1. WHAT IS ONE PERSONALITY TRAIT THAT YOU HAVE INHERITED FROM EACH OF YOUR PARENTS? EXPLAIN!
TURN IN TO ME PLEASE!

2. Intro to Trait Theory
Traits: relatively stable, habitual patterns of behavior, thought, and emotion that make up an individual’s personality
Examples of traits would include impulsivity, perfectionism, obsessionality, excitability, etc.
These are contrary to states, which are temporary
I.E., a trait of excitable is not the same thing as a state of excitedness
Traits exist along a spectrum where an individual may rank low, moderate, or high in comparison to the average person
Low
Moderate
High

3. Intro to Trait Theory
Gordon Allport is one of the earliest known “trait” psychologists. He went through the entire dictionary to search out single word trait descriptors and organized 4500 of them into three levels:
Cardinal Traits: the most dominant traits/passions/ obsessions/drives that shape a person’s personality
i.e., a need for money/fame, a yearning for knowledge, a life filled with lust, a life of public service to others, etc.
Central Traits: general characteristics that serve as the building blocks of a person’s personality
i.e., honesty, shyness, anxiousness, kindness, etc.
Secondary Traits: variable traits that exhibit only in certain circumstances
i.e., a side of yourself you only reveal to your best friend or a different way you act in the privacy of your own room
Allport’s theory isn’t relevant today, but it’s important because it was the first of its kind
Sims character creator is based on this theory!

4. Intro to Trait Theory
Modern trait theory constructs typically use personality inventories— questionnaires in which users are asked to rate themselves on a series of Likert Scales or true/false statements to determine a numerical scoring of their personality traits
Examples of Likert Scale questions:
The most widely researched and clinically used personality trait inventory is the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) due to its high validity and reliability
Measures personality but also used to detect mental health issues
567 true/false questions in about minutes
Uses standardization; user’s score is compared to “average” for analysis

5. The “Big Five”
The MMPI and most other inventories categorize personality into five major traits known as the “Big Five” factors of personality:
Conscientiousness
Agreeableness
Neuroticism
Openness to Experience
CANOE -or- OCEAN (Helpful Acronyms)
Extraversion

6. Conscientiousness
Conscientiousness: the personality trait of being careful and vigilant with a desire to perform tasks well
It is NOT “consciousness” – that is a state of awareness
It is NOT “conscience” – that is an intuition for distinguishing right from wrong
Fun facts - conscientious people:
Are less likely to read tabloid papers
Spend less time daydreaming
Tend to be more successful in the workplace (no other trait predicts this)
Are better at saving money
Tend to live longer than average
Are less likely to get divorced
Tend to be Republican
Tend to be less innovative
Disorderly
Non goal-oriented
Spontaneous
Efficient
Organized
Disciplined
Low
Moderate
High

7. Agreeableness
Agreeableness: the personality trait of being kind, sympathetic, cooperative, warm, and considerate
Those who score low on agreeableness are considered to have the “dark triad” traits of narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy
Fun facts – agreeable people:
View others in a more positive light
Are better behaved as children
Are better able to control negative emotions like anger in conflict situations
Are more willing to lose arguments in order to maintain a relationship
Tend to make LESS money than non-agreeable people
Tend to live in the West/Midwest (Wisconsin is #5 most “agreeable” state)
Selfish
Manipulative
Malevolent
Empathetic
Altruistic
Trustworthy
Low
Moderate
High

8. Neuroticism
Neuroticism: the personality trait of being anxious, fearful, and emotionally unstable
This is considered to be more of a NEGATIVE trait than the other five; scoring “high” in this is considered “bad” typically
To fix this, some models call it “emotional stability” instead and reverse the spectrum
Fun facts - neurotic people:
Tend to interpret ordinary situations as threatening and minor frustrations as hopelessly difficult
Have higher rates of mental disorders
Have sympathetic nervous systems that are more sensitive to environmental stimulation
Are more likely to be women than men
Are more at risk for heart disease and have lower life expectancies
Calm
Even-tempered
Emotionally secure
Nervous
Moody
Self-conscious
Low
Moderate
High

9. Openness to Experience
Openness to Experience: the personality trait of having a preference for novelty and variety
This trait tends to be normally distributed (meaning most people score “average” and relatively few score “high” or “low”
Fun facts – “open” people:
Are less likely to be religious
Tend to have eclectic tastes in music
Tend to be more creative than usual
Are moderately more crystallized intelligent and slightly more fluid intelligent than average
Are more likely to be politically liberal and tolerant of diversity
More often remember their dreams
Have higher sex drives & sexual experience
Conventional
Traditional
Prefer routine
Thrill-seeking
Imaginative
Independent
Low
Moderate
High

10. extraversion
Extraversion: the personality trait of being focused on social stimulation
The opposite of “extraverted” is being “introverted”
Recent research has focused on “mental energy” differences; extraverts “absorb” energy from others while introverts “disperse” energy to others
Fun facts - extraverted people:
Make up 50-66% of the US population
Have greater blood flow to the parts of the brain involved in sensory and emotional experience
Place greater emphasis on “decorative” clothing than “comfortable” clothing
Report higher levels of happiness than introverted people
Are less successful in academics
Are more likely to have diseases
Reserved
Solitary
Observational
Sociable
Affectionate
Outgoing
Low
Moderate
High

11. Trait Theory Criticism
The biggest criticism of trait theory is that it does not take into account the importance of the situation
If an observer were to walk into the room right now, he/she would think that all of you are very introverted because none of you are talking, but that’s only happening because you’re currently in the role of a student
When you’re at home after school eating dinner with your family, you’re probably more extraverted
And at a party on the weekend, you’re probably even more extraverted