1. Personality Theory, Research and Assessment
Chapter 11
Personality Theory, Research and Assessment

2. Personality
Personality: An individual’s consistent patterns of feeling, thinking, and behavior traits Personality Traits: How people behave in a particular way in a variety of situations

3. Five Factor (Big Five) Model *
Traits -- Relatively enduring characteristics that influence our behavior across many situations.
Big Five - 5 Underlying Trait dimensions
OCEAN:
Open to Experience
Conscientiousness
Agreeableness
Neuroticism
Extraversion

4. Openness to Experience*
Agreeableness
Conscientiousness
(Constraint)
Extraversion (Positive Emotionality)
Neuroticism (Negative Emotionality)
curiosity
Openness to Experience
flexibility
artistic sensitivity
imaginativeness
Openness to Experience
Openness to experience is associated with curiosity, flexibility, vivid fantasy, imaginativeness, artistic sensitivity, and unconventional attitudes.
vivid fantasy
unconventional attitudes

5. Conscientiousness* diligent punctual disciplined dependable
Extraversion (Positive Emotionality)
Neuroticism (Negative Emotionality)
Openness to Experience
Agreeableness
diligent
punctual
Conscientiousness
(Constraint)
Conscientiousness
(Constraint)
disciplined
dependable
Conscientious people are diligent, disciplined, well organized, punctual, and dependable. Some models refer to this trait as constraint, related to high productivity in a variety of occupational areas.
well-organized

6. Extraversion* outgoing assertive upbeat friendly gregarious sociable
Agreeableness
Conscientiousness
(Constraint)
Openness to Experience
Neuroticism (Negative Emotionality)
outgoing
assertive
Extraversion (Positive Emotionality)
upbeat
friendly
Extraversion (Positive Emotionality)
More recently, McCrae and Costa have used factor analysis to arrive at an even simpler, five-factor model of personality: the big five. High Extraversion scores signify that a person is outgoing, sociable, upbeat, friendly, assertive, and gregarious. Some trait models refer to this as positive emotionality.
gregarious
sociable

7. Agreeableness* sympathetic trusting modest cooperative
Conscientiousness
(Constraint)
Extraversion (Positive Emotionality)
Neuroticism (Negative Emotionality)
Openness to Experience
modest
cooperative
Agreeableness is associated with people who are sympathetic, trusting, cooperative, modest, and straightforward. It may have its roots in temperament.
straight forward

8. Neuroticism* anxious vulnerable insecure self-conscious hostile
Agreeableness
Conscientiousness
(Constraint)
Openness to Experience
Extraversion (Positive Emotionality)
anxious
vulnerable
Neuroticism (Negative Emotionality)
Neuroticism (Negative Emotionality)
insecure
High Neuroticism scores signify that a person is anxious, hostile, self-conscious, insecure, and vulnerable - some models call this negative emotionality.
self-conscious
hostile

9. Five Factor (Big Five) Model *
Take the test!
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for 5 point bonus on Assessment #4

10. Personality Tests * Self-Report Inventories*
Personality Inventories: questionnaires, e.g. MMPI
True/False or Multiple Choice; answers associated with trait or diagnosis
OBJECTIVE!
Projective Tests *
Ask for meaning of ambiguous stimuli
Rorschach – ask to explain image in Inkblots
Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
ask to tell stories about ambiguous pictures
SUBJECTIVE!

11. Freud and the Psychodynamic Approach *
Unconscious mind *
Memories outside awareness/not accessible
Repressed memories and emotions
Preconscious mind *
Thoughts just beneath surface
Voluntary access
Conscious mind *
Thoughts you are aware of
Currently processing

12. Components of Personality
Sigmund Freud
Id*
Primitive impulses, unconscious
pleasure principle*: immediate gratification
Ego *
Conscious, decision maker
Reality Principle*: delay gratification
Superego *
Unconscious; conscience
Sense of morality; constraints of society

13. Defense Mechanisms Sigmund Freud
Definition: unconscious reactions that protect a person from unpleasant emotions such as anxiety and guilt
Self-protective “distortions” of the truth

14. Freud’s Psychosexual Stages
Oral (0-18mo) Dependency; oral gratification
Anal (18mo-3y) Control issues; toilet training
Phallic (3-6y) Attraction to opposite sex; identification with same sex
Latency (6-puberty) Associate with same sex in normal activities like sports, school
Genital (Adult) Mature Sexuality

15. Humanistic Psychology *
Carl Rogers: Self Concept: – our beliefs about who we are
Key Concepts: Free Will and Self Concept
Self Esteem – Positive feelings about the self
Abraham Maslow: Hierarchy of Needs
Self-Actualization – motive to reach our full
potential
Esteem Needs
Love, Belonging
Safety
Physiological Needs

16. Is Personality Inherited?*
The Great Debate: Nature vs. Nuture
Environment: parents influence over their children
(Ex: Authoritarian vs. Permissive parenting styles)
Biological: theories stress the genetic origins of personality
(Ex: twins raised apart were still similar)
Evolutionary: natural selection has favored certain traits
Conclusion: Environment & Genes interact to influence personality and behavior = birth of BioPsychoSocial!

17. Social Cognitive Theory
Albert Bandura
Personality is shaped through learning
Observational learning: ‘monkey see—monkey do’
Model: a person who’s behavior is observed by other person
Self-efficacy: “I think I can, I think I can ...”

18. Person-Situation Theory
Walter Mischel
Person AND Situation determines behavior
Work hard = get paid, promotions and bonuses
No promotions, no bonus = show up to work
People that are honest in one situation are not always honest in another