Unit 1 - Development of Personality

Question 1

Define Personality.

Answer 1

Personality is made up of the thoughts, feelings and behaviours that make a person unique.
It comes from within the individual who’s personality usually stays the same over time. Personality can develop over the years from life experiences.

Question 2

Define Temperament.

Answer 2

Temperament is the inherited part of personality. It describes the way in which the individual responds to the environment. This stays the same throughout life.

This means that some people might always find certain situations difficult e.g. more likely to get stressed. But they can try to learn how to stay calm to feel less stressed.

Question 3

Describe the aim, method, results and conclusion of Thomas, Chess and Birch’s study on temperament.

Answer 3

Aim
To discover whether ways of responding to the environment remain the same throughout life.

Method
They studied 133 children from infancy to early adulthood. The children’s behaviour was observed and their parents were interviewed. The parents were asked about the child’s routine and reactions to change.

Results
They found that the children fell into three types; ‘easy’, ‘difficult’ or ‘slow to warm up’. The ‘easy’ children were happy, flexible and regular. The ‘difficult’ children were demanding, inflexible and cried a lot. The children that were ‘slow to warm up’ did not respond well to change or new experiences to begin with, but once they had adapted they were usually happy.

Conclusion
These ways of responding to the environment stayed with the children as they developed. Therefore the researchers concluded temperament must be innate

Question 4

Describe the aim, method, results and conclusion of Buss&Plomin’s study on temperament.

Answer 4

Aim
To test the idea temperament is innate.

Method
They studied 228 pairs of monozygotic twins and 172 pairs of dizygotic twins. They rated the temperament of the twins when they were 5 years old. They looked at three parts of behaviour:

Emotionality:
how strong the child’s emotional response is

Activity:
how energetic the child was

Sociability:
how much the child wanted to be with other people.

They then compared the scores for each pair of twins

Results
There was a closer correlation between the scores of the monozygotic twins than between the scores of the dizygotic twins.

Conclusion
Temperament has a genetic basis

Question 5

What is
Eyesenck’s Type Theory of Personality?

Answer 5

Eysenck believed that there are different personality types. His theory is called a type theory.
For each personality type there are associated traits. There are three of them;
extroversion, introversion and neuroticism.

Question 6

How is someone categorised as:

• Extroverted
• Introverted
• Neurotic

Answer 6

Extroverted
People who look to the outside world for entertainment, and get energised by being in large groups.

Introverted
People who are content with their own company, and find large groups to be emotionally draining.

Neurotic
People who are highly emotional and show a quick, intense reaction to fear.

Question 7

Describe the aim, method, results and conclusion of Eyesenck’s study on personality types.

Answer 7

Aim
To investigate the personality of 700 servicemen.

Method
Each soldier completed a questionnaire. Eysenck analysed the results using a statistical technique known as factor analysis.

Results
He identified two dimensions of personality: extroversion/introversion and neuroticism/stability.

Conclusion
Everyone can be placed along these two dimensions of personality. Most people lie in the middle of the scale.

Question 8

What is the EPI?

Answer 8

Eyesenck’s Personality Inventory.

This scale is used to measure extroversion/introversion and neuroticism/stability.
It is made up of a series of yes or no questions. The answers are used to identify an individual’s personality.

The two dimensions are not related. This means the individual can be one of four combinations

Question 9

What is the EPQ?

Answer 9

Eyesenck’s Personality Questionnaire.

This scale is also used to measure extroversion, introversion and neuroticism. A further dimension added to this scale is known as psychoticism.

Most people score low on this dimension, but those with a high score are hostile, aggressive, insensitive, cruel and lacking in feelings.

Again the three dimensions are not linked, meaning the individual is given a separate score for extroversion, neuroticism and psychoticism.

Question 10

What traits would a stable extrovert have?

What traits would a neurotic extrovert have?

Answer 10

Stable Extrovert
Sociable, outgoing, talkative, responsive, easy-going, lively, carefree.

Neurotic Extrovert
Touchy, restless, aggressive, excitable, changeable, impulsive, optimistic.

Question 11

What traits would a stable introvert have?

What traits would a neurotic introvert have?

Answer 11

Stable Introvert
Calm, even-tempered, reliable, controlled, peaceful, thoughtful, careful.

Neurotic Introvert
Moody, anxious, pessimistic, reserved, unsociable, quiet.

Question 12

What is Antisocial Personality Disorder (APD)?

What conditions does an APD sufferer have?

Answer 12

Antisocial Personality Disorder (APD) is a condition where individuals ignore the rights of others and do not use socially acceptable behaviour.

They do not abide by the law. They lie, steal and can be aggressive.

They find it difficult to hold down a job and meet their responsibilities as a spouse or a parent.

They can have difficulties making friends, but they can also be witty and charming. This disorder affects 3% of males and 1% of females. 75% of the prison population suffer from this disorder.

People with Anti Social Personality disorder (APD) do not have poor social skills.

Question 13

What are the clinical characteristics of APD?

Answer 13

• Not following the norms and laws of society
• Being deceitful or lying
• Being impulsive and not planning ahead
• Being irritable and aggressive

Question 14

What are the biological causes of APD?

Answer 14

Some researchers believe that brain abnormalities are the main cause of APD.
The amygdala and the prefrontal cortex are the two areas of the brain that have been associated with APD.

Question 15

What is the Amygdala, and how does it affect APD?

Answer 15

The amygdala is responsible for learning from the negative consequences of our actions. It also responds to fearful and sad facial expressions in others. We therefore learn to avoid activities that we can see cause distress to others.

The amygdala is affected in people with APD. As a result, they do not learn to avoid behaviour that harms other people. This is because they are not affected by the distress shown by their victims.

Question 16

What is the Prefrontal Cortex, and how does it affect APD?

Answer 16

The pre frontal cortex is the area of the brain that enables people to learn social and moral behaviour and to feel guilt.

Reduction in grey matter in the pre frontal cortex of the brain has been associated with APD. As people with APD have reduced grey matter in this area, they are less likely to behave morally or to feel remorse.

Question 17

Describe the aim, method, results and conclusion of Raine’s study on biological factors of APD.

Answer 17

Aim
To support the theory that abnormalities in the prefrontal cortex cause APD.

Method
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to study 21 men with APD and a control group of 34 healthy men. The subjects were all volunteers.

Results
The APD group had an 11% reduction in pre frontal grey matter compared with the control group.

Conclusion
APD is caused by a reduction in the brains grey matter.

Question 18

What is the situational cause of APD?

Answer 18

APD may be caused by the situation that someone is brought up in. Therefore, some factors that lead to APD have their roots in childhood and include:

• Socio economic factors,
• Quality of life at home,
• Educational factors including low school achievement.

Question 19

Describe the aim, method, results and conclusion of Farrington’s study on situational causes of APD.

Answer 19

Aim
To investigate the development of offending and anti social behaviour in males studied from childhood to the age of 50.

Method
The researchers carried out a longitudinal study of the development of anti social and offending behaviour in 411 males. They all lived in deprived, inner city area of London. They were first studied at the age of 8 and were followed up age 50. Their parents and teachers were all interviewed. Searches were carried out at the Criminal Records Office to discover if they, or members of their family, had been convicted of a crime.

Results
41% of the males were convicted of at least one offence between the ages of 10 and 50. The most important risk factors for offending were criminal behaviour in the family, low school achievement, poverty and poor parenting.

Conclusion
Situational factors lead to the development of anti social behaviour.

Question 20

Describe the aim, method, results and conclusion of Elander et al’s study into childhood signs of APD.

Answer 20

Aim
To investigate the childhood risk factors that can be used to predict anti social behaviour in adulthood.

Method
Researchers investigated 225 twins who were diagnosed with childhood disorders and interviewed them 10-25 years later.

Results
Elander et al found that childhood hyperactivity, conducted disorders, low IQ and reading problems were strong predictors of APD and criminality in adult life.

Conclusion
Disruptive behaviour in childhood can be used to predict APD in adulthood.

Question 21

What are some practical implications of research into APD?

Answer 21

• Research into APD has implications for the prevention and treatment of this disorder.
• As researchers cannot decide on the cause of APD, it is difficult to know how to prevent it and treat it.
• If APD has a biological cause then it cannot be prevented
• Psychologists who believe APD has a biological cause have attempted to treat it using medication, but research has found this to be ineffective.
• Identifying risk factors for APD can lead to some groups being overlooked. Children who have a stable childhood can also develop APD.
• APD is one of the most difficult disorders to treat. The characteristics of this disorder can make patients difficult to work with.