Lecture 4
Cohort effects: changes over time that are attributable to living in different time periods
rather than to true change
HIGH IN N or shy don’t manifest assertive traits
Women’s trait scores in assertiveness increased from 1931 to 1945, fell from 1951 to 1967;
roses again from 1968 to 1993
Changes in social norms and gender roles
Personality and prediction of socially relevant outcomes
Consequences of personality for socially relevant outcomes
Increased self-control and delayed gratification predicted:
● Higher SAT scores (M=210)
● Better able to cope with frustration and stress
● Higher educational attainment
● Lower BMI
● Better life outcomes on other measures
○ Marshmallow study
Adult outcomes of children with temper tantrums (see lecture 3) (Caspi 1987)
ìLongitudinal study spanning 40 years
ìMen who, as children, had frequent and severe temper tantrums achieved lower levels of
education, lower occupational status at their first job, changed jobs frequently, and had
erratic work patterns
ìIf in the military, men who had temper tantrums as children achieved lower military rank
than peers
Marital stability (see lecture 3)
Marital Stability, Marital Satisfaction, and Divorce (Kelly and Conley, 1987)
ìLongitudinal study of 300 heterosexual couples from engagements in 1930s to 1980s
ìDuring first testing session in 1930s, friends rated each participant’s personality on many
dimensions
ìBy 1980s:
ì 7% of couples dissolved before marriage
ì18% were divorced
Personality coherence over time
Predicting health and longevity
● Personality is associated with how long people are likely to live
, ● High conscientiousness, high extraversion, low hostility and low neuroticism
Can we predict who is likely to change personality and who is likely to remain the same?
Caspi and Herbener (1990) studies middle aged couples over an 11-year period
Research question: if you marry someone similar to you, do you tend to remain more
stable over time that if you marry someone who is different from you?
Hypothesis: similarity breeds greater stability: mutual reinforcement of attitudes
Findings: people married to a spouse highly similar to themselves showed most
personality change
Selection of spouse is potential source of personality stability change
FINDINGS: people married to a spouse highly similar to themselves showed most
personality stability; people married to a spouse least similar to themselves showed most
personality change
Selection of spouse is a potential source of personality stability and change
Chapter 6: genetics and personality
Genome: the complete set of genes an organism possesses
20 000-30 000 genes
Human genome contains tens of thousands of genes on the 23 pairs of chromosomes
Human genome project: designed to sequence the entire human genome: i.e., identify the
particular sequence of DNA molecules in the human species
But identifying sequence of dna molecules does not mean identifying the function of
each molecule
The human genome and hgp
Sequencing the Human Genome
● Most genes in a human genome are the same for all humans
● Small number of genes are different for different individuals, including genes that
indirectly code for physical traits and personality traits
Controversy about genes and personality
● Behavioral geneticists attempt to determine the degree to which individual
differences in personality are caused by genetic and environmental differences
● Highly controversial
○ Ideological concerns about findings being misused
○ Concerns about renewed interest eugenics
Important take home
Cohort effects: changes over time that are attributable to living in different time periods
rather than to true change
HIGH IN N or shy don’t manifest assertive traits
Women’s trait scores in assertiveness increased from 1931 to 1945, fell from 1951 to 1967;
roses again from 1968 to 1993
Changes in social norms and gender roles
Personality and prediction of socially relevant outcomes
Consequences of personality for socially relevant outcomes
Increased self-control and delayed gratification predicted:
● Higher SAT scores (M=210)
● Better able to cope with frustration and stress
● Higher educational attainment
● Lower BMI
● Better life outcomes on other measures
○ Marshmallow study
Adult outcomes of children with temper tantrums (see lecture 3) (Caspi 1987)
ìLongitudinal study spanning 40 years
ìMen who, as children, had frequent and severe temper tantrums achieved lower levels of
education, lower occupational status at their first job, changed jobs frequently, and had
erratic work patterns
ìIf in the military, men who had temper tantrums as children achieved lower military rank
than peers
Marital stability (see lecture 3)
Marital Stability, Marital Satisfaction, and Divorce (Kelly and Conley, 1987)
ìLongitudinal study of 300 heterosexual couples from engagements in 1930s to 1980s
ìDuring first testing session in 1930s, friends rated each participant’s personality on many
dimensions
ìBy 1980s:
ì 7% of couples dissolved before marriage
ì18% were divorced
Personality coherence over time
Predicting health and longevity
● Personality is associated with how long people are likely to live
, ● High conscientiousness, high extraversion, low hostility and low neuroticism
Can we predict who is likely to change personality and who is likely to remain the same?
Caspi and Herbener (1990) studies middle aged couples over an 11-year period
Research question: if you marry someone similar to you, do you tend to remain more
stable over time that if you marry someone who is different from you?
Hypothesis: similarity breeds greater stability: mutual reinforcement of attitudes
Findings: people married to a spouse highly similar to themselves showed most
personality change
Selection of spouse is potential source of personality stability change
FINDINGS: people married to a spouse highly similar to themselves showed most
personality stability; people married to a spouse least similar to themselves showed most
personality change
Selection of spouse is a potential source of personality stability and change
Chapter 6: genetics and personality
Genome: the complete set of genes an organism possesses
20 000-30 000 genes
Human genome contains tens of thousands of genes on the 23 pairs of chromosomes
Human genome project: designed to sequence the entire human genome: i.e., identify the
particular sequence of DNA molecules in the human species
But identifying sequence of dna molecules does not mean identifying the function of
each molecule
The human genome and hgp
Sequencing the Human Genome
● Most genes in a human genome are the same for all humans
● Small number of genes are different for different individuals, including genes that
indirectly code for physical traits and personality traits
Controversy about genes and personality
● Behavioral geneticists attempt to determine the degree to which individual
differences in personality are caused by genetic and environmental differences
● Highly controversial
○ Ideological concerns about findings being misused
○ Concerns about renewed interest eugenics
Important take home
