Objective Personality Tests Examples of unidimensional traits Surveys

Objective Personality Tests

Examples of uni-dimensional traits Surveys ü Locus of Control ü Type A/B ü Tolerance of Ambiguity ü Need for Cognition v Bem Sex-Role Inventory v Personal Attributes Questionnaire (PAQ)

Locus of Control Julian Rotter n 1966 n Internal vs External n Control of reinforcement n Internal = own action determines rewards n External = rewards determined by luck, fate, chance n

Type A/B Friedman and Jordan n 1950 s n Type A = ambitious, rigidly organized, highly status conscious, sensitive, truthful, impatient, try to help others, meet deadlines, multi-task n Type B = apathetic, patient, relaxed, easygoing, no sense of time schedule, poor organizational skills n

Tolerance for Ambiguity MSTAT - Multiple Stimulus Types Ambiguity Tolerance n David Mc. Lain 1993 n “ability to tolerate contradictory and incalculable information” n Trait or state? n

Need for Cognition Cacioppo and Petty n 1982 n “tendency for an individual to engage in and enjoy thinking” n

Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI) Sandra Bem n 1974 n Masculine and feminine traits n 20 m traits, 20 f, 20 “distractors” n Gender roles = how people identify themselves psychologically n

Bem “alternatives” Gender Traits Test – link n Personal Attributes Questionnaire (PAQ) Ø Spence, Helmreich and Stapp – 1974 Ø Instrumental and expressive characteristics n

Examples of uni-dimensional traits Behavioral Impulsive/Reflective (Kagan - Matching familiar figures) n Field Dependent/Independent (Witkin embedded figures) n

Impulsive/Reflective Matching Familiar Figures – (MFF) n Jerome Kagan – 1965 n Based on time to react n Slower, more accurate = reflective n Faster, less accurate = impulsive

Field Dependent/Independent Embedded Figures Test – (EFT) Herman Witkin – 1950’s

Field Dependent – has trouble finding geometric shape embedded in background = very interpersonal, reads social cues well, openly convey own feelings. Women more likely field dependent

Field independent – readily finds geometric shape regardless of background = has internal frame of reference, imposes own sense of order on situation lacking structure, impersonal and task oriented, separate own self identity from field. Men frequently field independent.