TRAIT PERSPECTIVE

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TRAIT PERSPECTIVE

• Stable Enduring Predispositions to Behave in a
  Certain Way.

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Trait

• A characteristic pattern of behavior or a
  disposition to feel and act, as assessed by
  self-report inventories and peer reports
• Trait Perspective focus on individual differences
  rather than similarities like previous theories.
• Trait theories seek to identify, describe and
  measure these individual differences.

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Types of Traits

• Traitrelatively stable predisposition to behave
  in a certain way
• Surface traitcharacteristic that can be inferred
  from observable behavior
• Source traitMost fundamental dimensions of
  personality very broad traits that are
  relatively few in number and give rise to surface
  traits.

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Ancient Greek Traits

• Ancient Greeks classified four personality traits
• Sanguine (cheerful)
• Melancholic (depressed)
• Choleric (irritable)
• Phlegmatic (unemotional)
• Felt these were caused by humor (body fluids)

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Gordon Allport (1897-1967)

• American psychologist and trait theorist who
  researched the idea that individual personalities
  are unique
• Studied the English dictionary and found more
  than 4,000 words describing specific personality
  traits.
• Stressed importance of studying mentally healthy
  people
• Resisted the idea of finding personality law
  that would apply to everyone

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Theorists

• Raymond Cattell16 PF
• Hans EysenckThree factor model
• William Sheldon Body Types model
• McCrae and CostaFive factor model

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Raymond Cattell (1905-1998)

• English psychologist who researched whether some
  traits predicted others
• Used factor analysis to come up with 16 key
  personality dimensions or factors to describe
  personality
• Proposed Each factor was measured on a continuum
• Generally considered as too many traits

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Cattells 16 Personality Factors

• Example Questions and Profiles The 16PF,
  developed by Raymond Cattell, is a self-report
  inventory that contains 185 items like those
  shown in part (a).

When scored, the 16PF generates a personality
profile. In part (b), personality profiles of
airline pilots and writers are compared. Cattell
(1973) found that pilots are more controlled,
more relaxed, more self-assured, and less
sensitive than writers
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Hans Eysenck (1916-1997)

• German psychologist who researched the
  genetically-influenced dimensions of personality
• Had 3 different source traits dimensions
• Introversion-extraversion
• Degree to which a person directs their energies
  inward toward themselves or outward onto others.
• Emotional stability- Neuroticism (Stable
  Unstable)
• A persons predisposition to become emotionally
  upset or stay emotionally even.
• Psychoticism
• Low in this means warm caring toward others.
• High in this means antisocial, cold, hostile
  unconcerned about others.
• Generally considered as too few traits
• Using the first two dimensions he created 4 basic
  personality types (see next slide)
• Recent brain scan studies show specific
  personality traits can produce individual
  differences in the brains reaction to emotional
  stimuli (Focus on Neuroscience)

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Eysencks 4 Personality Types
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William Sheldon body types(1898-1977)
Your body type determines your personality
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Sheldons endomorph

• Love of food
• Love of comfort
• Sociable
• Good-humored
• Relaxed
• Tolerant

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Sheldons ectomorph

• Self-conscious
• Private
• Introverted
• Intense
• Artistic
• Restrained

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Sheldons mesomorph

• Adventurous
• Dominant
• Courageous
• Indifferent
• Competitive
• Risk-taker

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Five Factor Model

• Essential building blocks of personality can be
  described in 5 basic personality dimensions.
• Described somewhat differently among researchers
  but can be found cross culturally.
• Research shows them to be stable over time
  consistent over different situations.
• 5 Factorsusually rated from low to high
• Extraversion
• Neuroticism
• Openness to Experience
• Agreeableness
• Conscientiousness
• Human behavior is the result of interaction
  between traits and situations.

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The Big Five Traits
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The Big Five Traits
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The Big Five Traits
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The Big Five Traits
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The Big Five Traits
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The Trait Perspective

• Play Personality Traits (332) Segment 29 from
  Psychology The Human Experience.

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Behavioral Genetics

• Interdisciplinary field that studies the effects
  of genes and heredity on behavior
• Heredity seems to play a role in four of the big
  five personality traitsextraversion,
  neuroticism, openness to experience, and
  conscientiousness
• Influence of environment is at least equal to
  that of genetic factors.
• Minnesota Study of Twins Reared Apart found
  striking similarities in identical twins that did
  not occur in fraternal twins.
• Similarities in identical twins may result from
  unique configuration of interacting genes called
  emergenic traits.

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Evaluation of Trait Perspective

• Psychologists generally accept that people can be
  described compared in terms of basic
  personality traits.
• BUT Trait Theory
• Doesnt really explain personality, simply
  describe the behaviors
• Doesnt explain the development of the different
  behaviors/personalities
• Fails to address how issues such as motives,
  unconscious, or beliefs about self affect
  personality development