Exploring the Self

Self-Esteem - The correlation problem High Self Esteem Self- Credit Positive Expectations Success High Effort

Self-serving Bias – a readiness to perceive oneself favorably. internalize (dispositional factors) for successes than for failures. Tendency to see ourselves as better than average. Less susceptible to Depression. Module 42

Down side of the self—serving bias. Increased blaming of victims prejudice (racism, sexism, homophobia). bullying and aggression decreased empathy Narcissism – excessive self-love and self- absorption.

Theory Based Personality Tests Carl Jung believed that personalities can be defined according to Archetypes. Myers-Briggs (MBTI) Test designed to measure these Personality traits. The validity of Jung’s archetypes makes the usefulness of the MBTI suspect. Module 42

Trait Theories Attempt to measure and define enduring aspects of a person’s personality. State vs. Trait Module 42

Personality Dimensions Definable characteristics which distinguish meaningful differences between people. Eysenck Model Module 42

Cattell’s 16 Factor Model Personal Adjectives – words used to describe people’s personalities. English ~ 18,000 words! Factor analysis statistical method which looks at which ratings go together. Cattell’s 16 Factor Model Module 42

1. reserved, unsociable outgoing, sociable 2.  less intelligent, concrete more intelligent, abstract 3.  affected by feelings emotionally stable 4.  submissive, humble dominant, assertive 5.  serious happy go lucky 6.  expedient conscientious 7.  timid venturesome 8.  tough minded sensitive 9.  trusting suspicious 10.      practical imaginative 11. forthright shrewd, calculating 12.      self assured apprehensive 13.      conservative experimenting 14.      group dependent self sufficient 15.      undisciplined controlled 16.      relaxed tense   Module 42

Assessing Personality: Self-Report Inventories self-report inventories – Psychological tests in which a person’s responses to standard questions are compared to established norms. After you review the example questions, quick to show the results for “airline pilots” and “writers” to reveal the inventory results.   The sample is from the 16PF, a self-report inventory created by Raymond Cattell based on his framework of 16 personality factors. The most widely used self-report inventory is the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. Students are likely familiar with self-report inventories of some kind. Self-report inventories use standardized question-and-answer or true-false formats, and they’re objectively scored with comparisons to norms. While the reliability and validity of self-report inventories are far greater than those of projective tests, weaknesses of self-report inventories include the tendency of people to respond in socially desirable ways, the phenomenon of test-takers answering in a specific style, such as always choosing the first alternative, and also the fact that people are not always the best and most accurate judges of their own behavior, attitudes, and attributes. APA Learning Goal 1: Knowledge Base of Psychology

The Big Five Central Personality Traits. 1) Extroversion/Introversion 2) Agreeableness/Antagonism 3) Conscientiousness/Undirectedness 4) Emotional Stability/Unstable (Neuroticism) 5) Openness/Non-openness Module 42

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory Empirically Derived. Items on the Inventory are ones that research studies have shown differentiate people with known diagnoses from normal controls. Module 42

Can you lie on a Personality test? “Lie Scales” - detect faking good or bad. Module 42

Criticisms of Trait Theories - largely descriptive - emphasis on biology - how many central factors? Current Influences 1) personality traits are relatively stable. 2) personality tests used for diagnosis of mental disorders - job suitability? Module 42

Emotions and Behaviors Eclectic View - Mix of all the theories Biology Environment Cognition Emotions and Behaviors Module 42