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intro to psychology > lec 10: personality > Flashcards

lec 10: personality Flashcards

1
Q

what is personality shaped by?

A

biological, situational and mental processes embedded in a sociocultural and development context.

combination of:
- biology/evolution (nature)
- social networks/culture
- development
- environment (nurture)

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2
Q

define disposition.

A

refers to relatively stable personality pattern, including temperaments, traits, and personality types.

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3
Q

what is personality process?

A

internal working of personality, involving motivation, emotion, perception, learning and unconscious processes.

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4
Q

differentiate between individualism and collectivism.

A

individualism values individual achievements and distinction, while collectivism values group loyalty and pride.

individualism is common in euro-american societies while collectivism is common in asia, africa, latin america and the middle east.

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5
Q

describe hippocrates’ humor theory.

A

hippocrates believes that our individual personality is influenced by our predominant body fluid, or “humor”, which could either be:

  1. blood - from the heart, temperament: sanguine (cheerful)
  2. choler (yellow bile) - from liver, temperament: choleric (angry)
  3. melancholer (black bile) - from spleen, temperament: melancholy (depressed)
  4. phlegm - from brain, temperament: phlegmatc (sluggish)
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6
Q

define dispositional theory

A

a general term including temperament, trait and type approaches to personality.

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7
Q

true or false: we still use hippocrates’ humor to describe the biological basis of personality today.

A

false.

  • humor replaced with neurotransmitters
  • depressed personality can be explained by imbalance of certain neurotransmitters, so can anger, anxiety and euphoria
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8
Q

define traits.

A

traits are multiple stable personality characteristics that an individual has, that guide her thoughts and actions in certain situations.

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9
Q

temperament vs trait

A

temperament is the foundation of personality, deeply rooted in our biological nature while trait is a multidimensional structure built on temperament as a foundation, but also influenced by experiences.

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10
Q

state the 5-factor theory.

A

5-factor theory states that personality is composed of 5 fundamental personality dimensions (aka big 5):
1. openness to experience
2. conscientiousness
3. extraversion
4. agreeableness
5. neuroticism

OCEAN

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11
Q

elaborate on each of the big 5 under the 5-factor theory.

A
  1. openness to experience: independence, curiosity (opp. closed-mindedness, unimaginative)
  2. conscientiousness: dependability, prudent, perseverance, goal-directedness (opp. carelessness, irresponsibility, impulsiveness)
  3. extraversion: sociability, boldness, self-confidence (opp. introversion, shyness)
  4. agreeableness: warm, liked (opp. cold, negative, antagonistic)
  5. neuroticism: anxiety, emotionality (opp. emotional stability)
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12
Q

what are NEO-PI and MMPI-2?

A
  • personality asessment instruments
  • NEO-PI measures personality on the 5 factors
  • MMPI-2 measures signs of mental disorders
  • excellent reliability and validity
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13
Q

differentiate between reliability and validity.

A

reliability refers to consistency of results while validity refers to the test measuring exactly what it wants to measure.

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14
Q

what are personality types?

A

categories representing common clusters of personality characteristics.

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15
Q

whare some strengths and limitations of the dispositional theory?

A

strengths
1. explains individual differences when they grow up in the same environment
2. ability to predict behaviour in common situations

limitations
1. considers personality as fixed, when there will be developmental changes
2. dangers of self-fulfilling prophecy (purposely doing things to satisfy your “personality”)
3. describe behaviour without explanations, again leading to self-fulfilling prophecy
4. oversimplification

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16
Q

what do the psychodynamic theories emphasise on?

A

motivation and mental disorders

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17
Q

who demonstrated that physical symptoms can disappear in hysteria patients while they are hypnotised? who did he then inspire?

A

jean charcot. he inspired sigmund freud who then came up with the freudian theories of id, ego and superego as well as psychosexual stages.

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18
Q

what is psychoanalysis?

A

treating mental disorders using psychoanalytic theory (freud’s theory of personality and mental disorders). its goal is to release the unacknowledged conflicts, urges and memories from the unconscious mind.

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19
Q

define unconscious in freudian theory.

A

unconsciousness is the psychic domain storing repressed urges, conflicts and memories unavailable to the consciousness.

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20
Q

define thanatos.

A

death instinct driving harmful acts to self and others (reckless driving, smoking, drug abuse)

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21
Q

define psychic determinism.

A

states that all human behaviours stem from unconscious urges, conflict and memories.

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22
Q

under freudian theory, what is the structure of personality and what illustration do we use?

A

structure

  1. id: unconscious, desires that we want to act on here and now, without regard for consequences
  2. superego: preconscious, “parent” of the mind, dictates what morals we should abide by, incl. “ego ideal”
  3. ego: conscious, compromise between ego and id

illustration: iceberg model with unconscious (id) below, conscious (ego) above and preconscious (superego) in the middle

23
Q

what happens when ego cannot find a compromise between id and superego?

A

trigger mental disorders

24
Q

what are the 5 psychosexual stages according to freud?

A
  1. oral (0-1 year, erogenous zone: mouth, fixations: smoking, eating, talkativeness)
  2. anus (1-3 years, erogenous zone: anus, fixations: stingy, stubborn, neatness)
  3. phallic (3-6 years, erogenous zone: genitals, fixations: vanity, overambitiousness)
  4. latency (6-12 years)
  5. genital (after puberty, erogenous zone: genitals, fixations: not working properly, immature in r/s)
25
Q

according to freud’s psychosexual stages, which stage should children resolve their conflicts with same-sex parent/adult?

A

phallic stage is where children aged 6-12 experience sexual curiosity. to prevent adult fixation like vanity and overambitiousness, they should resolve their conflicts with the same-sex parent/adult during this stage.

26
Q

define the oedipus complex.

A
  • unconscious process
  • boys displace erotic attraction toward their mother with girls their age
  • identify with fathers/male adult
27
Q

what is the electra complex?

A

girl’s psychosexual competition with their mother for their father’s love and affection. can be resolved when they identify with their mother or adult female, just like the oedipus complex in boys.

28
Q

list and describe briefly all 8 of freud’s ego denfense mechanisms.

A
  1. repression - suppressing of unpleasant deisres or memories
  2. projection - attributing one’s unpleasant feelings on another
  3. sublimation - redirecting one’s unpleasant desires or memories onto more acceptable social channels
  4. displacement - transfer inappropriate urges onto more acceptable targets/channels
  5. denial - not accepting that a real event happened as it is unpleasant
  6. rationalisation - justification of one’s unacceptable thoughts using a more acceptable substitute reason rather than the unacceptable real reason
  7. regression - return to coping strategies used in immature stages of development (child-like behaviours)
  8. reaction formation - reduce anxiety by adopting beliefs contradictory to own own
29
Q

(a) what are the 2 projective tests?

(b) where do they stem from?

(c) what are the problems in the results of these tests?

A

(a)

  1. Rorschach Inkbot technique - requries clients to describe what they see in a series of 10 inkblots
  2. Thematic apperception test (TAT) - require clients to make up story from ambiguous images

(b) they are projective tests to assess personalities via client’s response to ambiguous visual stimuli, stemming from freud’s ego defense mechanism of projection.

(c)

  1. these tests are subjective, thus can be influences by biases, individual experiences and perceptions.
  2. there is no standard grading scale - low in reliability and validity.
30
Q

what are neo-freudians?

name 2 neo-freudians.

A

neo-freudians are theorists who broke away from freud. they have theories that are different from freud’s but similar in the psychodynamic aspect that personality stems from motivation.

2 neo-freudians are karen horney (basic anxiety, neurotic needs) and carl jung (personal and collective unconsciousness).

note:

  • collective unconsciousness includes instinctive memories all humans share, and archetypes
  • archetypes are ancient images of memories, illustrated in folklores, art and literature
31
Q

what is basic anxiety (karen horney)?

A

emotion that gives a sense of uncertainty and loneliness in a hostile world, that can lead to maladjustments

32
Q

what are neurotic needs?

A
  • normal desires taken to extremes
  • when a person cannot handle basic anxiety, she becomes neurotic and develops unconscious strivings to cope with life despite fears, helplessless and isolation
  • 10 neurotic needs:
    need for approval/affection
    need for partner, dread of being left alone
    need to restrict one’s life and remain inconspiscuous
    need for power over others
    need to exploit others
    need for recognition/prestige
    need for personal admiration
    need for personal achievement
    need for independence
    need for perfection
33
Q

what are some significant changes neo-freudians bring to psychoanalysis?

A
  1. greater emphasis on ego functions (self development and conscious thoughts) rather than just unconsciousness
  2. gave social variables (culture, family, peers) important roles in determining personality
  3. extended personality development beyond childhood to include lifespan
34
Q

what do the behavioural and social cognitive perspectives of personality emphasise?

A

behavioural (watson and skinner): emphasis on personality being a set of learned responses/habits

social cognitive (bandura and rotter): emphasis on personality being influences of other people’s behaviour and owr own expectancies on learning

35
Q

describe albert bandura’s social cognitive theory on personality.

A

albert bandura’s social cognitive theory on personality states that personality is a collection of learned behaviours patterns shaped by:

  1. our own experience
  2. observational learning of our social environment
  3. expectations of rewards or punishments.
36
Q

define reciprocal determinism

A

process in which cognitions, behaviours and environment mutually influence one another

37
Q

define locus of control.

A

an individual’s sense of whether control over her life is external or internal

38
Q

evaluate the behavioural and social-cognitive approach to personality.

A

limitation: focuses on information processing, overlooks emotions and unconsciousness

strengths:

  • testable
  • provides explanations and interventions for certain psychological disorders
  • explains why our behaviour may vary across situations
39
Q

evaluate the psychodynamic perspective on personality.

A

limitations:

  • some theories cannot be scientifically researched
  • overemphasis on unconsciousness and unhealthy personalities

strengths:

  • importance of childhool experiences on personality
  • concept that unconsciousness can affect conscious behavior
  • use of defense mechanisms
  • deals with difficult aspects of human life (anxiety, unacceptable desires, conflicts)
40
Q

what are the main tenets of humanistic approach to personality?

A
  1. free will + personal development = personality
  2. people have potential for growth
  3. negative developments stem from unhealthy situations, not unhealthy individuals
41
Q

what is a self-actualizing personality according to abraham maslow?

A

healthy individual whose basic needs are met and is free to be creative and fulfill her potential.

42
Q

what is a fully functioning person according to carl rogers?

A

healthy, self-actualising individual who has a self concept that is both positive and realistic.

43
Q

what is the self-concept?

A
  • image of oneself that develops from interactions with important, significant people in life
  • real self: one’s perception of actual characteristics and abilities that form the basis of the striving for self-actualisation
  • ideal self: one’s perception of whom one should or would like to be
44
Q

explain the difference between conditional and unconditional positive regards.

A
  • positive regarsd are the love, affection and warmth given by significant people in our lives
  • unconditional positive regard is given without conditions/strings attached, leads to fully functioning person (a self-actualising person who has a self-concept that is positive and congruent with reality) and high self-esteem
  • conditional positive regards is given only when we do something they want, leads to incongruent self-concept, recurrent anxiety and defensive behaviours

(need to distort ourselves to overcome shortcomings -> incongruent self-concept -> recurrent anxiety -> defensive behaviours -> incongruent self-concept and cycle repeats)

45
Q

describe maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

A

[from bottom of pyramid]

deficiency needs:

  1. physiological (food, water, air, warmth)
  2. safety (shelter, security)
  3. belongingness and love (friends, family)
  4. esteem (pestige, accomplishments)

growth needs:

  1. self-actualisation (achieve full potential)

deficiency needs fulfilled - higher-level needs emerge, can climb up

deficiency needs unfulfilled - maladjustment

46
Q

evaluate the humanistic approach to personality.

A

limitations:

  • some concepts difficult to test scientifically
  • self-centredness may apply

strengths:

  • importance of subjective views and self-concept
  • insights to development of healthy personalities
  • provides guidelines for development of full potential (maslow’s hierarchy of needs)
47
Q

how do we understand ourseles and others?

A

based on implicit theories of personality and our own self-narratives, both influenced by culture.

48
Q

what is implicit personality theory?

A

a person’s set of unquestioned assumptions about personality, used to simplify the task of understanding others

49
Q

what is a mindset?

A
  • extent to which one believes abilities/talents are fixed by nature or can grow through practice
  • experience influences success that requires hardwrok and effort
  • reactions to failures
50
Q

what are self-narratives?

A

stories of our own lives, gives us a sense of consistency in our personalities over time

51
Q

what is redemptive self?

A

a common self-narrative identified by McAdams in generative americans. involves overcoming obstacles in order to help others who are not as fortunate as oneself.

52
Q

define FAE.

A

fundamental attribution error.

the dual tendency to overemphasise internal, dispositional causes and minimise external, situational pressures when it comes to causes for behaviours.

eg. when someone is late for class, it is because he is irresponsible (internal, dispositional) and not because the bus came late (external, situational).

more common in individualistic cultures (euro-american) than collectivistic cultures (asian and african).

53
Q

what are hale and horn effects?

A

they are biases in understanding others

  • halo: view person positively just because of a positive instance
  • horn: view person negatively due to just one negative instance

intro to psychology (7 decks)

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