1
Q
personality
A
a pattern of relatively permanent traits and unique characteristics that give both consistency and individuality to a person’s behavior
2
Q
traits
A
contribute to individual differences in behavior, consistency of behavior over time, and stability of behavior across situations
3
Q
characteristics
A
are unique qualities of an individual that include such attributes as temperament, physique, and intelligence
4
Q
theory
A
A set of related assumptions that allows scientists to use logical deductive reasoning to formulate testable hypotheses
5
Q
philosophy
A
- Love of wisdom; philosophers are people who pursue wisdom through thinking and reasoning
- Epistemology: or the nature of knowledge. Theory relates most closely to this branch of philosophy, because it is a tool used by scientists in their pursuit of knowledge
- A set of principles about how one should live one’s life cannot be a theory
- The goodness or badness of the outcome of these statements is beyond the realm of theory
6
Q
speculation
A
- Closely tied to empirically gathered data and to science
- Speculation and empirical observation are the two essential cornerstones of theory building
- But speculation must not run rampantly in advance of controlled observation
7
Q
hypothesis
A
It is an educated guess or prediction specific enough for its validity to be tested through the use of the scientific method
8
Q
taxonomy
A
- Classification of things according to their natural relationships.
- Taxonomies can evolve into theories when they begin to generate testable hypothesis and to explain research findings
9
Q
why do we have different theories?
A
- Theories are not immutable laws; they are built, not on proven facts, but on assumptions that are subject to individual interpretation
- Because observations are colored by the individual observer’s frame of reference, it follows that there may be many diverse theories
10
Q
psychodynamic theories
A
- Importance of early childhood experience and on relationships with parents as guiding forces that shape personality development
- Sees the unconscious mind and motives as much more powerful than the conscious awareness
11
Q
humanistic-existential theories
A
- aka “positive psychology”
- People strive toward meaning, growth, well-being, happiness, and psychological health
- States of positive emotion and happiness foster psychological health and pro-social behavior
12
Q
dispositional theories
A
- Unique and long-term tendencies to behave in particular ways are the essence of our personality
- These unique dispositions, such as extraversion or anxiety, are called traits
- Traits serve the function of making certain behaviors more likely in some people
13
Q
biological-evolutionary theories
A
- Behavior, thought, feelings, and personality are influenced by differences in basic genetic, epigenetic, and neurological systems between individuals
- Human thought, behavior, and personality have been shaped by forces of evolution
14
Q
learning-(social) cognitive theories
A
- All behaviors are learned through association and/or its consequences
- To shape desired behavior we have to understand and then establish the conditions that bring about those particular behaviors
- What personality we have is shaped by how we think and perceive the world
15
Q
psychology of science
A
- Studies both science and the behavior of scientists
- Investigates the impact of an individual scientists’s psychological processes and personal characteristics on the developments of her or his scientific theories and research
- Personality differences influence one’s theoretical orientation as well as one’s inclination to lean toward the “hard” or “soft” side of a discipline
- Understanding of theories of personality rests on information regarding the historical, social, and psychological worlds of each theorist at the time of his or her theorizing
16
Q
what makes a theory useful?
A
- First, a theory generates a number of hypotheses that can be investigated through research, thus yielding research data
- These data flow back into the theory and restructure it
- Second, a useful theory organizes research data into a meaningful structure and provides an explanation for the results of scientific research
- When a theory is no longer able to generate additional research data, it loses its usefulness and is set aside in favor of a more useful one
17
Q
theory generates research
A
- A useful theory will generate two kinds of research
- Descriptive research: expand an existing theory, is concerned with measurement, labelling, and categorization of the units employed in theory building
- Hypothesis testing: leads to an indirect verification of the usefulness of the theory
18
Q
theory is falsifiable
A
- Ability to be confirmed or disconfirmed
- A theory must be precise enough to suggest research that may be either support or fail to support its major tenets
- Falsifiability, however, is not the same as false; it simply means that negative research results will refute the theory and force the theorists to either discard it or modify it
- A theory that can explain everything explains nothing
19
Q
theory organizes data
A
- Should also be able to organize those research data that are not incompatible with each other
- Unless data are organized into some intelligible framework, scientists are left with no clear direction to follow in pursuit of further knowledge
20
Q
theory guides action
A
- Ability to guide the practitioner over the rough course of day-to-day problems
- Without useful theory, practitioners would stumble in trial and error techniques
- Answers along the lines of “if-then” statements
- Also included in this criterion is the extent to which the theory stimulates thought and action in other disciplines such as in art, literature, etc.
21
Q
theory is internally consistent
A
- A useful theory need not to be consistent with other theories, but it must be consistent with itself.
- An internally consistent theory is one whose components are logically compatible
- A good theory will use concepts and terms that have been clearly and operationally defined.
- Operational definition: one that defines units in terms of observable events or behaviors that can be measured
22
Q
theory is parsimonious
A
- When two theories are equal in their ability to generate research, be falsified, give meaning to data, guide the practitioner, and be self-consistent, the simpler one is preferred
- Simple, straightforward theories are more useful
23
Q
determinism vs. free choice
A
- Are people’s behaviors determined by forces over which they have no control, or can people choose to be what they wish to be?
- Can behavior be partially free and partially determined at the same time?
24
Q
pessimism vs. optimism
A
Are people doomed to live miserable conflicted, and troubled lives, or can they change and grow into psychologically healthy, happy fully functioning human beings?
25
causality vs. teleology
* Causality: holds that behavior is a function of past experiences
* Teleology: is an explanation of behavior in terms of future goals or purposes
26
conscious versus unconscious determinants of behavior.
Are people ordinarily aware of what they are doing and why they are doing it, or do unconscious forces impinge on them and drive them to act without awareness of these underlying forces
27
biological versus social influences on personality
Are people mostly creatures of biology, or are their personalities shaped largely by their social relationships?
28
uniqueness versus similarities
* Is the salient feature of people their individuality, or is it their common characteristics?
* Should the study of personality concentrate on those traits that make people alike, or should it look at those traits that make people different?
29
reliability
Reliability of a measuring instrument is the extent to which it yields consistent results
30
validity
* The degree to which an instrument measures what it is supposed to measure
* Construct validity: extent to which an instrument measures some hypothetical construct
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