Term
| Valid Male - Female Differences |
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Definition
Males have better spatial skills, while women have better verbal skills
Males are more aggressive, while females are better communicators |
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Term
| Invalid Male - Female Differences |
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Definition
Personality Characteristics
Men typically described as rational, independent, dominant, aggressive, active
Women typically described as emotional, nurturing, submissive, sociable, suggestible |
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Term
| Physical Male - Female Differences |
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Definition
Physical differences
e.g., height, genitalia, hormones
Life expectancy
Women generally live longer than men (and are at lower risk for a variety of health problems) |
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Term
| Psychoanalytic Approach differences in personality |
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Definition
Personality differences between boys and girls arise from their emotional reactions to the differences in their bodies
Castration anxiety
Penis envy
Identification with same-sex parent in order to resolve the conflict |
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Term
| Neo-Analytic Approach differences in personality |
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Definition
Erik Erikson
Male traits are tied to outward extending genitalia
Female traits are tied to internal genitalia
opposed to
Karen Horney
Women envy men’s opportunities in society rather than their penises |
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Term
| Neo-Analytic Approach differences in personality |
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Definition
Carl Jung
Anima : the feminine characteristics that are present in the unconscious of males
Animus: the masculine characteristics that are present in the unconscious of females
A healthy personality has balance between the masculine and the feminine (yin and yang)
Masculinity and femininity are complementary and each contain elements of the other
Nancy Chodorow (Object Relations)
Boys and girls each initially identify with their mothers
Development of gender identity means that boys have to turn away from their identification with their mothers (girls do not have to change) |
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Term
| Biological Approach differences in personality |
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Definition
Reproduction requires different sexual behaviors for men and women
-- Women: few carefully selected partners
-- Men: many partners
Gender-based personality characteristics are learned through:
Reinforcement
Conditioning
Shaping
Modeling
Parents, peers, and the media shape these characteristics |
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Term
| Cognitive Approach differences in personality |
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Definition
Through socialization, we develop gender schemas
Mental structures that help us understand the abilities and appropriate behaviors for men and women |
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Term
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Definition
| Model of disease that suggests that although a pre-disposition to illness exists because of genetics or upbringing, the illness itself will not appear unless or until it is elicited the environment |
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Term
| Trait Approach differences in personality |
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Definition
Aggression and Dominance
In many animal species, males are more dominant and aggressive than females
In humans, males perpetrate more violent crimes than females
Experimental and observational studies generally show that males are more aggressive
Emotionality
Male babies cry more than female babies, but by the time they reach adulthood, males cry less than females
Social expectations and hormonal changes likely contribute to this difference
Women are generally better at interpreting emotions in others and in expressing emotions so that they can be interpreted by others
Achievement Motivation
Research in the 1950s showed that women had a lower achievement motivation than men, but opportunities for women were much more limited at that time
More recent research indicates that there are no gender differences in achievement motivation |
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Term
| Humanistic Approach difference in personality |
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Definition
Self-actualized people possess the “best characteristics” of both genders
Empathetic and open (“feminine” qualities)
Creative and autonomous (“masculine” qualities) |
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Term
| Interactionist Approach differences in personality |
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Definition
Many gender-relevant personality characteristics are tied to the demands of the social situation
Helping
Caring
Sociability
Nonverbal behavior
Conformity
Instrumental vs. expressive behavior |
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Term
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Definition
Cross-cultural approach
Emphasizes similarities across groups |
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Term
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Definition
Culture-specific approach
Focuses on a single culture |
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Term
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Definition
Western
People are encouraged to distinguish themselves as individuals |
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Term
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Definition
Eastern
Focus is on the relatedness of all human beings |
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Term
| Personality characteristics that predispose someone to illness |
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Definition
| Type A Personality - Hasty, impatient, impulsive, hyperalert, potentially hostile, very tense. "workaholic". Coronary-prone personality. Hostile struggle that is the problem. Those who lead confrontational, bitterly competitive and driven lives are more prone to disease. |
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Term
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Definition
Ethnicity is based on shared cultural beliefs
Race is based on physical characteristics (e.g., skin color, eye shape) and is biologically based
We often make personality generalizations based on race |
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Term
| Key Cross-Cultural Research |
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Definition
Margaret Mead (1920s)
Found that adolescence was not quite as stressful in Samoa as it is in the US
Whiting & Whiting (1970s)
Found a relationship between child rearing and adult personality
Kurt Lewin and political culture
Studied autocratic vs. democratic groups
Demonstrated that rigorously controlled laboratory research could be useful in studying personality |
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Term
| Relegion's effect on personality |
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Definition
Religious identity is a part of personality
Religion provides people with norms about behavior
It is important to evaluate people within the context of those institutions that might influence their behavior |
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Term
| Personality that protects from disease |
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Definition
| Conscientious children lived significantly longer than non-conscientious children. Less likely to smoke cigarets. |
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Term
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Definition
| Self-healers feel in control when faced with external challenges. Feel committed to something meaningful and important. Respond to excitement and energy. |
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Term
| SES effect on Personality |
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Definition
SES Gradient
People with a higher SES are less likely to get sick and die early
Relationship between SES and personality is not entirely clear
Class appears to have an influence on personality
Is another contextual factor to consider |
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Term
| Gender & Language effects on Personality |
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Definition
Many languages include different word forms to be used by (or in reference to) males and females
Masculine pronouns are often used as “generic,” which ultimately shapes the way we see the world, our capabilities, and our roles |
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Term
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Definition
| A preconceived judgement or opinion directed toward an individual or a group |
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Term
| Issues of Culture and Testing |
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Definition
The item content of some tests may not adequately capture the experiences of people from different cultural backgrounds
Culture-free tests
Culture-fair tests |
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