Lecture 5 - Gabrielle - Personality Traits PDF

Psych 305A: Lecture 5 Part 1 Guest Lecture: Gabrielle Ibasco Traits & Trait Taxonomies The Person-Situation Debate Personality Change vs. Stability 1  What is a trait? Almost any adjective (or sometimes a noun) that describes the way some people are and others are not A...

Psych 305A: Lecture 5 Part 1 Guest Lecture: Gabrielle Ibasco Traits & Trait Taxonomies The Person-Situation Debate Personality Change vs. Stability 1  What is a trait? Almost any adjective (or sometimes a noun) that describes the way some people are and others are not Attributes that seem generally characteristic of an individual 2  Traits are the Basic Building Blocks of Personality Shy Happy Organized Punctual Talkative Creative 3  Key Elements of Traits Personal (‘internal’) rather than situational (‘external’) 4  Key Elements of Traits Chuck and Lynndie – INTERNAL traits vs. EXTERNAL situation 5  Key Elements of Traits Personal (‘internal’) rather than situational (‘external’) Consistent across ‘similar’ situations – People who are friendly at school also tend to be friendly at home, at work, when they meet new people, etc. – But, situations also influence behaviour 6  Key Elements of Traits Personal (‘internal’) rather than situational (‘external’) Consistent across ‘similar’ situations Stable across time 8 9  Key Elements of Traits Personal (‘internal’) rather than situational (‘external’) Consistent across ‘similar’ situations Stable across time Universal dimensions: Individual differences (across people) – Useful way of describing and comparing personality differences in all people 10  Key Elements of Traits Allow for comparisons of all people across a continuum 11  Key Elements of Traits Personal (‘internal’) rather than situational (‘external’) Consistent across ‘similar’ situations Stable across time Universal dimensions: Individual differences (across people) – Useful way of describing and comparing personality differences in all people Descriptive, not explanatory – Why did he talk a lot? Because he’s extraverted 12  What Aren’t Personality Traits? Temporary states (e.g., embarrassed) Attitudes (e.g., sexist, liberal) Cognitive ability (e.g., GRE scores) Physical attributes (e.g., tall, short, thin) Social categories (e.g., bully, wimp, jock) 13 Trait Taxonomies 14  Trait Taxonomies: Organizing Personality Theoretical approach: Hans Eysenck Personality taxonomy should be rooted in biology 3 major traits of interest: “PEN” Psychoticism (related to testosterone level)— aggressive, cold, egocentric, impersonal Extraversion (related to physiological arousal)— sociable, active, lively Neuroticism (related to fluctuations in autonomic nervous system)—anxious, depressed, tense 15  Trait Taxonomies: Organizing Personality The psychoticism dimension was a later addition to Eysenck’s model. Some criticisms of the psychoticism dimension Label accuracy (should it be called “antisocial personality” instead?) Relevance of sub-traits (e.g., creativity conceptualized as a sub-trait of psychoticism) 16 Circumplex Taxonomies: Eysenck’s “Big Two” Circumplex taxonomy 17  Circumplex Taxonomies Broad level factors are statistically independent Your level on one factor does not have any relation to your level on another factor Possible to be high N + high E, high N + low E, low N + low E, or low N + high E Squidward: Melancholic High N: Paranoid, constantly anxious Low E: Extremely private, hates noise 18 19  Circumplex Taxonomies Broad level factors are statistically independent Your level on one factor does not have any relation to your level on another factor Possible to be high N + high E, high N + low E, low N + low E, or low N + high E SpongeBob: Sanguine Low N: Carefree and optimistic High E: Friendly and outgoing 20 21  Problems with PEN Not all-inclusive Other empirical studies found more than 3 factors Other traits show heritability, not just PEN e.g., conscientiousness Other taxonomies developed to address issues Wiggins’ theory of interpersonal traits Agency (Status) + Communion (Love) The Five Factor Model (FFM) 23  The Five-Factor Model (FFM) or “Big 5” Openness: curious and unconventional Conscientiousness: orderly and disciplined Extraversion: exuberant and sociable Agreeableness: caring and considerate Neuroticism: emotional and anxious Costa & McCrae, 1992; Goldberg, 24  FFM: Factor Analysis Combination of lexical and statistical approaches Started with 17,953 trait terms (Allport & Odbert) 5 meaningful clusters eventually identified from this long list of items through factor analysis Factor analysis: empirical way of identifying groups of items that tend to go together, but tend not to go together with other groups of items 25  FFM: Factor Analysis Artistic Altruistic Openness Curious O Caring Conscientiousness Cultured Modest A Extraversion Imaginative Tender Refined Agreeableness Trusting Conventional Neuroticism Anxious Cautious Angry N Industrious C Depressed Orderly Self-Conscious Responsible Vulnerable Assertive Gregarious Enthusiastic E Warm Energetic 26 FFM: Strong Empirical Support Factor analysis repeatedly finds five factors Cross-cultural replication Replication with different measures Genetic links Cross-species replication e.g., dogs, hyenas, monkeys Extraverted chimp Introverted chimp 27 Facets of the FFM McCrae & Costa, 2003 28 FFM: Openness to experience Openness Fantasy Aesthetics Feelings Ideas Actions (i.e., Values (i.e., adventure) challenging authority Open people remember dreams better, are more creative, and enjoy novel experiences McCrae & Costa, 2003 29  FFM: Conscientiousness Conscientiousness Competence Order Dutifulness Achievement- striving Self-Discipline Deliberation Conscientious people are successful in school and work, and have more stable, committed romantic relationships McCrae & Costa, 2003 30  FFM: Extraversion Extraversion Gregariousnes Activity Level Assertiveness Warmth s Excitement Positive Seeking Emotions Extraverts love social attention and leadership, and are happier McCrae & Costa, 2003 31  FFM: Agreeableness Agreeablenes s Trust Altruism Modesty Compliance Straight- Tender- forwardness mindedness Agreeable people resolve conflicts, are generous, and are well-liked McCrae & Costa, 2003 32  FFM: Neuroticism Neuroticism Anxiety Depression Vulnerability Impulsiveness Self- Angry consciousness Hostility Neurotic people are highly emotional, have mood swings and instability in relationships, and are more fatigued McCrae & Costa, 2003 33  FFM: Associations Outcome FFM Traits Good grades High conscientiousness, low neuroticism Substance abuse Low conscientiousness, high neuroticism High earnings Low neuroticism, high openness, high conscientiousness 34 What’s Missing from Big 5? Religiosity/spirituality Honesty/humility HEXACO model: accounts for honesty/humility as a sixth factor (Ashton et al., 2004) Honest/humble: honest, sincere, trustworthy, unselfish Dishonest/arrogant: arrogant, conceited, greedy, pompous, self-important, egotistical 36  Issues in Personality Psychology: Person / Situation Debate 37 1968 38 1968 39  What was going on in ’68? Changes in Field of Personality: – End of the era of mega-theories (Freud, Jung, Maslow, Murray) – Era of middle-level theories Domain-specific Personality traits used to describe and predict certain types of behavior B = f (P) Behavior is determined by personality 40  What was going on in ’68? Rise of Social Psychology – Lewin’s Interactionism Behavior is a function of person and situation B = f (P x S) – Festinger’s Situationism Reduced to B = f (S) Personality = error variance, irrelevant 41  Situationism Emphasis on the power of the situation to shape people’s behavior – Asch’s conformity study – Milgram’s obedience study – Zimbardo’s prison study** **now known to be largely an act (see https://www.vox.com/2018/6/13/17449118/stanford-prison- 42 experiment-fraud-psychology-replication) Mischel’s Critique Personality does not predict behavior B = f (P) is wrong People act differently in different situations Knowing a person’s level on a particular trait does not allow you to predict their behavior on any specific occasion 43 The result of Mischel’s critique Personality psychology suffered! – Fewer grad programs Currently, almost no solely P programs in the US or Canada, and possibly more pure S programs than combined S-P – Fewer researchers in the area – Fewer jobs 44  The Result of Mischel’s Critique Social Psychology blossomed – Huge area of research – Many grad programs, researchers, and jobs But, over time, personality psychology fought back… and became stronger 45  Personality’s Response 1. Personality traits predict behavior, but over the long-term – Your level of Extraversion is a good predictor of the total number of times you will go to parties this quarter but, a weak predictor of whether you will go to a party this Friday night – Like batting average; seasonal weather To predict behaviors, use aggregation – Averaging/summing together a set of behaviors 46  Personality’s Response 2. Broad traits predict broad behaviors, narrow traits predict narrow behaviors – Conscientiousness à academic performance – Punctuality à showing up to class on time * **Openness to Experience:** * **Broad Behavior:** Creativity, intellectual curiosity, artistic expression, tolerance for ambiguity. * **Narrow Behavior:** Appreciation for complex art, enjoyment of new experiences (e.g., trying different foods), willingness to consider unconventional ideas, reading widely. 47 * **Extraversion:** * **Broad Behavior:** Social activity level, leadership roles, assertiveness, positive emotions.  Personality’s Response 3. People may differ in how they behave across situations, but are consistent relative to other people 48  Taylor and Travis Moderate Extraversion High Extraversion 49  Taylor and Travis in Different Situations At Church At a party 50  Rank-order consistency 4.5 Personality 4 differences in } 3.5 talkativeness 3 2.5 2 1.5 Taylor Travis At church At a party 51  Rank-order consistency 4.5 Same slope = perfect rank order 4 consistency 3.5 3 2.5 2 1.5 Taylor Travis At church At a party 52  Personality’s Response 4. Personality traits are stable over long periods of time – The degree to which a person is shy, organized, creative, friendly, etc. tends to be consistent from week to week, year to year, and even across the entire lifespan 53  Adult Personality is Linked to Child Temperament Temperament Big Five Dimension Dimension Activity level Extraversion Sociability Extraversion, Agreeableness Emotional reactivity Neuroticism Attention level Conscientiousness Orienting sensitivity Openness 55 Resolution of Person-Situation Debate: Interactionism Both personality and situation are important predictors of behavior 56  So how do we know which matters, when? Situational characteristics are better predictors of behavior – when situation is strong—with a high level of constraint Personality traits are better predictors of behavior – when situation is weak—with a low level of constraint 57  Degree of constraint Situation High Church people likely to show little variation in behavior Job interview (situation most important) Elevator Family dinner Class Movies Restroom Bus Date Low Bar people likely to show most Football game variation in behavior Dorm lounge (personality most important) Park Own room 58 Personality Stability and Change 59  Stability vs. Plasticity By definition, traits are stable dispositions across: Time—test-retest reliability Situations Plaster hypothesis: personality traits become stable by age 30 (McCrae & Costa, 1999) Contextualist perspective: personality emerges from multiple sources; person-environment interactions What do we mean by stable? What do we mean by change? 60  Two Metrics for Stability/Change Mean-level change: In a population, compare the average level of a trait at different ages Are people on average more extraverted when they are younger or older? 61 Mean Level Change Across Lifespan Soto, John, Gosling & Potter (2011): lifespan personality study Sample: 1,267,218 participants recruited online (72% from the United States) Method: cross-sectional study Measured associations between age and personality Gender differences in personality change were also measured 62 Women Men Extraversion Starts off high in childhood, but gradually decreases and stabilizes over time. Small gradual decline in middle adulthood (also seen by Costa & McCrae, 1994) Soto, John, Gosling & Potter (2011) Women Men Agreeableness Declines in adolescence but rapidly increases from young adulthood onwards Agreeableness becomes especially adaptive past age 30 Soto, John, Gosling & Potter (2011) Women Men Conscientiousness Similar pattern to agreeableness with more pronounced increase in adolescence Adaptive for young adults starting college, entering the workforce, etc. Soto, John, Gosling & Potter (2011) Women Men Neuroticism Generally decreases over time from young adulthood Gender differences early on that narrow over time Soto, John, Gosling & Potter (2011) Women Men Openness to Experience Shows modest increase over time from adolescence, flatlines in middle adulthood Mixed findings: other research finds an overall decrease from ~30 onwards (Costa & McCrae, 1994; Srivastrava et al., 2003) Soto, John, Gosling & Potter (2011)  Personality Change in College Robins, Fraley, Roberts, & Trzesniewski, 2001: compared personality scores at beginning and end of university among 270 students Two Assessments Year 1 (beginning of first year) Year 4 (end of senior year) 68  Longitudinal University Study Big Five Dimension Change during university Extraversion 0 Agreeableness + Conscientiousness + Openness + Neuroticism - Maturity principle: People tend to increase on traits that promote optimal behavior in adult social roles, and decrease on less socially desirable traits 69  Stability vs. Plasticity Based on mean-level shifts, we see support for the contextualist perspective. Personality change generally seems to align adaptively with key changes in life, such as starting college, entering the workforce, starting families, etc. 70  Two Types of Change Mean-level change Rank-order stability Consistency of individual differences on traits Is the most extraverted child still the most extraverted adult? Is the least agreeable college student still the least agreeable 40 year-old? 71  Stability at Different Ages Meta-analysis Compiled results from all studies ever done on personality change and development Compared “personality consistency” across ages In which age groups was the correlation between personality at T1 and personality at T2 highest? Correlation: Same group of people measured at two ages e.g., 3 & 4, 23 & 29, 55 & 72 High correlation implies high personality consistency Roberts & DelVecchio, 2000 72 General trend: greater rank-order stability with age Roberts & DelVecchio, 2000 73  Two Types of Change - **Mean-level**: People’s average personalities change over time, often because of different social roles. - **Rank-order**: People’s personality traits stay mostly consistent when compared to others, and this consistency increases with age. Mean-level—significant average shifts in personality over time in tandem with changes in social roles Rank-order—relative personality levels remain generally stable, and increasingly so with age Why does personality change or stay stable? Environmental influences—stable vs. unstable Individual cognitions—development of self- concept and cohesive identity 74 Why do We Change or Stay Stable? Person-environment transactions People select situations based on their personalities e.g., a conscientious individual enrolls in an honor’s class Situations in turn influence people’s personalities e.g., an honors student becomes more conscientious → → 75  Bigger Picture: Personality → Life Events Trait High levels of trait lead Low levels of trait lead to… to… O Becoming unemployed C Getting divorced E Moving in with partner A Getting divorced N Getting divorced Getting married Sample of ~ 15,000 German adults, followed over four years Specht, Egloff, & Schmuckle, 2011; 2012 78  Bigger Picture: Life Events → Personality Change Trait Events lead to increases Events lead to decreases in… in… O Getting divorced Getting married C Starting first job Retiring E Getting married A Having a baby N Moving out of parent’s home Sample of ~ 15,000 German adults, followed over four years Specht, Egloff, & Schmuckle, 2011; 2012 79  Stability and Change: Summary Personality changes across the lifespan Mean-level shifts Personality is consistent across the lifespan Rank-order stability Different levels of consistency emerge in childhood, adulthood, and old age Change and consistency is dictated in part by person-environment transactions Who we are leads us to take on certain roles Our roles in turn shape who we are 80