PSYCH 110 Exam 3 (Chp. 9 and 13) Flashcards
Personality
habitual ways in which an individual responds to the environment that differs across individuals and are relatively consistent across time
What are the “building blocks” of personality?
trait theories
What do biological theories of personality address?
if we differ due to physiological differences
What do developmental theories of personality address?
if we differ due to distinct early childhood experiences
Types of Development Theories of Personality
Freudian, Attachment, and Social Learning
What do humanist theories of personality address?
if we differ due to choices and goals as we pursue our potential
Trait
characteristic and stable pattern of thought, feeling, or behavior; building block of personality (structuralist notion)
Big 5 Traits
openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism
Examples of “openness to experience”
imaginative vs down-to-earth; variety vs routine; independent vs conforming
Examples of “conscientiousness”
organized vs disorganized; careful vs careless; self-disciplined vs weak-willed
Examples of “extraversion”
social vs retiring; fun-loving vs sober; affectionate vs reserved
Examples of “agreeableness”
softhearted vs ruthless; trusting vs suspicious; helpful vs uncooperative
Examples of “neuroticism”
worried vs calm; insecure vs secure; self-pitying vs self-satisfied
What is significant about the Big 5?
it’s a descriptive model of personality we use to describe others and ourselves (specifically if we don’t know the other person well)
Is the using the Big 5 universal?
yes; the tendency to describe people using the big 5 is universal across cultures; everyone seems to think these are important things to know about each other (possible these are characteristic ways people differ that are important for social interactions)
Analogue
using the same dimensions to quickly describe someone’s appearance (height, weight, hair color, etc.)
What’s a sixth trait that appears in many East and South Asian countries?
Honesty/Humility
Temperament
differences in emotional responding that vary across individuals and have a biological basis
Characteristics of temperament
widely studied; highly heritable; measured in infacy
What is inhibited temperament?
fear/shyness; can be measured in the womb
T/F: temperament remains stable
true; predict parent reports at 3 months, observations at 4 months, and peer and teacher report at age 8 and beyond; ALTHOUGH can change (inhibited can become uninhibited)
What did Eysenck study?
differences in extraversion vs introversion due to arousability - also thought to be primary factor in temperament
Extroverts
low arousability - they seek external stimulation (e.g., lower heart rate in response to stimulation so seek more)
Introverts
high arousability - they avoid external stimulation (e.g., higher heart rate to same stimulation so seek less)
How does the Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS) and the Behavioral Activation System (BAS) relate to extro/introverts?
differences in the two systems can account for why one person may be extroverted while another is introverted
BIS>BAS
introverts; more sensitive to punishment than reward
BAS>BIS
extroverts; more sensitive to reward than punishment
Are the Big 5 traits heritable?
it appears so; identical twins more similar than fraternal twins in Big 5 (can still change w/ environment or over time)