Test Bank For Personality Psychology 1st Canadian Edition by Randy J. Larsen

Test Bank For Personality Psychology 1st Canadian Edition by Randy J. Larsen

Chapter 03

Traits and Trait Taxonomies 

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the following is NOT a major question addressed by the dispositional domain?
A. How many traits exist?
B. How do traits interact with situations to produce behaviour?
C. How can we best measure traits?
D. Which traits are unconscious?

Topic: 03-01 What Is a Trait? Two Basic Formulations
Topic: 03-09 Identification of the Most Important Traits

2. The dispositional domain deals with personality problems
A. through psychoanalysis.
B. through cognitive therapy.
C. by examining important similarities and differences between people.
D. by altering reward and punishment contingencies.

Topic: 03-05 Traits as Purely Descriptive Summaries

3. The dispositional domain focuses on traits that
A. are enduring over time.
B. change over time.
C. change when situations change.
D. are similar in all people.

Topic: 03-07 Act Frequency Research Program

4. Which of the following is NOT a fundamental question of people who study traits?
A. How can traits be changed?
B. How should “trait” be defined?
C. How can we identify which traits are most important?
D. How can we develop a comprehensive taxonomy of traits?

Topic: 03-01 What Is a Trait? Two Basic Formulations
Topic: 03-09 Identification of the Most Important Traits
Topic: 03-14 Taxonomies of Personality

5. The “traits as causes” perspective on personality characteristics is useful in all of the following areas EXCEPT
A. ruling out alternative explanations for behaviour.
B. explaining why a person’s behaviour seems inconsistent with a trait at times.
C. viewing traits as internal structures.
D. counting how often a behaviour is performed.

Topic: 03-01 What Is a Trait? Two Basic Formulations
Topic: 03-02 Traits as Internal Causal Properties

6. Ellen works into the night studying for chemistry and biology examinations to reach her goal of entering medical school. She studies so hard that she often appears bored and uninterested in class. Which of the following trait formulations best explains Ellen’s personality characteristics?
A. Traits as internal causes.
B. Traits as purely descriptive summary.
C. Traits as biological structure.
D. Traits as genetic predisposition.

Topic: 03-01 What Is a Trait? Two Basic Formulations
Topic: 03-02 Traits as Internal Causal Properties

7. From the “traits as descriptive summaries” point of view, which of the following would be the most convincing evidence that a person has a given trait?
A. The person behaves in ways consistent with that trait.
B. The person says that they have the trait.
C. The person’s behaviour is caused by situations.
D. The person’s traits are caused by biology and heredity.

Topic: 03-01 What Is a Trait? Two Basic Formulations
Topic: 03-05 Traits as Purely Descriptive Summaries

8. If the trait of stinginess is viewed as a purely descriptive summary of behaviour, it can be represented best by
A. Mary’s constant thoughts about spending too much money.
B. Andrew always leaving a very small tip at restaurants.
C. Beth living with several roommates.
D. George not contributing for a gift for a stranger.

Topic: 03-01 What Is a Trait? Two Basic Formulations
Topic: 03-05 Traits as Purely Descriptive Summaries

9. Which of the following is an example of the view that traits are descriptive summaries?
A. Eysenck’s theory
B. Theoretical scale construction
C. The act frequency approach
D. The sociosexual orientation scale

Topic: 03-01 What Is a Trait? Two Basic Formulations
Topic: 03-05 Traits as Purely Descriptive Summaries

10. If you collect the central behaviours for a category and assess how frequently people perform those behaviours you would be using the act _____ approach to studying personality.
A. manipulation
B. selection
C. frequency
D. analysis

Topic: 03-06 The Act Frequency Formulation of Traits-An Illustration of the Descriptive Summary Formulation

11. A robin is a more _____ example of bird than is a penguin.
A. prototypical
B. aerodynamic
C. orthodontic
D. elemental

Topic: 03-06 The Act Frequency Formulation of Traits-An Illustration of the Descriptive Summary Formulation
Topic: 03-07 Act Frequency Research Program

12. The “frequency” part of the “act frequency approach” represents how often an individual performs a behaviour in a period of time. This element of the act frequency approach is assessed by act _____ ratings.
A. nomination
B. performance
C. occurrence
D. repetition

Topic: 03-06 The Act Frequency Formulation of Traits-An Illustration of the Descriptive Summary Formulation
Topic: 03-07 Act Frequency Research Program

13. The _____ identifies how much of a trait a person has by counting relevant behaviours.
A. circumplex model
B. act frequency approach
C. rational approach to scale construction
D. theoretical approach to scale construction

Topic: 03-06 The Act Frequency Formulation of Traits-An Illustration of the Descriptive Summary Formulation
Topic: 03-07 Act Frequency Research Program

14. Which of the following is NOT typically a step in the act frequency approach?
A. Act nominations
B. Assessing synonym frequency
C. Recording of act performance
D. Prototypicality judgments

Topic: 03-06 The Act Frequency Formulation of Traits-An Illustration of the Descriptive Summary Formulation
Topic: 03-07 Act Frequency Research Program

15. What procedure do researchers use to identify the potential hundreds of acts that belong to a trait category?
A. Act nominations
B. Act effectiveness
C. Act performance
D. Act likelihood

Topic: 03-06 The Act Frequency Formulation of Traits-An Illustration of the Descriptive Summary Formulation
Topic: 03-07 Act Frequency Research Program