Trait theory, or the concept that personality traits are strong, independent predictors of behavior, provides an incomplete picture of human behavior, thought, and emotion. The most encompassing approach to understanding behavioral implications is by approaching them from a person-situation interaction perspective. Bowers (1973) reported that while 13% of the variance in predicting behavior is due to the person (i.e., traits) and 10% of the variance is due to the situation, 21% of the variance is accounted for by the person-situation interaction; the interaction is more predictive than either one alone. Different situations impact different people differently for several reasons, including the fact that strong traits may not be expressed in …show more content…
The biocognitive theory suggests that situations are different because they happen to different people. Because people are biocognitively different, they will perceive and respond to situations differently. These perceptions, or appraisals, may be conscious or unconscious. For instance, individuals with stronger approach tendencies will behave differently in situations with more reward. The DIAMONDS approach (Rauthmann et al., 2014) was created to classify situations, much like the Five Factor Model organizes traits, into categories such as positivity, negativity, deception, adversity, and duty, among others. Rauthmann et al. (2014) found evidence for DIAMONDS appraisals explaining variance beyond that of the Big 5, which again indicates that trait theory is missing an important component (i.e., the situation). However, Rauthmann and colleagues failed to assess the interaction between the Big 5 and the situation, which is a major limitation of their study. Although this approach was an important step in accounting for the influence of the situation in predicting behavior, it is important to consider that traits have a strong influence on what situation people …show more content…
In this case, the answer is to consider the importance of person-situation interactions. Traits and situations are both important factors, particularly how they interact; different situations affect different people
Does personality determine behavior? Phelps (2015) dived into this discussion in his article by reviewing the perspectives of personality, how psychology relates to behavior and the idea of self, and further, how behaviorists define personality and all of its components. Phelps (2015) compares and contrasts the common beliefs of personality and the view of self as attributed to personality theorists with those characterized by behavioral theorists. A typical understanding of personality is one that defines it as an internal substance that drives behavior, and therefore, by seeking to understand a person's personality we can almost assume their actions (Phelps, 2015). Behavioral theorists, on the other hand, do not lean on vague internal conditions to explain behavior, but rather they evaluate a person's past and present settings to define behavior, according to Phelps (2015). The conclusion is that behaviorists' perspectives on these topics are far more parsimonious in nature and most popular views of personality speak to a more internal and far-reaching position rather than the behavior itself (Phelps, 2015). Likewise, Phelps (2015) addresses the issue of meeting specific criteria for discerning whether a theoretical viewpoint is valid in helping us understand people. He continued to remark that behaviorists' stances meet a large portion of the criteria as presented by Gordon Allport (Phelps, 2015). For example, they have less assumptions, they are consistent, and not to mention, they are testable and falsifiable, Phelps (2015) supports. In my opinion and critical review, this article is useful because it provides an unbiased assessment of a variety of personality theories and definitions of personality and the self. Likewise, it is simple and easy to understand, thus qualifying it as parsimonious. Overall, I think the article did its ultimate job of evaluating different perspectives and
The trait approach focuses on describing and quantifying individual differences. The approach tries to categorize people into groups based upon what traits they exhibit. According to the textbook, “The most important factors of personality ought to be found across different sources of data, and he [Cattell] developed a typology of data – including self-report, peer-report, and behavioral observations – that has become part of the foundation of the distinctions between S, I, L, and B data” (Funder, 2013, p. 222). As the essential--trait approach was being developed over the years, the amount of traits drastically changed over time. Multiple psychologists worked on this theory, all having different ideas and amounts of essential ...
An individual’s behaviour may differ depending on the circumstances they are in though there are definite signs of repetitive behaviour when placed in majority of the situations. These characteristics are known as traits which make up the personality of each person (Engler, 2014). Personality theorists do not have a mutual agreement on how the term personality should be used. They each have their definition of personality thus providing a large number of diverse personality theories (Engler, 2014). For example, Eysenck (1970) defined personality as a relatively permanent and consistent composition of an individual’s disposition that in turn establishes how the person adjusts to their
The purpose of this research report is to investigate the personality of Beyoncé Knowles in terms of humanistic and trait conceptions of personality.
In conclusion, personality is a term that refers to the many patterns of similarities and patterns of differences among individuals. There are various ways with psychologists have examined individual differences in personality including the use of genetics. Through this method, psychologists have mainly examined biological underpinnings that contribute to individual differences in personality. While these measures provide some insights regarding personality, individual differences in personality cannot be adequately explained with reference to genes because of the weaknesses of these theories and the effect of environmental factors.
Schultz, D. P., & Schultz, S. E. (2013). Theories of personality (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Cengage/Wadsworth.
Personality is massive part of an individual’s identity. Our personalities dictate our patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting. An individual’s personality exposes them to predispositions and habits that influence their actions and lives. Early on, personality assessments consisted of physical features ranging from head shape and facial characteristics to body type. In today’s world, personality assessments are mainly based around traits. Traits are simply descriptions of one’s habitual patterns of behavior, thought and emotion. The most popular personality assessment is the Five-Factor Model, also known as The Big Five. This model allows us to describe people based on the five main traits/dimensions. These traits are extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness to experience. Each of these five traits measures a different aspect of one’s personality. Extraversion is based on one’s level of engagement with the world,
Personality is patterns of thinking, behavior and emotional responses that make up individuality over time. Psychologist attempt to understand how personality develops and its impact on how we behave. Several theories attempt to explain personality, using different approaches. The social-cognitive and humanistic approaches are two of many theories that attempt to explain personality. This essay will identify the main concepts of social-cognitive and humanistic approach, identify perspective differences and discuss approach limitations.
Its purpose is to give the participant a 4-letter formula which describes strength preferences of the participant’s personality type. The formula comes from four different sections; Extraversion or Introversion, Sensing or iNtuition, Thinking or Feeling, and Judging or Perceiving. Based on the 4-letter formula, one will also receive a two-letter Temperament, which offers a good prediction of one’s behavior (Kroeger, Thuesen, & Rutledge, 2002).
A person’s personality has been the subject of psychological scrutiny for many years. Psychologists have drawn up several theories in an attempt to accurately predict and determine one’s personality. Foremost amongst these, is the “Big Five Trait Theory” which stemmed from Raymond B. Cattell’s theory.
Schultz, D. P., & Schultz, S. E. (2013). Theories of personality (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Cengage/Wadsworth.
Trait theory is the idea that an individual’s personality is made up by many traits or characteristics that cause the individual to behave in one manner or another. One can easily see how curiosity fits into the trait theory. It is almost unanimously agreed upon that it is in fact a trait and is the motivator for countless actions people make every day.
The study of personality traits is beneficial in identifying the many variables that exist from human to human; the combinations of these variables provide us with a true level of individuality and uniqueness. In the field of psychology, trait theory is considered to be a key approach to the study of human personality (Crowne, 2007; Burton, Westen & Kowalski, 2009). This paper aims to identify a number of significant contributors who have played crucial roles in both the development and application of trait theory. This paper then moves focus to these theorists, outlining their theory and analysing both the strengths and weaknesses of those theories. An illustration of the methods used in trait measurement is given and includes the arguments for and against such procedures.
Personality can be defined as an individual’s characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling and acting. Many personality theorists have put forward claims as to where personality is derived from and how it develops throughout an individual’s life. The two main personality theories this essay will be focusing on is the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) (Bandura, 1986) and the Trait Theory – Five Factor Theory (FFT) (McCrae and Costa, 1995). The SCT allocates a central role to cognitive, observational learning and self-regulatory processes (Bandura, 1986). An individual’s personality develops through experiences with their sociocultural environment. Whereas the Trait Theory proposes that all individuals are predisposed with five traits (Extraversion, Openness, Conscientiousness, Agreeableness and Neuroticism) which determines our personality. This theory also puts forward that personality is stable and cannot change as it’s biologically determined.
Trait approach covers the big five personality traits: extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness to experience. These five traits have been identified as the most identifiable personality traits, even across cultures and societies. According to McCrae, Costa, and Busch’s (1986) study on personality system comprehensiveness, the big five personality model included the five traits most identified with by individuals asked to describe themselves and others. I found this segment of the class especially intriguing as it helped me not only learn so much about myself, but also take a deeper look into the personality of my family, peers, and even strangers. I am also more conscious of how I self-monitor my personality traits. For example, I am very much so an introverted person but at times I try to be extroverted based off the environment. In highly social environments, I consciously smile and try to talk to people because I want to be perceived in a favorable light, not actually because I feel the need to be sociable. In other words, I don’t want to be perceived as odd. I believe I developed this form of self-monitoring because when I am introverted at social events people will constantly ask me if I’m ok since I’m quiet, which makes me uncomfortable as they make me the focus. Being the center of attention makes me anxious, and therefore to prevent that I have developed being a fake-extrovert to avoid it. This exemplified how I apply self-monitoring to my everyday life. Trait approach gave me insight into how to identify vastly accepted personality traits, as well as, how each of these traits can be influenced and