Transcript The Psychology of the Person Chapter 7 Trait Approach Naomi Wagner, Ph.D Lecture Outlines Based on Burger, 8th edition.

The Psychology of the Person
Chapter 7 Trait Approach
Naomi Wagner, Ph.D
Lecture Outlines
Based on Burger, 8th edition
Personality as Trait Dimension
The trait approach sees human characteristics
as lying along a hypothetical continuum from
less of the trait to more of the trait, and each
person can be described in terms of his or her
standing on this continuum.
Extravert________________Introvert
The Normal Distribution
If we were to measure a large number of
people along a trait, we will find that the
scores are normally distributed (you need
to understand this expression)
The trait approach assumes that traits are
stable over time in a person, and
consistent across situations.
The Normal Distribution
Special Features of the Trait Approach
The trait approach is interested in predicting
the typical behavior of people who score
within a certain segment of the trait continuumsuch a low in social anxiety, or high in social
anxiety.
The approach enables to compare across
people, such as low or high in anxiety.
The approach does not attempt to predict the
behavior of a specific person.
It describes personality, but does not attempt
to explain it the underlying mechanisms of
traits.
Allport
Allport was the founder of the trait
approach
He suggested two avenues to study
personality:
The nomothetic– that looks at typical
behavior across people (e.g. how do
anxious people typically behave)
The idiographic: the in-depth study of one
person, such as in a case-study.
Nomothetic Approach
Comparison across people
How people typically behave in a given
situation
Picture shows people standing in a crowded bus holding to the rails
Central, Secondary, and Cardinal Traits
According to Allport
Central Traits: about 5 traits along which a
particular person can be described
Secondary traits: other, less “central” traits
in a particular individual
Cardinal trait: Just ONE trait that “takes
over” , often related to psychopathology,
for example, a person who is paranoid, a
tendency that is reflected in all aspects of
his/her behavior.
The Idiographic Approach
Studying ONE person in depth
The central traits of a given person are
relevant in this approach
Picture shows two men, one older and one younger, facing one
another, seem to be talking to each other
Henry Murray
Described personality along “psychogenic
needs”, that can be regarded as traits,
because they affect behavior.
Murray identified about 20 such needs
In an attempt to understand a person’s
behavior, it is important to know how the
strength of the needs within the person,
relative to one another
The “Press”
Murray maintained that an environmental
factor may give rise to a need in a person
He labeled such factor “press”
For example- you may not be aware of
your need for order, until you find yourself
in a very messy room
Murray developed a projective test, the
TAT (Thematic Apperception test)
Murray (cont-d)
An example of the relative strength: Let us
say that you have a strong need to affiliate
(to be with other people), and also a
strong need to achieve.
You are invited to a party tonight, while
tomorrow there is an important test
Your decision whether to go to the party or
study for the test reflects the relative
strength of these 2 needs.
Thematic Apperception Test
(TAT)
What is going on in this picture?
Picture shows and elderly woman standing behind a
younger woman
TAT (cont-d)
What is going on in this picture?
Picture shows a woman standing behind a man holding his
shoulders as if trying to prevent him from leaving
TAT
What is going on in this picture?
Picture showing a young woman in the forefront standing holding
books, behind her a man working the field, and on the side another
woman looking at the man
TAT
What is going on in this picture?
Picture shows a back-view of woman sitting on the floor
and burying her face in a bed
TAT
What is going on in this picture?
Picture shows an elderly woman standing and looking out and
behind her a younger man with a sad expression on his face
TAT
What is going on in this picture?
Picture shows a boy sitting in front of a violin
TAT
What is going on in this picture?
Picture shows a woman lying on a bed and a man standing near the
bed covering his face with his arm
Cattell and Factor Analysis
Raymond Cattell used the statistical technique of
factor analysis to identify the “basic structure” of
personality
Factor Analysis is a procedure looking for
correlations among various measures (in this
case- personality tests)
For example, each person is given 10 different
tests, and the procedure identifies which tests
“go together”, that is, the yield similar high
scores, suggesting a common underlying
“factor”
Cattell identified 16 basic traits, “source traits”
Factor Analysis and the Big Five
In Search of the “Structure” of Personality
Extraversion (vs. Introversion)
Neuroticism (emotional stability-instability)
Conscientiousness: disciplined and goaldirected
Agreeableness: Being kind and warm to
others
Openness: Intellectual curiosity,
imagination
Big Five Studies
The same 5 dimensions have been
identified in other cultures, other
languages
When people describe their friends, they
are using these dimensions
Studies suggested to refer to the
dimensions as 5 plus-minus 2
Factor Analysis depends on the data being
inserted into the procedure.
Criticism of the trait approach
An enduring controversy in personality
concerns the relative importance of traits
compared to situational determinants of
behavior.
Critics charge that traits do not predict behavior
well
Critics also charge that there is little evidence for
cross-situational consistency.
Traits explain only about 10% of differences
among people.
In Defense of Traits
Trait advocates answer that if traits and
behaviors are measured correctly, a
significant relationship can be found.
They suggest to aggregate (pull together)
several behavioral measures of a trait
In addition, advocates maintain that the
amount of behavioral variance explained
by traits is considerable and important.
Defense (cont-d)
Aggregating data- that is, looking at the
person’s behavior across time and situations
provides support for the trait assumption of
consistency.
It is also important to identify traits that are
relevant for the person in order to assess
consistency along time and across situations.
Though traits are responsible for only 10% of
the variance among people, this 10% is
relevant when decisions need to be make
based on comparisons between people.
In the Workplace
Conscientiousness was found to be the
personality dimensions preferred in
employment settings
Assessment: Self-Report Inventories
The MMPI
The MMPI was originally developed in the
1940’s to aid in making psychiatric
diagnosis
It had undergone several revisions and it
is now the most widely-used personality
self-report inventory.
It has 10 clinical scales and 4 validity
scales.
Validity scale to identify “faking”
Problems with Self-Report Inventories
Faking Good: Wanting to present oneself
in a better light
Faking bad: Wanting to present oneself in
a worth light (to be deemed incompetent to
stand trial, for example)
Carelessness
Sabotage
Response Tendencies, such as social
desirability or acquiescence
Current Status of Trait Approach
Though originally the trait approach was not
concerned with the underlying mechanisms,
Allport suggested that “one day” the biological
basis of traits will be identified, and this is the
current status
The trait approach has generated a great deal of
research
It enables the comparisons across people (e.g.
when you want to identify the best candidate for
a job)
It is NOT translated into psychotherapy.