1 / 12

Personality Assessment

Personality Assessment. Personality Definition: an individual’s unique constellation of psychological states and traits Traits: Guilford (1959), “An distinguishable, relatively enduring way in which one individual varies from another.” States: transitory exhibition of some personality trait

savannah
Download Presentation

Personality Assessment

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript


  1. Personality Assessment • Personality Definition: an individual’s unique constellation of psychological states and traits • Traits: Guilford (1959), “An distinguishable, relatively enduring way in which one individual varies from another.” • States: transitory exhibition of some personality trait • Types:constellation of traits & states that is similar in pattern to one identified category of personality taxonomy, e.g., Type A, personality profiles

  2. Basic Characteristics of Personality Assessment Methods • Personality v. IQ & Achievement tests • Typical v. maximum performance tests • Stability of constructs of interest • Degree of inference in assessment methods • Behavioral v. “traditional” v. projective • Interpretation approaches • Clinical v. actuarial

  3. Methods of Developing Assessment Methods • Logic/Reason • Face validity, content-oriented approach • E.g., DSM questionnaires • Theory • Questions reflect theory about personality & human behavior • E.g., Self-Directed Search, EPPS

  4. Methods of Developing Assessment Methods (cont.) • Data Reduction methods • Factor analysis to place items to scales • E.g., Cattell & 16PF, Children’s Personality Questionnaire, NEO PI-R (Big 5, Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness) • Empirical Criterion Keying • Can items/scales distinguish among groups? • E.g., MMPI

  5. MMPI Overview • Psychiatric patients v. visitors • 567 true-false items • 10 clinical scales that could differentiate the groups • “validity” scales • Several “research”/content scales developed over the years

  6. MMPA-2 • Items rewritten • Eliminated “objectionable” wording • Added items • Drug abuse, Type A, attitudes toward work • 3 new validity scales • New content scales, clinical scales the same • Larger & more representative normative sample

  7. Projective Assessment • Psychodynamic origination • Projective hypothesis • When confronted with ambiguous stimuli subjects will create structure which reveals information about their personalities, needs, drives, etc.

  8. Projectives (cont.) • Defining characteristics • Lack of stimulus structure • Multiplicity of responses permitted • Absence of right or wrong answers • Assumptions • Because they are ambiguous, they elicit more meaningful information; • They are less susceptible to faking • Reveal more unconscious aspects of personality

  9. Examples of projectives • Rorschach • 10 ink blots • Exner comprehensive scoring system • Free association and inquiry phases • What are characteristics of response? • E.g., location, popular responses, perseveration

  10. Storytelling/Apperception tests • Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) • Murray’s Needs-Press theory • What’s happening in the picture? What events led up to the scene? What will happen next? What are the people’s thoughts, feelings, etc. • Hero, Needs, press, outcomes, themes • Children’s Apperception Test, Robert’s Apperception Test • Modifications for individuals of differing ethnic backgrouns

  11. Projective drawings • Overall appraisal + “sign” approach • Draw a Person • House-Tree-Person • Kinetic Family Drawing

  12. Evaluation of Projectives • Are they tests? • Can they be held to psychometric standards? • Assumptions have not really held up. • Can be influenced by situational variables. Stimuli not as ambiguous as assumed. • Psychometrics not been demonstrated despite years of study.

More Related