PPE 3003 Personality Psychology I Chapter One pg 4 12 14 21 A the definition of personality Personality the set of psychological traits and Define personality and understand each of the elements of 1 mechanisms within the individual that are organized and relatively enduring and that influence his or her interactions with and adaptions to the intrapsychic physical and social environments 2 1 I 9 15 15 d The set of psychological traits Characteristics that describe ways in which people a are different from each other Saying that someone is shy is to mention in way in b which he or she differs from others who are more outgoing Traits also define ways in which people are similar to c each other 1 For example people who are shy are similar to each other in that they are anxious in social situations particularly where there is an audience focusing attention on them Consider the example of talkativeness This characteristic can be meaningfully applied 1 to people and describes a dimension of among them 2 Typically a talkative person is that way from day to day from week to week and from year to year 3 have quiet moments quiet days or even quiet weeks 4 talkativeness trait tend to emit verbal behavior with greater frequency than those who are low on talkativeness Certainly even the most talkative person can Over time however those with the In this sense traits describe the average On average a high talkative person a tendencies of a person b starts more conversations than a low talkative person Research on personality traits asks four kinds of e questions 1 How many traits are there a fundamental traits there are One primary question is how many PPE 3003 Personality Psychology 2 2 Are there dozens or hundreds of traits or b merely a few How are the traits organized a This question pertains to the organization or structure of traits b For example how is talkativeness related to other traits such as impulsivity and extraversion 3 What are the origins of traits This question concerns the origins or a traits where they come from and how they develop b What sorts of cultural and child rearing practices alter developmental traits such as talkativeness 4 What are the correlations and consequences of traits This question pertains to the correlations Do talkative people have many friends Do they have a more extended social Do they annoy people who are trying to a and consequences of traits in terms of experience behavior and life outcome b c network to draw upon in times of trouble d study 5 The four research questions constitutes the core of the research program of many personality psychologists And mechanisms a more to the process of personality b involve an information processing activity Are like traits except the term mechanism refers For example most psychological mechanisms Someone who is extraverted may look for an 1 notice opportunities to interact with other people 2 That is an extraverted person is prepared to notice and act on certain kinds of social information Most psychological mechanisms have three essential c ingredients input decision rules and output 3 PPE 3003 Personality Psychology 3 a psychological mechanism may make people more d sensitive to certain kinds of information from the environment input may make them more likely to think about specific options decision rules and may guide them toward certain categories of actions output 1 For example an extraverted person may look for opportunities to be with other people may consider in each situation the possibilities for human contact and interaction an may encourage others to interact with him or her Our personalities contain many psychological e mechanisms of this sort information processing procedures that have the key elements of inputs decision rules and outputs 1 psychological mechanisms are activated at all times 2 activated 3 This does not mean that all of our traits and In fact at any point in time only a few are Consider the trait of courageousness a particular conditions such as when people face serious dangers and threats to their lives Some people are more courageous than b others but we will never know which people are courageous unless and until the right satiation presents itself This trait is activated only under Means that personality is something a person carries a with him or herself over time and from one situation to the next Typically we feel that we are the same person today b as we were last week last month and last year We also feel that we will continue to have these c personalities into the coming months and years And although out personalities are certainly d influenced by our environments and especially by the significant others in our lives we feel that we carry with is the same personalities from situation to situation in our lives and hence area least somewhat more stable over time and somewhat consistent over situations That are organized and relatively enduring a for a given person are not simply a random collection of elements Means that the psychological traits and mechanisms 4 Within the Individual 5 PPE 3003 Personality Psychology 4 Rather personality is organized because the If you have not eaten for a while and are b mechanisms and traits are linked to one another in a coherent fashion c food and a desire for intimacy Imagine the simple case of two desires a desire for 1 experiencing hunger pangs then your desire for food might override your desire for intimacy 2 On the other hand if you have already eaten then your desire for food may temporarily subside allowing you to pursue intimacy Our personalities are organized in the sense that d they contain decision rules that govern which needs are activated depending on the circumstances e time particularly in adulthood and are somewhat consistent over situations f saying anything about a trait To say that someone is angry at this moment is not 1 A person may be angry now but not tomorrow or may be angry in this situation but not in others 2 Anger is more of a state than a trait 3 To say that someone is angry prone or generally hot tempered however is to describe a psychological trait Someone is anger prone is frequently Psychological traits are also relatively enduring over a angry relative to others and shows this proneness time and time again in many situations b work is hostile and aggressive whole playing team sports of recreation and argues a lot with family members E g the person is argumentative at There may be some occasions when
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