3Chapter 13 (Personality) Study Guide
I. Theories of Personality
A. Trait Approach
1. Personality types: discrete categories of people based on personality
characteristics.
2. Focuses on individuals’ differences in personality traits and describes
behavioral dispositions
3. Five-factor theory (OCEAN/The Big Five): Openness, Conscientiousness,
Extraversion, Agreeableness, Neuroticism
a. Cross cultural findings: interpersonal relatedness (harmony) is an important
trait in China, but less important in Western countries
b. Patterns of brain activity:
● Extraversion is associated with brain areas involved in rewards
● Neuroticism involves brain regions involved in threat and negative affect
4. Biological trait theory (Eysenck):
a. Introversion/extraversion:
● Introversion: how shy, reserved quiet a person is
● Extroversion: how sociable, outgoing and bold a person is
b. Emotionally stable/neurotic: variability in a person’s moods and emotions
c. High constraint/low constraint (psychoticism?): reflects a mix of
aggression, poor impulse control, self-centeredness, lack of empathy (high
constraint=low psychoticism)
5. Behavioral approach and inhibition systems
a. BAS: “go” the brain system involved in the pursuit of incentives or rewards
(extroverts are more influenced by rewards than the fear of punishments)
b. BIS: “stop” the brain system that is sensitive to punishment and therefore
inhibits behavior that might lead to danger or pain (related to neuroticism)
B. Psychodynamic Theories
1. Freud and psychodynamic theory
a. Emphasis on unconscious and dynamic processes
2. Unconscious influences: iceberg model
a. Conscious level: thoughts that people are aware of
b. Preconscious level: content that is not currently in awareness, but could be
brought to awareness
c. Unconscious level: materials that the mind cannot easily retrieve
Freudian slip: when people accidentally reveal a hidden motive when speaking
3. Personality structure
a. ID: pleasure principle (part of personality that wants satisfaction immediately)
b. Superego: internalized code of conduct (using rules of society to scold
ourselves, or praise ourselves)
c. Ego: reality principle, practical (appease satisfaction but in a conscious way)
4. Defense mechanisms: unconscious mental strategies the mind uses to protect itself
from distress
● Denial: refusing to acknowledge source of anxiety
● Repression: excluding source of anxiety from awareness
● Projection: attributing unacceptable qualities of the self to someone else
I. Theories of Personality
A. Trait Approach
1. Personality types: discrete categories of people based on personality
characteristics.
2. Focuses on individuals’ differences in personality traits and describes
behavioral dispositions
3. Five-factor theory (OCEAN/The Big Five): Openness, Conscientiousness,
Extraversion, Agreeableness, Neuroticism
a. Cross cultural findings: interpersonal relatedness (harmony) is an important
trait in China, but less important in Western countries
b. Patterns of brain activity:
● Extraversion is associated with brain areas involved in rewards
● Neuroticism involves brain regions involved in threat and negative affect
4. Biological trait theory (Eysenck):
a. Introversion/extraversion:
● Introversion: how shy, reserved quiet a person is
● Extroversion: how sociable, outgoing and bold a person is
b. Emotionally stable/neurotic: variability in a person’s moods and emotions
c. High constraint/low constraint (psychoticism?): reflects a mix of
aggression, poor impulse control, self-centeredness, lack of empathy (high
constraint=low psychoticism)
5. Behavioral approach and inhibition systems
a. BAS: “go” the brain system involved in the pursuit of incentives or rewards
(extroverts are more influenced by rewards than the fear of punishments)
b. BIS: “stop” the brain system that is sensitive to punishment and therefore
inhibits behavior that might lead to danger or pain (related to neuroticism)
B. Psychodynamic Theories
1. Freud and psychodynamic theory
a. Emphasis on unconscious and dynamic processes
2. Unconscious influences: iceberg model
a. Conscious level: thoughts that people are aware of
b. Preconscious level: content that is not currently in awareness, but could be
brought to awareness
c. Unconscious level: materials that the mind cannot easily retrieve
Freudian slip: when people accidentally reveal a hidden motive when speaking
3. Personality structure
a. ID: pleasure principle (part of personality that wants satisfaction immediately)
b. Superego: internalized code of conduct (using rules of society to scold
ourselves, or praise ourselves)
c. Ego: reality principle, practical (appease satisfaction but in a conscious way)
4. Defense mechanisms: unconscious mental strategies the mind uses to protect itself
from distress
● Denial: refusing to acknowledge source of anxiety
● Repression: excluding source of anxiety from awareness
● Projection: attributing unacceptable qualities of the self to someone else
