Problem 7 - Behavior, Person And Situation

Question 1

person argument

Answer 1

• behavior is determined in large by a person’s traits

- > individuals will act similarly much of the time

Question 2

person evidence

Answer 2

-people differ in central point around which they vary

Question 3

situation argument

Answer 3

• immediate situation is primary determinant of behavior

- > individual will act very differently on different occasions

Question 4

situation evidence

Answer 4

-amount of within-person variability was just as large as within-person variability in emotion

Question 5

interactionism

Answer 5

• situation as primary factor
• personality consists of differences between individuals in how they react to situations, rather than in general ways of acting (traits)

Question 6

density distribution approach

Answer 6

-used to determine how differently the typical person acts on different occasions

Question 7

state level

Answer 7

• short-term variation in personality construct

- state-level association: ?

Question 8

trait level

Answer 8

• generalized and personalized characteristics and stable modes of individual’s adjustment to his environment
• Big5

-trait level association: people who are more sociable may also experience more positive affect

Question 9

personality-situation transactions

Answer 9

-describe how people select, create, change and construct situations based on their dispositions

Question 10

how can we explain why personality-situation transactions did not consistently increase with age? (3)

Answer 10

1) external constraints in health oder social environments may limit possibilities to choose and create personality-compatible situations
2) people increasingly know themselves more with age, but are not able, or not willing to act on it
3) cohort effects: younger cohorts are more focused on self-fulfillment compared with older cohorts

Question 11

experience sampling

Answer 11

• daily diary method
• ecological momentary assessment (EMA)
• asked 6 times a day over 6 weeks
• or 4 times a day over 2 weeks
• > report recent thoughts, feelings and behaviors