Deck 1: What Is Personality

Question 1

Consistent behavior patterns that people display in many different situations are

A) very difficult to identify.
B) often called individual differences by personality psychologists.
C) predictive of personality traits.
D) likely to be found in depressed personalities.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Greg believes that aggressive behavior in his coworkers is an expression of frustration that results from unsatisfied basic needs. He believes in the _______________approach to the study of personality.

A) cognitive
B) biological
C) behavioral/social learning
D) humanistic

Answer 2

humanistic

Question 3

Which of the following questions would a personality psychologist be most likely to ask?

A) How do people change between childhood and adolescence?
B) Why are some people introverted, whereas others are outgoing?
C) Is excessive anxiety better treated with therapy or medication?
D) Is a person charged with murder capable of contributing to her own legal defense?

Answer 3

B

Question 4

A personality psychologist who focuses on the stable patterns of aggressive behavior in schoolchildren that may be related to inherited predispositions and physiological processes follows the_______________ approach.

A) psychoanalytic
B) biological
C) humanistic
D) behavioral/social learning

Question 5

A psychologist attributes a boy's poor social skills to his lack of contact with children who model appropriate behavior. The psychologist is using which approach to personality?

A) Humanistic
B) Cognitive
C) Behavioral/social learning
D) Psychoanalytic

Question 6

Which of the following statements best describes the relationship among the six approaches to understanding personality?

A) Only one of the approaches is probably correct.
B) The six approaches complement one another and differ primarily in their focus.
C) Although the six approaches occasionally vary only in emphasis, two or more approaches often provide incompatible explanations.
D) Because each of the approaches is comprehensive, personality psychologists need to align themselves with only one approach.

Question 7

The emotional, motivational, and cognitive processes that go on inside of a person are called _______________processes.

A) assessment
B) interpersonal
C) nomothetic
D) intrapersonal

Question 8

The approach to personality that explains aggressive behavior as unconscious impulses turned outward on other people is the

A) psychoanalytic approach.
B) trait approach.
C) behavioral/social learning approach.
D) cognitive approach.

Question 9

The more closely we look at the characteristic ways people deal with emotional situations, the more we

A) begin to see how people are much the same.
B) see that people are not alike.
C) how each individual's responses are overwhelmed by the demands of the situation.
D) understand where the personality comes from.

Question 10

Which statement would be endorsed by a person who studies personality?

A) The way we behave is determined entirely by what is going on around us.
B) Most of the time we are actually not in control of our own actions.
C) Behaviors originate within a person but can be influenced by outside factors.
D) We are at the whim of our genetics, and must act as our inheritance determines.

Question 11

Which of the following is not an explanation that personality researchers from the biological approach give for aggressive behavior?

A) A genetic tendency to be aggressive.
B) The way specific hormones in the endocrine system are released in response to perceived threats.
C) The way certain neurotransmitters function in the brain.
D) Unconscious conflicts from an abusive childhood are expressed during adolescence and adulthood.

Question 12

Sarah's mother receives a call from her daughter's teacher telling her that Sarah has been misbehaving during class time. According to the psychoanalytic approach, her daughter's misbehavior

A) results from a poorly formed self-concept.
B) is a reaction to her parent's expectations.
C) is the result of unconscious mental activity.
D) results from conditioning processes.

Question 13

Which of the following statements is an axiom that best reflects the personality psychologist's point of view?

A) "People are the same the world over."
B) "Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their passions a quotation."
C) "There are few differences between people, but what differences there are, really matter."
D) "Life is like a box of chocolates: you never know what you'll get."

Question 14

When personality researchers use the term individual differences they are referring to

A) the different behavior patterns individuals display across time.
B) the interpersonal processes that originate within the individual.
C) the consistent behavior patterns that individuals display across situations.
D) fluctuations in behavior patterns for individual situations.

Question 15

The_______________ approach to personality emphasizes the role of an individual's personal responsibility and feelings of self-acceptance.

A) psychoanalytic
B) trait
C) humanistic
D) behavioral/social learning

Question 16

The_______________ approach to personality focuses on the importance of conditioning and expectations.

A) psychoanalytic
B) behavioral/social learning
C) biological
D) cognitive

Question 17

A psychologist explains a woman's fear of snakes in terms of her unconscious fear of her father. This psychologist is using which approach to personality?

A) Psychoanalytic
B) Trait
C) Humanistic
D) Behavioral/social learning

Question 18

When we look closely at the reactions of people to the same situation, we see

A) evidence that most people behave in typical ways.
B) that people are more alike than they are different.
C) each individual's personality is overwhelmed by the demands of the situation.
D) that characteristic differences between people begin to emerge.

Question 19

Although Sally is well behaved and polite at home, she can be really mean to the other children at school. Psychologists who adhere to the trait approach to personality would say Sally's behavior

A) can be identified along a continuum of personality characteristics.
B) is the result of unconscious mental activity.
C) results from conditioning and expectations.
D) is a reaction to changing feelings of self-acceptance.

Question 20

Which of the following statements best describes the study of personality?

A) Personality psychologists are interested in how people react to different situations.
B) Personality psychologists now recognize that early explanations of personality, such as Freud's psychoanalytic theory, are incorrect.
C) Personality psychologists are interested in consistent behavior patterns and intrapersonal processes originating within the individual.
D) Personality psychologists are interested in the consistent behavior patterns caused either by something about the person or by placing the person in the same situation.

Question 21

A psychologist develops a test to measure individual differences in social anxiety. She obtains social anxiety scores from a large group of participants, and then tries to predict how those scoring high on the test will act in a social situation as compared to those scoring low. This psychologist would probably be identified with which approach to personality?

A) Psychoanalytic
B) Trait
C) Humanistic
D) Behavioral/social learning

Question 22

For people who are depressed, a psychologist following the behavioral/social learning approach to personality would probably examine

A) what depressed people say about themselves.
B) events in the environment surrounding the depressed person.
C) the genetic susceptibility to depression.
D) the best predictors of emotional level.

Question 23

According to the psychoanalytic approach, a diagnosis of depression is most likely

A) a result of feelings of hostility turned inward.
B) predictable from earlier episodes of sadness and loneliness.
C) due to a malfunction of receptors in the brain.
D) due to low self-esteem.

Question 24

Which approach to personality is most likely to argue that genetics play an important role in determining personality and behavior?

A) Psychoanalytic
B) Biological
C) Humanistic
D) Behavioral/social learning

Question 25

A psychologist argues that people are often not aware of why they act the way they do. Further, although he acknowledges that genetics may play a role in determining personality, our behavior is determined by the environment more than we recognize. This psychologist probably aligns himself with which approach to personality?

A) Psychoanalytic
B) Trait
C) Humanistic
D) Behavioral/social learning

Question 26

Most of the research on personality reported in the textbook is based on studies with people

A) from individualistic cultures.
B) from collectivist cultures.
C) with a strong sense of self.
D) who prefer cooperation to competition.

Question 27

Of the following approaches, which ignores inherited influences the most?

A) Cognitive
B) Biological
C) Trait
D) Psychoanalytic

Question 28

A person from an individualistic culture might write a book with the title

A) My family, your family: We're all one.
B) Getting the admiration you want and deserve.
C) How to work effectively as part of a team.
D) A little cooperation goes a long way.

Question 29

Suppose you meet a new person on campus from a culture different from your own. You soon discover that your new friend has difficulty understanding what you mean by "self-esteem." You conclude that your friend probably comes from

A) an individualistic culture.
B) a collectivist culture.
C) a nonindustrial culture.
D) a large family.

Question 30

Depression can be best explained by how situations are interpreted and processed through the most highly accessible thoughts according to the _______________approach.

A) psychoanalytic
B) behavioral/social learning
C) trait
D) cognitive

Question 31

Of the following approaches, which places the least emphasis on conscious determinants of behavior?

A) Cognitive
B) Biological
C) Trait
D) Psychoanalytic

Question 32

The four components necessary for a complete understanding of personality include each of the following except

A) application.
B) assessment.
C) philosophy.
D) research.

Question 33

Of these choices, which is most likely to be an individualistic society?

A) Ghana
B) Indonesia
C) Brazil
D) Germany

Question 34

In contrast to the other approaches, the behavioral/social learning approach and the psychoanalytic approach to personality are similar because they both

A) maintain that we are often not aware of the causes of our behavior.
B) emphasize the importance of environmental determinants of behavior.
C) emphasize genetic determinants of behavior.
D) maintain that behavior is often the result of free choices (free will).

Question 35

Which of these is not a characteristic of an individual in a collectivist culture?

A) Cooperation
B) Belonging to a larger group
C) Success identified with personal achievement
D) Success identified with group doing well

Question 36

Which of the following is correct about the relation between personality and culture?

A) Because personality is concerned with the person, personality psychologists are not interested in cultural differences.
B) Most studies to date find few if any significant cross-cultural differences in personality phenomena.
C) People and their personalities exist within a cultural context.
D) Individual differences in personality can be found only in individualistic cultures.

Question 37

Which of the following statements is true about the different approaches to personality?

A) One must adhere to the same approach when giving explanations for different phenomena.
B) The strength of some approaches in explaining behavior patterns makes up for the weaknesses of other approaches.
C) The best way to show contradictions is to explain phenomena using different approaches.
D) One need not align oneself with only one approach when explaining different phenomena.

Question 38

Behavioral psychologists try to apply personality research to practical concerns by

A) controlling the way people process information.
B) identifying characteristics of individuals in the workplace.
C) creating environments to increase the frequency of desired behaviors.
D) facilitating people in the development of their self-concept.

Question 39

By_______________ we mean the ways psychologists measure the personality constructs that are of interest to them.

A) "articulation"
B) "application"
C) "assessment"
D) "actualization"

Question 40

To explain depression, trait theorists would most likely focus on

A) identifying people with a stable tendency toward depressive symptoms.
B) the genetic susceptibility individuals have toward depression.
C) the unconscious feelings of anger within people.
D) how people interpret a world that seems uncontrollable.

Question 41

List by name the six general approaches to personality. Using an example of someone you know who is aggressive, discuss how each of the six explain that person's behavior.

Question 42

State whether our behavior is shaped by the situation or by the kind of person we are and give three reasons for your answer. Distinguish between reactions that are the result of situational factors and those that result from intrapersonal processes.

Question 43

Which of the four components necessary for the study of personality is characterized by inventories that measure certain constructs?

A) Research
B) Theory
C) Assessment
D) Application

Question 44

Your text describes four components that are necessary for a complete understanding of personality. Which one refers to a comprehensive model of how human personality is structured and how it operates?

A) application
B) assessment
C) theory
D) research

Question 45

The component necessary for the study of personality known as assessment is characterized by which of the following?

A) Application of theory in the workplace
B) Genetic versus environmental influences
C) Testing principles and assumptions of theory
D) Inventories that examine personality constructs

Question 46

Asking people to take an inventory where they respond to ambiguous stimuli by talking about what they see in the images is an example of personality

A) theory.
B) assessment.
C) application.
D) research.

Question 47

The author of the textbook defines personality as consistent behavior patterns and intrapersonal processes originating within the individual.

Question 48

To achieve a full understanding, personality researchers must examine psychological topics from more than one approach.

Question 49

Compare and contrast the values of an individualistic and a collectivist culture. In which culture were you raised? How do you know?

Question 50

Annabelle is usually a very reserved person who tries to be polite and friendly to others. She is known as being "sweet but quiet." One day at a supermarket, she overhears two men making racially bigoted comments about another patron, and she explodes. She screams at the men, tells them how hateful they are, and creates a scene until the store manager has to intervene. How would you analyze this situation while considering the "person" and the "situation?"

Question 51

Psychologists who take the cognitive approach to personality would suggest that aggressive behavior is learned because it has been rewarded.

Question 52

The trait approach identifies where a person might lie along a continuum of personality characteristics.

Question 53

Cognitive personality psychologists suggest people become depressed because of the way they interpret their inability to control events.

Question 54

The biological approach argues that people's unconscious minds are largely responsible for personality differences.

Question 55

State which of the six general approaches to personality emphasizes extreme positions with regard to conscious versus unconscious determinants of behavior. Which approach(es) fall(s) between these extremes? Where does the humanistic approach fall in the debate between the two previous positions?

Question 56

According to the textbook, a primary example of applying personality to one's personal life would be

A) sports psychology.
B) self-help books.
C) personality testing.
D) psychotherapy.

Question 57

What are the four essential components for the study of personality? Choose one of the six general approaches to personality and use it as an example to illustrate the differences in these components.