Psychology, A Journey 3e Objectives Chapter 10
OBJECTIVE 10.1 — Define the term personality and explain how personality differs from character and temperament.
OBJECTIVE 10.2 — Define the terms trait and type; discuss the stability of personality traits; describe the characteristics of introverts and extroverts; and explain the advantages and disadvantages of using type to classify personalities.
OBJECTIVE 10.3 — Explain the terms self-concept and self-esteem and how they affect behavior and personal adjustment; and explain the differences in the basis of self-esteem in Eastern and Western cultures.
OBJECTIVE 10.4 — Define the term personality theory; and describe the different psychological perspectives regarding personality theory covered in the text.
OBJECTIVE 10.5 — Describe the following trait theories: a. Eysenck and the ancient Greeks (Fig. 10.2) ; b. Rentfrow and Gosling’s musical personalities; c. Gordon Allport; d. Raymond Cattell; e. the Five-Factor Model of Personality; and include a brief discussion of unhealthy perfectionism.
OBJECTIVE 10.6 — Explain trait-situation interaction; define behavioral genetics; explain how twin studies are used to assess the relative contribution of heredity and environment to a person's personality; and discuss how the similarities in the personalities of twins can be explained, including the fallacy of positive instances.
OBJECTIVE 10.7 — Discuss Freud’s view of personality development, including
a. the three parts of the personality; b. neurotic and moral anxiety; c. the three levels of awareness; d. the psychosexual stages and fixations; and e. the positive and negative aspects of Freud’s theory.
OBJECTIVE 10.8 — Explain how learning theorists (behaviorists) view the structure of personality, including the terms situational determinants, habit, drive, cue, response, and reward.
OBJECTIVE 10.9 — Explain how learning theory and social learning theory differ; and describe the following social learning concepts: psychological situation, expectancy, reinforcement value, self-efficacy, and self-reinforcement.
OBJECTIVE 10.10 — Describe the importance of social reinforcement on personality; explain why feeding, toilet training, sex training, and learning to express anger or aggression are considered critical situations by the behaviorists; and discuss the role of imitation and identification in personality development and how Western cultures encourage boys to engage in instrumental behaviors and girls, in expressive behaviors.
OBJECTIVE 10.11 — Discuss the concept of androgyny and its relationship to masculinity, feminity, and adaptability.
OBJECTIVE 10.12 — Briefly explain how humanism differs from the Freudian and behaviorist viewpoints of personality; describe Maslow’s concept of self-actualization and the characteristics of self-actualizers; and list eight steps to promote self-actualization.
OBJECTIVE 10.13 — Discuss Rogers’ views of a fully functioning individual; define his concepts of the self, self-image, incongruence, being authentic, ideal self; conditions of worth, organismic valuing, positive self-regard, and unconditional positive regard; and explain how Markus and Nurius’ concept of the possible selves help to direct our future behavior.
OBJECTIVE 10.14 — Explain the best way to judge a theory; and compare and contrast the trait theories, psychoanalytic theory, behavioristic and social learning theories, and the humanistic theory in terms of a. their views of human nature; b. whether behavior is seen as free or determined; c. principal motives; d. personality structures; e. the role of the unconscious; f. the concept of conscience; g. the developmental emphasis of each; and h. what each sees as barriers to one’s personal growth.
OBJECTIVE 10.15 — Discuss the following assessment techniques in terms of purpose, method, advantages, and limitations: a. structured and unstructured interviews, including the problem of the halo effect; b. direct observation using rating scales, behavioral assessment, and/or situational testing; c. personality questionnaires, including the definitions of test reliability and validity and an overview of the MMPI-2; d. honesty tests; e. projective tests, including an overview of the Rorschach and the TAT; and f. a test battery.
OBJECTIVE 10.16 — Describe the personality characteristics of sudden murderers, and explain how their characteristics differ from those of habitually violent persons.
OBJECTIVE 10.17 — Describe the characeristics of shyness; its causes; why shyness involves public self-consciousness rather than private self-consciousness; the key difference in shy and not-shy persons; how shyness is maintained by four self-defeating beliefs; and how shyness can be treated by replacing these unproductive beliefs and learning social skills.