Traits and Taxonomies Flashcards
dispositional domain
- stable over time
- relatively consistent over situations
- make people different from each other
traits
internal causal properties
- individuals carry their desires needs and wants from one situation to next
- explain B of individuals who possess them
traits can lie dormant
- capacities = present even when B is not expressed
descriptive summaries of attributes of a person
- no assumption about internally or causality
- we must first identify and describe important individual differences
determining traits
- mannerisms
- body langugae
- language
- things we do
- behaviours
identifying relevant traits - lexical approach
- research generally starts with lexical hypothesis
- all important individual differences have become encoded within the natural language
- trait terms
- criteria for identifying traits
lexical approach - trait terms
important to communicate with others
lexical approach - criteria for identifying traits
- synonym frequency
- cross-cultural universality
lexical approach - problems and limitations
- many traits = ambiguous, metaphorical, obscure, difficult
- personality = conveyed through different parts of speech
theoretical approach
- starts with theory, then determines important variables
- contrasts statistical approach (atheoretical)
statistical approach
- starts with large diverse pool of personality items
- goal:
1. identify major dimensions of personality
2. researchers often use factor
statistical approach - factor analysis
- identifies groups of item that covary or go together
- BUT tend to not covary with other groups of items
- provides means for determining which personality variables share some property or belong within same group
- useful in decreasing large array of diverse traits into smaller, more useful set of underlying
taxonomies of personality
- Gordan Allport
- Hans Eysenck’s hierarchical model of personality
- Raymond Cattel’s taxonomy: the 16 personality factor system
- Circumplex taxonomies of personality: the Wiggins circumplex
- 5 factor model
- HEXACO model
Allport
- virtually impossible to define personality in precise terms
- components are interconnected
- continually evolving and changing
- individual’s perception of the situation that influences their B and C
Allport - humanistic theory
- emphasizes dignity and worth of a person
- optimistically assumes the creativity of the individual and movement towards psychological health
- people are in a state of becoming
- developmental process involving movement towards self-actualization
traits in action: dissimilar stimuli, traits and functionally equivalent responses
refer to page 4 of notebook for figure
trait classification: cardinal traits
characteristics that serve as the motivating force for virtually all of an individual’s B
- power
- empathy
trait classification: central traits
characteristics that control an individual’s B in many situations, but are less comprehensive than cardinal traits
- intelligent
- sincere
- kind
trait classification: secondary traits
peripheral characteristics that exert little control over a person’s B (i.e. personal preference)
trait distinction
common
- dispositions shared with others
personal
- traits unique to the individual
nomothetic
approach to the study of B that seeks to establish laws by specifying the general relationships between variables
idiographic
approach to study of B that seeks to understand the uniqueness of a specific individual through intensive investigation
criticisms of Allport’s trait theory
- did not have much impatc outside of psychology
- difficult to focus on uniqueness of individual rather than generalizable traits
- too few traits
Raymond Cattel
- goal: to identify and measure the basic units of personality
- believed true factors of personality should be found across different types of data
factory analysis: R technique
form of factor anlaysis used to infer underlying source traits in large subject population
factor analysis: P technique
- form of factor analysis that permist assessment of the unique trait structure of an individual
development of personality: learning approaches
- classical conditioning
- instrumetal conditioning
- integration learning: type of learning in which people utilize their reasoning abilities and value systems to maximize the attainment of long-range goals
Cattel’s taxonomy: 16 personality factor systems
- to measure teh primary or basic underlying traits of personality
- major criticisms
1. some researchers have failed to replicate 16 factors
2. many argue that a smaller nb of factors captures important ways in which individuals differ
3. Cattel was a eugenicist
restricted eugenicist
program to decrease birth rate of the mentally handicapped - thought they were a costly burden to society and slowed evolutionary growth
creative eugenicist
program designed to increase the birth rate of more intelligent people in belief that they will develop sounder ethical values and contribute more to society’s well being
Eysenck’s hierarchical model of personality
- believed traits were heritable with psychological foundations
- 3 super traits met criteria: (1) extraversion - introversion, (2) neuroticism, (3) psychoticism
structure - super trait at the top
- narrower traits at second level
- each narrower trait at 3rd level (habitual acts)
- lowest level (specific acts)
refer to notebookpage 5
Eysenck: biological underpinnings
key criteriafor baseic dimensionsn of psychology
1.heritability
- P,N,E have moderate heritability
2. identifiable physiological substrate
limitations
- many other personality traits show moderate heritability
- Eysenck may have missed important traits
Wiggins: Circumplex taxonomies of personality
- developed measurement scales to assess traits
- started with lexical assumption
- argued that trait terms specify different kinds of ways in which individuals differ (interpersonal, temperament, character, material, attitude, mental, physical, etc)
- concerned with interpersonal traits and separated these out
- refer to notebookpage 6
How did Wiggins define the term “interpersonal”
as interactions between people involving exchanges
Wiggins circumplex taxonomies of personality: limitations
- interpersonal map = limited to 2 dimensions
- other traits may have important interpersonal consequences
Wiggins circumplex taxonomies of personality: advantages
more global:
1. provides explicit definition of what constitutes “interpersonal” B
2. specifies relationships between each trait and every other trait in model (adjency, bipolarity, orthogonality)
3. alerts investigators to “gaps” in work on interpersonal B
5 factor model
- originally based on combination of lexical and statistical approach
- has achieved greater consensus than other taxonomies
- OCEAN
- has facets because there are many elements
1. helps view diversity of characteristics
2. helps avoid common misunderstandings about the trait
OCEAN: openness to experience, general
- interested in tryig new activities
- playing with new ideas, beliefs, value systems
openness to experience: facets
- fantasy prone, vivid, fantasy life
- open to feelings, deep feelings
- open to diverse B, new ideas
- tend to be creative
- artistic sensitivity
- behavioural flexibility
- intellectual curiousity
- tend to be liberal (politically) and in social activism
- unconventional attitudes
- open to various values and beliefs
- consider alternatives
- refer to powerpoint 48
OCEAN: conscientiousness, general
- organize, ambitious, self-controlled
conscientiousness: facets
- competent
- orderly and organized
- dutiful
- achievement oriented
- self-disciplined
- deliberate
- have high levels of willpower
- work hard toward goals despite distraction or boredom
- have good mental and physical health
- have academic and professional success
what tends to happen when you are low in conscientiousness
- impulsive, easily distracted, less ambitious, unorganized
- tend to give up easily
- more likely to engage in drug and alcohol abuse, crime, risky sex, gambling
OCEAN: extraversion, general
- being out-going
- experiencing positive emotions
extraversion: facets
- gregarious
- warm
- assertive
- active
- excitement-seeking
- positive emotionality
- linked to better mental health
- Americans score higher on this
- personality traits vary regionally
- most are both extraverted and introverted in different settings
OCEAN: agreeableness, general
- caring for others
- having good relationships with other people
agreeableness: facets
- straight-forward
- altruistic
- compliant
- trusting
- modest and humble
- tender-minded
- sympathetic
- prefer cooperation to competition
- tend to be honest, forthright, self-effacing
- tend to be good friends and caring romantic partners
- linked to better mental health
disagreeableness: typical facets
- skeptical, cynical, dishonest, aggressive, grandiose, egocentric, manipulative
- more likely involved with crime, risky sex, drug abuse, antisocial B
- more likely to hold hostile attribution bias
OCEAN: neuroticism, general
- experiencing negtaive emotions (anger, worry, etc)
neuroticism: facets
- anxiety
- angry hostility
- depression
- self-conscientiousness
- impulsiveness
- vulnerability
- various disorders (SUD, personality disorders, EDs, etc)
Big 5 empirical evidence
- replicable in studies using english trait words as items
- found by 12+ researchers using different samples
- replicated in every decade for the past half century, suggesting that it is replicable over time
- replicated using different item formats
Big 5: categories or continuum?
- very few people score at one extreme or the other
- most are in between
- some Big 5 traits are weakly correlated with others
HEXACO model
- similar to Big 5
- has slightly different versions of some traits
HEXACO model vs Big 5: key differences
- honest-humility = 6th dimension
- inclusion of anger in agreeableness rather than emotionality
HEXACO: honesty-humility
- sincere
- honest
- faithful
- modest
- fair-minded
HEXACO: emotionality
- emotional
- oversensitive
- sentimental
- fearful
- anxious
- vulnerable
HEXACO: extraversion
- outgoing
- lively
- sociable
- talkative
- cheerful
- active
HEXACO: agreeableness
- patient
- tolerant
- peaceful
- mild
- agreeable
- lenient
- gentle
- anger (rather neuroticism)
HEXACO: conscientiousness
- organized
- disciplined
- diligent
- careful
- thorough
- precise
HEXACO: openness to experience
- intellectual
- creative
- unconventional
- innovative
- ironic
other possible traits, as there is still debates on exact number and composition of traits that are most important
- need for achievement
- need for cognition
- authoritarianism
- self-esteem
- optimism
- alexithymia (sometimes part of being neurodivergent)
dark triad
3 traits associated with disrupions and transgression in social relationships
1. machiavellism
2. narcissism
3. psychopathy (subclinical)
- rightbelow what we would consider pathological
- higher than what most would have
sometimes sadism is included in the dark triad
Do we tend to overpathologize
yes
How does openness experience integrate itself into intellect and culture?
may help them develop intercultural understanding
A child may cry excessively in infancy, display a bad temper in childhood, and express highly anxious tendencies in adulthood. Which big 5 trait could be underlying this B?
Underlying each of these traits may
be a propensity towards neuroticism, one of the most common traits to describe human personality.
which trait taxonomy the most prominent today?
big 5
Do psychologists who view traits as internal dispositions equate traits with the external behaviour in question? Give an example
no,
_________________________________________________
Zack gets frustrated when a guy approaches his girlfriend and flirts with her. Name an internal causation (including a trait from the HEXACO model) and a situational factor that could explain his frustration.
________________________________________________
Distinguish between the formulations of traits as (a) internal causal properties and (b) purely
descriptive summaries. (ZACK JEALOUSY EXAMPLE)
Descriptive summary viewpoint: this trait merely describes Zack’s expressed behaviour. For example, Zack might glare at other guys when they talk to his girlfriend and ask her to spend all of her free time with them.
The trait of jealousy, in this case, accurately summarizes the general trend in Zack’s expressed behaviour, yet no assumptions are made about what causes Zack’s behaviour.
Internal causal properties: deep feelings of insecurity
act frequency approach
- notion that traits are categories of acts
- just as the category “birds” has specific birds as members of the category (e.g., robins, sparrows)
- a trait such as dominance is a
descriptive summary of the general trend in a person’s behaviour—a trend that consists of performing a large number of acts within a category relative to other individuals
act nomination
- procedure designed to identify which acts belong in which trait categories.
- e.g. “impulsive”: list the specific acts or behaviours this person has performed that exemplify impulsivity. “They decided to go out with friends even though they had to study”
- helps identify hundreds of acts belonging to various trait categories
act frequency research program
- act nomination
- prototypicality judgement
- recording of act performance
prototypicality judgment
- identifying which acts are most central to, or prototypical of, each trait category
- panels of raters judge
how prototypical each act is as an example of a particular concept. - e.g. “controlled the outcome of the meeting without the others being aware of it” to be more
prototypically dominant than the act “deliberately arrived late for the meeting
recording of act performance
- securing information on the actual performance
of individuals in their daily lives - done through self-reports of act performance or reports from close friends or partners
act frequency approach criticisms
- technical implementation of the approach
- does not specify how much context should be included in the description of a trait-relevant act
- it seems applicable to overt actions, but what about failures to act and covert acts that are not directly observable?
act frequency approach benefits
- helpful in making explicit the behavioural phenomena to which most trait terms refer
- helpful in identifying behavioural regularities: phenomena that must be explained by any
comprehensive personality theory - helpful in exploring the meaning of some
traits that have proven difficult to study
self-observer agreement vs observer remarks
- acts that reflect the traits of extraversion and conscientiousness tend to show high levels of self–observer agreement.
- acts that reflect the trait of agreeableness tend to show lower levels of self–observer agreement
- the more observable the actions, the higher the agreement between self-report and observer codings
statistical analysis: factor loadings
factor loadings, indexes of how much of the variation in an item is “explained” by the factor
sociosexual orientation
- men and women will pursue one of two
alternative sexual relationship strategies
1. entails seeking a single committed relationship characterized by monogamy and tremendous investment in children
2. characterized by a greater degree of promiscuity, more partner switching, and less investment in children
what are the two dimensions in Wiggins’s circumplex taxonomy?
love and status
Wiggins circumplex: adjacency
- how close the traits are to each other in the circumplex
- the variables that are next to each other within the model are positively correlated
Wiggins circumplex: bipolarity
- variables located at opposite sides of the circle
and are negatively correlated with each other - dominant is the opposite of submissive, so the two are negatively correlated
Wiggins circumplex: orthogonality
- specifies that traits that are perpendicular to each other on the model (at 90° of separation, or at right angles to each other)
- entirely unrelated to each other
- zero correlation between such traits
- dominance, for example, is orthogonal to
agreeableness, so the two are uncorrelated
