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35 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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trait descriptive adjectives |
adjectives that can be used to describe characteristics of people ex: Fred is anxious ex: Tara is optimistic |
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personality |
the set of psychological traits and mechanisms within the individual that are organized and relatively enduring and that influence his or her interactions with, and adaptations to, the intrapsychic, physical, and social environment |
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....psychological traits |
characteristics that describe ways in which people are different from each other; traits also define ways in which people are similar to some others ex: people who are shy - different from those more outgoing; similar to others who are anxious in social situations |
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average tendencies |
on average, a high-talkative person starts more conversations than a low-talkative person traits describe AVERAGE TENDENCIES of a person |
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....psychological mechanisms |
like traits, except that the term 'mechanism' refers more to the processes of personality three essential ingredients: 1) inputs 2) decision rules 3) outputs ex: a psychological mechanism can make people more sensitive to particular kinds of information from the environment (input), may make them more likely to think about specific options (decision rules), and may guide their behavior toward certain categories of actions (outputs) ex: extraverted person may look for opportunities to be with other people |
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...within the individual |
means the personality is something a person carries with him or herself over time and from one situation to the next implies personalities are at least somewhat stable over time and somewhat consistent over situations |
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...organized |
the psychological traits and mechanisms for a given person are NOT simply a random collection personality is ORGANIZED b/c the mechanisms and traits are linked to one another in a coherent fashion |
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...enduring |
personality traits are relatively enduring over time, particularly in adulthood, and are somewhat consistent over situations ex: being angry is not a trait, its more of a state; being anger prone is a trait |
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"...and that influence" influential forces |
personality traits and mechanisms can have an effect on people's lives personality influences how we think, act and feel |
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"...his or her interactions with" person-environment interaction |
interactions with situations include perceptions, selections, evocations and manipulations perceptions - how we interpret an environment selection - describes the manner in which we choose situations to enter evocations - reactions we produce in others, often quite unintentionally manipulations - ways in which we intentionally attempt to influence others |
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:"...and adaptations to" adaptation |
conveys the notion that a central feature of personality concerns adaptive functioning (accomplishing goals, coping, adjusting, and dealing w/ challenges) |
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...the environment |
physical environment (food shortages, extreme temperatures) - fears of heights, snakes, spiders and strangers help us safely interact w/ these environmental threats to our survival social environment - also posses adaptive challenges the particular aspect of the environment that is important at any moment in tie is frequently determined by personality |
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3 levels of personality analysis |
1. like all others (the human nature level) 2. like some others (the level of individual and group differences) 3. like no others (individual uniqueness level) |
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human nature |
first level of personality analysis describes the traits and mechanisms of personality that are typical of our species and are possessed by everyone or nearly everyone ex: language skills, desire to live with others/belong to a social group |
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individual differences |
second level of personality analysis ways in which each person is like SOME other people (ex: extraverts, sensation seekers) |
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differences among groups |
people in one group may have certain personality features in common, and these common features make that group of people different from other groups group examples - cultures, age groups, political parties, socioeconomic background, men vs. women ex: across cultures, men tend to be more physically aggressive |
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nomothetic |
study individual uniqueness research that typically involves statistical comparisons of individuals or groups requires samples of subjects on which to conduct research typically applied to identify universal human characteristics and dimensions of individual or group differences |
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idiographic |
study individual uniqueness research that typically focuses on a single subject, trying to observe general principles that are manifest in a single life over time often results in case studies or the psychobiography of a single person |
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domain of knowledge |
a specialty area of science and scholarship in which psychologists have focused on learning about some specific and limited aspects of human nature |
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dispositional domain |
personality is influenced by traits the person is born with and develops over time deals with the ways in which individuals differ from one another interest in the number and nature of fundamental dispositions; origins and how these develop and are maintained |
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biological domain |
personality is influenced by biological events core assumption: humans are first and foremost a collection of biological systems, and these systems provide the building blocks for behavior, thought, and emotion three areas of research: 1. genetics - genetics of personality (do identicial twins have more similar personalities than frateneral?) 2. psychophysiology - summarize what is known about the basis of personality in terms of nervous system functioning (ex: links between hormones and personality) 3. evolution - how evolution may have shaped psychological functioning (assumes personality evolved as an effect of solving adaptive problems linked to survival and reproduction) |
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intrapsychic domain |
personality is influenced by processes within the person's own mind predominant theory in this domain is Freud's theory of psychoanalysis looks at sexual and aggressive forces; defense mechanisms (repression, denial, projection) |
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cognitive-experiential domain |
personality is influenced by personal and private thoughts, feelings, desires, beliefs, and other subjective experiences focus on consciousness and subjective experience includes: -how we self-organize (self and self concept) -self esteem = how we evaluate ourselves -the goals we strive for -our emotions |
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social and cultural domain |
personality is influenced by social, cultural, and gendered positions in the world personality does not merely reside within the heads, nervous sys, and genes of individuals --> affects and is affected by social context different cultures may bring out different facets of our personalities in manifest behavior role of gender |
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adjustment domain |
personality is influenced by the adjustments that the person must make to make the inevitable challenges of life involves adjusting, coping health related; can even be related to how long you live |
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good theory |
fulfills 3 purposes in science: 1. provides a guide for researchers 2. organizes known findings 3. makes predictions |
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theories vs beliefs |
beliefs -- based in faith, not reliable facts and systemic observations theories -- tested by systemic observations that can be repeated by others and that yield similar conclusions |
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scientific standards for evaluating personality theories |
1) comprehensiveness 2) heuristic value 3) testability 4) parsimony 5) compatibility and integration across domains and levels |
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comprehensiveness |
explains most or all known facts |
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heuristic value |
guides researchers to important new discoveries |
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testability |
makes precise predictions that can be empirically tested |
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parsimony |
contains few premises or assumptions |
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compatibility and integration across domains and levels |
consistent with what is known in other domains; can be coordinated with other branches of scientific knowledge |
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grand theories of personality
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tend to look at human nature level of analysis attempt to provide a universal account of the fundamental psychological processes and characteristics of our species |
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six domains of knowledge about human nature |
1. dispositional 2. biological 3. intrapsychic 4. cognitive-experimental 5. social and cultural 6. adjustment |
