Problemset
Title
Essay Questions
Introductory
Text
Question 1
List at least five characteristics of a person that would be counted as an aspect of their
personality and five that would not.
Type:
Hint:
Essay
Feedback: It should be relatively easy to find five that would count but a little more difficult
to find five that would not. The chapter will give you many that count. For ones
that do not (at least not usually) count, look back at the other chapters (e.g.,
some physical aspects, cognitive).
Question 2
Type:
Essay
Compare and contrast objective and projective measures of personality. Are there aspects
of personality that neither of these test types measure?
Hint:
Do they measure the same things and in the same way?
Feedback: pp. 177-179 Tell how they are similar (e.g., they both attempt to measure
what?). They differ in the approach they use and in their reliability and validity.
Neither measures McAdams' second and third levels of personality (or, at
least, not very well).
Question 3
What are traits and do they change as we grow older?
Hint:
Five factor model
Type:
Feedback: pp. 179-182 Define traits and then present Costa and McCrae's five factors.
Essay
Question 4
There are major cohort differences in these traits but age differences also
occur, especially during younger adulthood and in certain traits. Describe
those changes.
Some people are afraid of growing old. Is this fear related to their personality?
Hint:
Type:
Essay
Question 5
Feedback: Box 9-1 provides information on this issue and tells you which traits are most
closely associated with a fear of aging and which are not.
Type:
Describe Erikson's stages of adult personal concerns and some of the research supporting
this theory.
Hint:
Erikson's last 3 stages of adult development
Essay
Feedback: Read pp. 184-188 Those last three stages focus on concerns about intimacy,
generativity, and ego integrity. You might include mid-life crises as a
component of that middle-age stage. The best research to describe is some of
the longitudinal work although cross-sectional work has also supported the
theory.
Question 6
Type:
What are the four types of coping strategies discussed in the text and are these strategies
used by both older and younger adults? Are there other ways if categorizing coping
strategies?
Essay
Hint:
Feedback: pp. 189-191 The strategies are problem solving, two types of emotion
regulation, and avoidance. There are some age differences in the use of these
strategies when a problem has emotional components. You should have
described these differences. Another categorization of coping strategies is into
assimilation, accommodation, and immunization strategies. You should also
have defined these and told what the research shows with respect to age
differences.
Question 7
Choose one classification of control (either internal vs. external OR primary vs. secondary),
define the terms, and discuss age differences.
Type:
Hint:
Essay
Feedback: pp. 192 195 The definitions of these terms should be easy to get from the text.
For the first, age differences seem to only occur under certain circumstances
(which you should describe) while under the second age differences seem
more prevalent.
Question 8
What characterizes a life story and what types of people are more likely to have one?
Hint:
One way of measuring identity
Type:
Feedback: pp. 195-199 Life stories are one way of assessing an individual's identity.
Essay
Question 9
Coleman says they have four main characteristics that allow us to distinguish
them from a collection of life events; you should describe these characteristics.
Does culture influence identity? Describe some cultural differences.
Hint:
Type:
Essay
Feedback: pp. 196-197 Yes it does. The work on Dutch and Spanish and/or Chinese,
Japanese, and U. S. cultures should be described.
Question 10
What relationships have been found between aspects of a person's personality and their
health?
Type:
Hint:
Essay
Feedback: pp. 199-203 Several different traits, locus of control, and a positive attitude are
all related to health and well-being. You should describe these relationships
(e.g., conscientiousness and longer life).