduring and influences interactions with and adaptation to the intrapsychic, physical and social environment.
How does personality affect an individual’s life?
It affects how people shape their lives, cope and adjust through life, and respond to physical and social challenges.
What is a phrenologist?
Someone who studies the shape of the human head to determine a person’s character or abilities.
What is phrenology?
The practice of studying the shape of the human head to determine character or abilities, considered a pseudoscience today.
Who was Hippocrates and what did he contribute to personality theories?
A Greek philosopher who proposed that human behavior is influenced by 4 elements and 4 bodily fluids.
List the 4 elements proposed by Hippocrates.
- Air
- Water
- Fire
- Earth
List the 4 bodily fluids according to Hippocrates.
- Blood
- Phlegm
- Yellow bile
- Black bile
What personality types did Galen identify based on bodily fluids?
- Sanguine (blood) - cheerful
- Phlegmatic (phlegm) - unemotional, slow
- Choleric (yellow bile) - irritable, ambitious
- Melancholic (black bile) - sad, lonely
What was Franz Gall known for?
Connecting personality traits to skull shape through phrenology.
Who was Cesare Lombroso and what did he argue?
An Italian criminologist who argued that physical features of criminals marked them as evolutionary ‘throwbacks’.
What physical features did Lombroso associate with criminality?
- Prominent jaws
- Prominent eyebrows
- Asymmetric skulls
Who was Ernst Kretschmer and what was his classification of personality?
A German psychiatrist who classified personality based on body build.
List the personality types identified by Ernst Kretschmer.
- Asthenic - thin, tall, fragile
- Athletic - muscular and energetic
- Pyknic - round and robust
- Dysplastic - malproportioned body
What theory did William Sheldon develop?
The Constitutional Theory of Personality, linking body type to personality traits.
What are the two components of body structure according to Sheldon?
- Morphogenotype - Hypothetical biological structure
- Phrenotype - Observable physical appearance
What are the primary components of body type in Sheldon’s classification?
- Endomorphy - round, soft bodies with large abdomens
- Mesomorphs - hard, sturdy with strong bones and muscles
