Trait Theories Flashcards by Fiza Ali

list the different trait approaches

allport’s traits
cattell’s 16pf
eysenck’s 3 factor theory (PEN)
biological underpinnings
costa & Mccraes big five (OCEAN)

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

who is charles spearman

invented factor analysis

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What is the nomothetic approach to personality?

attempts generalisation

uses objective knowledge

based on numerical data that can be categorised

experimental design

can mask individual effects

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

what is the idiographic approach to personality?

focuses on uniqueness

uses subjective experience

study of the individual

qualitative design

can be subject to experimenter bias

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Who did trait psychology originate from

Aristotle

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

how is aristotle related to traits psychology

proposed dispositions
e.g., modesty, bravery, vanity

brought order and structure to observations to infer correlations between characteristics and behaviour

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

what are dispositions (proposed by aristotle)

predictors of behaviour

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

what 4 personality types did Galen propose

choleric - yellow bile
melancholic - black bile
phlegmatic - phlegm
sanguine - blood

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What is a choleric person like

bad tempered
irritable

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

what is a melancholic person like

gloomy
pessimistic

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

what is a phlegmatic person like

sluggish
nonexcitable

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

what is a sanguine person like

cheerful
passionate

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

who developed trait dimensions

Wilhelm Wundt (1903)

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

What are the central features of trait theorists?

Emphasis on measurement
Objective and reliable measurement

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

what stats do trait theorists use

correlation
factor analysis

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

what is a trait

disposition to behave in a certain way
stable over time
stable across situations

Hirshberg (1978) - “broad, enduring, relatively stable characteristics used to assess and explain behaviour”

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

Hirshberg (1978)

“broad, enduring, relatively stable characteristics used to assess and explain behaviour”

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

How did Allport define a trait?

stated they are a generalised neuropsychic system that initiates and guides consistent behaviour

How well did you know this?

Not at all

Perfectly

How did allport view traits

building blocks of personality

What is allports trait theory

Viewed traits as building blocks of personality
Traits produce coherence in behaviour
COmbination of traits make each person

Personality can change to allow us to grow and cope with new situations

acknowledged strengths and weaknesses
usefulness of both nomothetic and idiographic approaches
cant reliably predict behaviour by traits

WHat is allports lexical approach?

identified and counted descriptors of personality from dictionaries

meaningful personality descriptors became become part of language

investigated two engllish dictionaries
- extracted 18000 personality descriptors
- reduced to 4500 adjectives

How did allport decided meaningful personality descriptors?

measured by frequency of use
number of descriptors equates to importance of traits

What are the three types of traits?

Cardinal
Central
Secondary

What are cardinal traits?

Rare, dominant characteristics that define a person’s identity
So dominant that they influence a person’s behavior and life across situations
e.g. Ebenezer Scrooge’s greed

what are central traits?

Core personality traits that are present in most people Serve as the "building blocks" of personality and tend to remain stable throughout life e.g., honesty

what are secondary traits?

Traits that are less consistent and only appear in certain situation Can influence behavior, but are dependent upon immediate context Predict behaviour but not personality e.g., leadership or impatience

How did cattell define personality

that which permits the prediction of what a man will do when placed in a given situation

How did cattell use trait psychology?

used allports adjective list as starting point but wanted to apply some scientific structure removed synonyms

WHo invented FACTOR ANALYSIS

CHARLES SPEARMAN

What did cattell do to elaborate on allports work?

removed synonyms used scientific methods to get raters to assess individuals

How many traits did Cattell find?

After removing synonyms - 171 trait names After raters assessed individuals - 36 'surface traits' - highly correlated clusters of overt behaviour e.g., honesty 10 emerged in later studies so 46 Surface traits altogether 16 'source traits' - inferred via statistical methods (factor analysis)

What are surface traits?

collection of interrelated behaviours directly observable by others

what are source traits?

underlying structure of personality not always observable by others identified by factor analysis used to predict behaviour

how are source traits identified

FACTOR ANALYSIS - life record data (l-data) - self report questionnaire (q-data) - objective test data (OT-data, or t-data)

What is life record data?

everyday behaviour e.g., school performance

What is self-report questionnaire data?

self-ratings about behaviour, feelings, or thoughts

what is objective-test data?

objective data collected under standardised testing conditions

How many source traits did cattell find after factor analysis?

16 include behavioural opposites (e.g., trusting vs suspicious)

What did cattell believe about the source traits he found?

they underpin surface behaviours = personality

How did Cattell group the 16 source traits.

Into 3 categories: - ability traits - dynamic traits - temperament traits

what are ability traits?

allow a person to function effectively e.g., intelligence

what are dynamic traits?

refer to more striving aspects of an individual e.g., motivation

What are temperament traits?

emotional life and quality of behaviour e.g., impulsivity

What measurement tool did Cattell create?

16PFQ - 16 personality factor questionnaire

what is cattell's 16 personality factor questionnaire

Comprehensive measure of normal-range personality 155 items asking about daily behaviour, interests and opinion 5 point Likert type scale Wide range of uses: Organisational Clinical Educational Sports sciences Research

Evaluation of 16 PFQ

Some factors too similar to distinguish via Factor Analysis For example, placid, apprehensive, relaxed, tense All measure anxiety but are highly correlated with each other Still shows good reliability and correlates well with other scales Contemporary theorists suggest fewer dimensions could be used Springboard for other work…