Deck 7: Allport: Personological Trait Theory

Question 1

Allport's theory emphasized the development of the unified person and therefore his theory is called

A) analytical.
B) unconscious-oriented.
C) personological.
D) client-centered.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Allport's theory of personality emphasizes

A) consistency.
B) the self.
C) social influence.
D) all of the above

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Which statement best describes Allport's attitude toward traits?

A) Trait concepts involve circular reasoning, and so should be abandoned by scientific psychology.
B) Traits are the basic causes of behavior.
C) There are only about a dozen basic personality traits.
D) Traits are all nomothetic.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Allport was committed to traits understood from the __________ point of view.

A) biological
B) idiographic
C) nomothetic
D) psychoanalytic

Question 5

Allport defined personality as "the __________ within the individual of those psychophysical systems that determine his unique adjustments to the environment."

A) development
B) dynamic organization
C) nurturance
D) existence

Question 6

Which statement best describes Allport's attitude toward biological influences on personality?

A) Will power is so important that biology plays no part in personality.
B) Biological influences determine most of personality.
C) Biological influences, along with psychological influences, are important determinants of personality.
D) Biological influences explain mental illness, but not variations in normal personality.

Question 7

Mother Teresa's sense of charity for others is an example of what type of trait?

A) cardinal
B) central
C) secondary
D) elusive

Question 8

When Allport met Freud, what happened?

A) Freud analyzed Allport's dreams.
B) Freud experienced a powerful countertransference.
C) Allport thought that Freud misunderstood him.
D) Allport proposed that he develop a test to measure Freudian defense mechanisms.

Question 9

Allport grew up in

A) Vienna.
B) the American Midwest.
C) India.
D) an orphanage.

Question 10

Allport defined personality as "the dynamic organization within the individual of those __________ that determine his __________."

A) traits; mental health
B) significant attachments; social interactions
C) psychophysical systems; unique adjustments to the environment
D) physical characteristics; individuality

Question 11

According to Allport, the basic unit of personality is the

A) ego.
B) interpersonal style.
C) trait.
D) proprium.

Question 12

Allport and Odbert examined the dictionary and found about __________ traits.

A) 5
B) 16
C) 500
D) 18,000

Question 13

Research reported by Allport and later confirmed by others shows that ratings of traits are more reliable if

A) a 7-point scale is used, rather than a 5-point scale.
B) the rater can indicate which traits are particularly descriptive of a person, and only those traits are considered.
C) people rate themselves.
D) a standard list of traits is used.

Question 14

According to Allport, heredity influences __________ aspects of personality.

A) no
B) a few
C) many
D) all

Question 15

Which of the following is not a major theme in Allport's work?

A) psychosis
B) consistency of personality
C) social influence
D) the self

Question 16

Allport described __________ traits as traits that are possessed by only one person.

A) central
B) cardinal
C) common
D) individual

Question 17

Allport and Odbert identified 17,953 trait names by studying

A) college freshmen.
B) biographies of famous people.
C) letters from Jenny.
D) the dictionary.

Question 18

Allport's saying, "The same heat that melts the butter hardens the egg" illustrates

A) the danger of drugs.
B) the interaction of personality and situations.
C) genetic influence.
D) determinism.

Question 19

According to Allport, the ultimate real unit of personality is

A) a common trait that exists in a specified population.
B) the neuron.
C) a unique trait, which has psychophysical reality within an individual.
D) unconscious motivation.

Question 20

Which statement best describes Allport's attitude toward heredity?

A) Heredity is of little importance to personality.
B) All features of personality are influenced by heredity, at least to some extent.
C) Heredity influences intelligence, but not other aspects of personality.
D) Heredity is the major determinant of psychosis.

Question 21

Allport's concept of functional autonomy emphasizes the importance of __________.

A) self-respect
B) the past
C) the present
D) the future

Question 22

When Allport compared a computer analysis of the letters from Jenny to the results of his own structural-dynamic analysis, he found

A) that the results were markedly different.
B) that the results were quite similar.
C) that both failed to understand Jenny's personality.
D) that he had miscoded the letters.

Question 23

According to psychoanalysis, people are motivated by experiences in their past. Which concept from Allport contrasts with this view?

A) functional autonomy
B) central traits
C) habits
D) extrinsic orientation

Question 24

Arranged in order from most pervasive to least pervasive in an individual's personality, Allport describes these traits:

A) secondary, central, cardinal.
B) central, secondary, cardinal.
C) cardinal, secondary, central.
D) cardinal, central, secondary.

Question 25

A person who can talk for half a day without mentioning his or her occupation is probably __________, according to Allport.

A) unemployed
B) mentally healthy
C) trying to influence others
D) neurotic

Question 26

Which of the following is not listed by Allport as characteristic of a normal, mature adult?

A) warm human interactions
B) emotional security
C) realistic perceptions
D) financial success

Question 27

The half dozen or so major personality dispositions of a person are __________.

A) cardinal traits
B) central traits
C) primary traits
D) secondary traits

Question 28

All of the following are evidence of lack of mental health (according to Allport) except

A) egocentrism.
B) self-criticism.
C) realistic perception.
D) having few interests besides work.

Question 29

Traits can be inferred from

A) behavior.
B) personal letters.
C) personality tests.
D) all of the above

Question 30

Secondary traits describe ways in which

A) people are inferior to others.
B) people are consistent, but in ways that affect few behaviors.
C) personality can be measured by questionnaire.
D) people try to get their own way in competitive settings.

Question 31

The highest level of integration of personality is reflected in an individual's __________, according to Allport.

A) sense of self
B) habits of everyday living
C) philosophy of life
D) traits

Question 32

Which statement best corresponds to Allport's attitude toward methodology?

A) Personality theory is limited primarily by lack of adequate computers.
B) Statistical developments have made "armchair psychology" obsolete.
C) Factor analysis is superior to structural-dynamic analysis.
D) It is wrong to overemphasize methodology; instead, psychologists should concentrate on a problem- centered approach.

Question 33

Allport's concept of functional autonomy asserts that

A) healthy people can function without much help.
B) childhood is the most important period for the formation of personality.
C) traits should be understood in terms of the present, rather than in terms of their origins.
D) once a good statistical method is available, theory is no longer necessary.

Question 34

Which way of describing George best illustrates Allport's concept of central traits?

A) George is like a lamb; he is very meek.
B) George is a typical Englishman.
C) George is intelligent, ambitious, deceptive, good-looking, friendly, athletic, and selfish.
D) George is not like anyone else I know.

Question 35

Allport's attitude toward highly mathematical empirical studies is best described as __________.

A) respectful
B) distrustful
C) enthusiastic
D) confused

Question 36

Sally writes with large, slanted handwriting. Jane's handwriting is small and upright. Allport and Vernon (1933) studied such differences with their concept of

A) common traits.
B) individual traits.
C) expressive traits.
D) secondary traits.

Question 37

The most pervasive kind of personality trait is a __________ trait.

A) cardinal
B) central
C) primary
D) secondary

Question 38

A trait that influences virtually all of a person's behavior is a __________ trait.

A) cardinal
B) central
C) nomothetic
D) secondary

Question 39

Which of the following is not a value measured by the Allport-Vernon-Lindzey Study of Values?

A) Aesthetic
B) Academic
C) Religious
D) Theoretical

Question 40

Nearly everyone who knows Harry agrees that he is friendly. "Friendly" is probably a __________ for Harry.

A) cardinal trait
B) secondary trait
C) central trait
D) primary trait

Question 41

Instead of "intrinsic religious orientation," Batson suggests that "__________" leads people to non- judgmental concern for helping others.

A) extrinsic religious orientation
B) religion as quest
C) religious fundamentalism
D) Christianity

Question 42

In addition to Allport's intrinsic / extrinsic religious orientation, researchers have also investigated

A) Quest orientation
B) Immanence
C) Spirituality
D) All the above
E) None of the above

Question 43

According to Allport's research, which person is most likely to be racially prejudiced?

A) a person who has a cardinal disposition
B) a person who has an intrinsic religious orientation
C) a person who has an extrinsic religious orientation
D) a rich person

Question 44

Allport describes a central issue in the 1- to 2-year-old's development: recognition of his or her

A) body.
B) possessions.
C) mother.
D) name.

Question 45

Research studies find that extrinsically religious people are __________, compared to intrinsically religious people.

A) more prejudiced against racial minorities
B) more prejudiced against homosexuals
C) more prejudiced against the poor
D) all of the above

Question 46

In order to understand the phenomenon of prejudice among churchgoers, Allport suggested the concept of

A) extrinsic religious orientation.
B) projection.
C) jackdaw eclecticism.
D) the proprium.

Question 47

A person who is extrinsically religious is likely to agree with which statement?

A) "My religious beliefs influence all my important life decisions."
B) "One reason for my being a church member is that it helps establish a person in the community."
C) "The most important lesson of religion is to love your neighbor."
D) "People should contribute one-tenth of their income to the Church."

Question 48

In their classic study of rumor transmission, Allport and Postman found that

A) often a black was reported, wrongly, to have been holding a knife.
B) rumors increase the amount of violence, the more they are retold.
C) eyewitnesses are more accurate than is generally believed.
D) rumor transmission cannot be studied in the laboratory.

Question 49

Researchers report that intrinsically religious people are

A) low in prejudice against all groups.
B) high in prejudice against all groups.
C) high in prejudice against homosexuals.
D) low in prejudice against homosexuals.

Question 50

Allport's term, proprium, corresponds most closely to which of the following terms?

A) neurosis
B) social influence
C) the self
D) the superego

Question 51

When does "propriate striving" develop?

A) about age 2
B) in middle childhood
C) in adolescence
D) in adulthood

Question 52

In adulthood, a person is in the stage of development that Allport called

A) ego-enhancement.
B) ego-extension.
C) self as knower.
D) self-identity.

Question 53

Helson and Wink (1987), in a longitudinal study of adult women, found that

A) Allport's criteria of maturity did not apply at all to women.
B) Women rarely, if ever, viewed themselves objectively.
C) Women rarely, if ever, had warm interactions with others.
D) Women sometimes experienced conflict between individual development and the demands of society, and Allport's theory did not consider such conflict.

Question 54

The earliest stage in the development of the proprium focuses on

A) the hunger drive.
B) the relationship with the mother.
C) the sense of the body.
D) language.

Question 55

"I go to church because it helps me to make friends" is an example of which type of religious orientation?

A) Extrinsic - socially oriented
B) Extrinsic - personally oriented
C) Intrinsic - socially oriented
D) Intrinsic - personally oriented

Question 56

A person who is intrinsically religious is likely to agree with which statement?

A) "My religious beliefs lie behind my whole approach to life."
B) "Women should not be permitted to be ministers."
C) "Being a member of a church is a good way to meet people."
D) "Prayer in public schools violates the U. S. Constitution."

Question 57

Identification of the self with one's possessions first occurs at about age __________, according to Allport.

A) 4
B) 9
C) 15
D) 21

Question 58

According to Allport, the study of prejudice should primarily emphasize

A) the social conditions in which people live.
B) economic conflict among people.
C) early messages taught to children.
D) individual personality.

Question 59

Allport's phrase, unitas multiplex, refers to

A) a statistical procedure for analyzing personality.
B) the similarity between twins.
C) the need for multiple sources of data in analyzing a personality.
D) the integration of diverse elements in a healthy personality.

Question 60

A review of research studies finds that intrinsically religious people are

A) tolerant of others, regardless of race or sexual orientation.
B) low in racial prejudice.
C) prejudiced against rape victims.
D) none of the above

Question 61

Allport agreed with Freud that self-reports should not be trusted, because of the power of the
unconscious.

Question 62

Allport suggested that psychologists should learn from common sense.

Question 63

According to Allport, personality traits should be abandoned as theoretical concepts because of
circular reasoning.

Question 64

According to Allport, people all have similar traits.

Question 65

Allport taught the first personality course in the United States.

Question 66

In his concept of jackdaw eclecticism, Allport warned against

A) including psychoanalytic concepts in personality theory.
B) accepting ideas without careful selection to determine what is valuable and what is not.
C) basing personality theory on animal research.
D) basing personality theory on studies that include only males.

Question 67

According to Allport, heredity influences all aspects of personality.

Question 68

Allport considered the family to be important for personality, but the larger society to be unimportant.

Question 69

According to Allport, the primary unit of personality is the trait.

Question 70

Allport analyzed Jenny's letters through a "structural-dynamic" approach that was, in effect, a content
analysis.

Question 71

In Allport's theory, mentally healthy people tend to be unified or integrated.

Question 72

Allport was primarily interested in the handwriting styles used by Jenny in her personal letters.

Question 73

According to Allport, personality is a real cause of behavior.

Question 74

Scores on the Allport-Vernon-Lindzey Study of Values predict occupational activities decades later.

Question 75

Most researchers since Allport have adopted the idiographic, rather than the nomothetic, approach to
research.

Question 76

An individual's personality can be described by a half dozen or so central personality traits.

Question 77

Allport frequently emphasized the need for greater statistical sophistication in personality research.

Question 78

Allport dismissed handwriting analysis as not appropriate for science.

Question 79

Allport criticized the concept of "trait," saying it involved circular reasoning and should be
abandoned.

Question 80

Mother Teresa most likely had an extrinsic religious orientation.