Week 7 Intelligence and Personality

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Questions and Answers

Which factor is NOT associated with academic ability according to the provided information?

Life satisfaction (correct)

Antisocial behavior

Higher wages

Mental disorder risk

What does postformal thought suggest about truth?

Truth is absolute and unchanging.

Truth is defined solely by empirical evidence.

Truth can vary depending on the situation. (correct)

Truth is irrelevant in decision-making.

In the context of decision-making, older adults tend to:

Require less information to make decisions. (correct)

Prioritize fluid intelligence over crystallized intelligence.

Seek more information than younger adults.

Avoid using their past experiences.

Which type of reasoning is characterized by changing one's thoughts to better approximate the world of experience?

Accommodation Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following describes a common cognitive approach in reflective judgment?

Recognizing the presence of ambiguity and contradiction. Signup and view all the answers

What distinguishes wisdom from general knowledge?

Wisdom involves superior judgment and virtue. Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is NOT a component of the Common Wisdom Model?

Fixed beliefs Signup and view all the answers

How do older adults typically vary their problem-solving approaches?

They adapt based on the context of the problem. Signup and view all the answers

In the scenario presented, what is the moral dilemma faced by the individual?

Choosing to use someone else's train ticket without permission. Signup and view all the answers

What aspect of wisdom is highlighted by the integration of opinions and compromise?

Recognition of uncertainty Signup and view all the answers

What happens to neuroticism as individuals grow older?

It shows a slight decrease, especially in women. Signup and view all the answers

Which dispositional trait shows a slight increase with age?

Agreeableness Signup and view all the answers

What aspect of personality is described as giving a person a sense of self or identity?

Life narrative Signup and view all the answers

According to the Five-Factor Model, which trait is expected to increase up to age 70?

Conscientiousness Signup and view all the answers

Which term describes the developmental changes in personality concerning their adaptive value?

Personality Adjustment Signup and view all the answers

What is the focus of 'personal concerns' in personality analysis?

Individual goals and major life concerns Signup and view all the answers

What describes the ideal end states associated with personality according to the content?

Increased self-transcendence, wisdom, and integrity Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following traits is estimated to decrease slightly with age?

Extraversion Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary characteristic of dispositional traits?

They are consistent and can be compared across groups. Signup and view all the answers

Which researchers contributed to the theory of the Five-Factor Model?

Costa and McCrae Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Intellectual Abilities

Academic ability is linked to higher wages.
Low IQ is associated with increased antisocial behavior and a higher risk of developing mental disorders.
However, IQ is not related to life satisfaction or marital happiness.

Moderators of Intellectual Change

Cohort differences, information processing, socialcultural and lifestyle variables, personality, and health can influence intellectual change.

Differences in Thinking

Piaget's Theory of Adaptation:
- Assimilation: Applying existing knowledge to understand new information.
- Accommodation: Modifying existing knowledge to better represent the world.
Postformal Thought:
- Acknowledges that truth can vary based on context.
- Emphasizes the need for realistic solutions.
- Recognizes the inherent ambiguity and contradiction in life.
- Highlights the role of emotions and subjective factors in thinking.
Reflective Judgment:
- Prereflective Reasoning: Knowledge seen as absolute, with no need for justification.
- Quasi-Reflective Reasoning: Acknowledges uncertainty, but relies on personal opinions.
- Reflective Reasoning: Recognizes the provisional nature of knowledge and seeks evidence-based solutions.

Everyday Reasoning

Decision Making:
- Older adults tend to seek less information for decision-making and rely more on accessible information.
- They often avoid taking risks.
- Age differences in decision-making are smaller when relying on crystallized intelligence (knowledge and experience).
Problem Solving:
- Older adults are more likely to adjust their problem-solving strategies based on the specific challenge.
- For instance, they often employ more emotion-regulation strategies in interpersonal conflicts.

Wisdom

Definition: Integrated and distilled understanding derived from life experience.
Characteristics: Expertise in fundamental life pragmatics, dealing with important life matters, possessing superior knowledge, judgment, and advice, being well-intended, and combining mind and virtue.
Key Components: Pragmatic, epistemic, and better recognized by peers than by oneself.
Consensus/Common Wisdom Model:
- Metacognition: Intellectual humility, recognizing multiple perspectives and contexts, acknowledging uncertainty and change, integrating opinions and compromise.
- Moral Aspirations and Cultural Contexts: Wisdom is grounded in these factors.
Aging and Wisdom: Wisdom generally increases with age but not guaranteed.

Personality

Dispositional Traits: Consistent personality characteristics that can be measured across individuals.
Personal Concerns: Things that are important to individuals, their goals, and life concerns.
Life Narrative: The integrated story of oneself, including identity and sense of self.

The Five-Factor Model of Personality

Neuroticism: Tends to slightly decrease, especially in women.
Extraversion: Slightly decreases.
Openness to Experience: Slightly decreases.
Agreeableness: Slightly increases.
Conscientiousness: Increases up to age 70.

Personality Changes Throughout Adulthood

Personality Adjustment: Developmental changes that improve adaptive value and functionality.
Personality Growth: Ideal end states such as increased self-transcendence, wisdom, and integrity.

Personal Concerns

Contextualized: Personal concerns are shaped by specific life circumstances.
Narrative Descriptions: They involve stories and are not objective measures.
Change Over Time: Personal concerns shift throughout adulthood.

Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development

Each stage represents a major life struggle.
Epigenetic Principle: Each stage needs to be resolved to move to the next.
Generativity vs. Stagnation: A key stage in adulthood where individuals either contribute to society or become self-absorbed.

Extensions of Erikson's Theory

Logan: Each stage is part of a cycle leading to a sense of wholeness.
Slater: The generativity crisis involves struggles between pride and embarrassment, responsibility and ambivalence, career productivity and inadequacy, and parenthood and self-absorption.
Kotre: Generativity is expressed in various ways, not a singular state of being.
McAdams: Generativity is influenced by both societal and inner forces.
- Generative Concern: Interest in caring for younger generations.
- Generative Action: Behaviors that promote the well-being of others.

Life Transitions

Midlife Crisis: A period of reassessment and potential change, not necessarily a crisis.
Midlife Correction: Reevaluating roles and dreams and making necessary adjustments.

McAdams's Life-Story Model

Life Story: A personal narrative with a beginning, middle, and anticipated ending.
Continual Reformulation: Individuals refine their life stories throughout adulthood.
Characteristics of a Well-Integrated Life Story: Coherent, credible, open to new possibilities, richly differentiated, reconciling opposite aspects, and integrated within one's sociocultural context.

Whitbourne's Identity Theory

Life-Span Construct: An individual's understanding of their life's trajectory, including past, present, and future.
Assimilation and Accommodation: The life-span construct evolves using these concepts from Piaget.
Scenario: Expected life path.
Life Story: The personal narrative of one's life.

Possible Selves

Projections: Thoughts about what one could, would like to, and fears becoming, in the future.
Age Differences:
- Emerging Adults: Family concerns are primary.
- Established Adults: Personal concerns are most important.
- Middle-Aged Adults: Family concerns resurface (letting go of children).
- Older Adults: Personal concerns reappear (staying active and healthy).
Optimism: Emerging adults tend to be more optimistic about their possible selves than older adults.

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Description

This quiz explores the complexities of intellectual abilities and their associations with various life outcomes, including wages and mental health. It also discusses Piaget's theories of adaptation and the concept of postformal thought, highlighting the role of context in understanding truth. Assess your knowledge on how intellectual change is influenced by various moderating factors.