2
Edinburgh Psych 2A Exam with precise detailed solutions || || || || || || ||
Traits - ✔✔Characteristics possessed by individuals that are stable over time and can be
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
used to distinguish one individual from another. We infer their existence because they
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
influence other things. || ||
Characteristics of good measures - ✔✔Criterion validity, internal consistency, restest
|| || || || || || || || || ||
reliability, freedom from bias, and measurement invariance
|| || || || || ||
Intelligence measures - ✔✔- IQ tests (Stanford-Binet IQ, Wechsler's Adult Intelligence Scale
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
(WAIS))
||
- Aptitude tests (Scholastic Aptitude test (SAT))
|| || || || || ||
- Ability tests
|| ||
Bias in IQ testing - ✔✔Some items are more easily answered by one group despite there
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
being no IQ difference. Group differences are larger than they should be if the tests are
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
'culture free'. IQ tests better predict performance measures in one group than another.
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
Types of personality tests - ✔✔Projective or objective (empirical, theoretical/ factor
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
analytic)
Projective personality tests - ✔✔Participants project their feelings on something, and that
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
projection can be used to reveal aspects of their personality. (ex. Ink Blot test, picture
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
interpretation, Sigmund Freud) || ||
,2
Objective empirical personality tests - ✔✔Match groups that differ in a crucial way (ex. one
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
with a psychiatric disorder, one without) and administer a test to both; see if you can see a
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
difference
Objective theoretical/factor analytic personality tests - ✔✔Start with an idea of what traits
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
are out there and devise a questionnaire containing markers of these traits (ex. adjectives).
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
Then use factor analysis and related methods to identify underlying domains (ex. the Big
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
Five Inventory or Eysenck Personality traits)
|| || || || ||
Are theoretical personality tests good measures? - ✔✔There is a lot of evidence that
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
personality tests are very good measures because they have high re-test stability, self-and-
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
rater reports agree, different measures of the same dimensions are correlated, and the
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
perception of personality traits is based on cues related to personality.
|| || || || || || || || || ||
The NEO (case study) - ✔✔Traits of Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Openness were
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
developed using analysis of the 16PF test (1976). Costa and McCrae added Agreeableness
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
and Conscientiousness in 1983 then measures of them were added to the other NEO
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
measures soon after. || ||
How do MMPI questions differ from questions from theoretically devised scales? Is this a
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
'feature' or a 'bug'? - ✔✔MMPI questions (ex. do you feel as if you are being watched?) are
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
more sneaky than theoretically devised questions (ex. are you nervous?)
|| || || || || || || || ||
Nomothetic - ✔✔Approach that helps us make sense of 'stuff'. Involves categorization using
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
theory or observations and analyzing the data to see what happens
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
Data reduction - ✔✔Statistical analysis used to reduce a lot of independent variables into a
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
smaller set (ex. principal components analysis and factor analysis)
|| || || || || || || ||
Factor g vs. multiple intelligences - ✔✔All measures of cognitive ability are g-loaded vs.
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
there are many different 'kinds' of intelligence
|| || || || || ||
,2
Thurstone's primary mental abilities theory - ✔✔our intelligence may be broken down into
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
7 factors: word fluency, verbal comprehension, spatial ability, perceptual speed, numerical
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
ability, inductive reasoning, and memory
|| || || ||
Sternberg's Triarchic Theory - ✔✔our intelligence is best classified into three areas that
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
predict real-world success: analytical, creative, and practical. This theory was disproven
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
because analytical ability alone predicts 75% of the overall score compared to other
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
intelligences like creativity. || ||
Gardner's Multiple Intelligences theory - ✔✔8 types of intelligence:
|| || || || || || || ||
Logical-mathematical, linguistic musical, spatial, naturalist, bodily-kinesthetic, || || || || || ||
interpersonal, intrapersonal. ||
What are the implications of a g-factor? - ✔✔If someone is good at one thing, chances are
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
they will probably be good at other things.
|| || || || || || ||
Why do people hang on to multiple-intelligence theories when they have been disproven? -
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
✔✔They are zombie theories that people may hold on to because they don't want to accept
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
that they have a low IQ.
|| || || || ||
How many factors make up personality? - ✔✔There is no way to tell how many factors you
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
have. Judgment had and still has to be guided by theory, further analysis, etc.
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
Why don't scree plots, kaiser criterion, and structure inspections work to measure
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
personality? - ✔✔They are hard to interpret consistently between researchers and therefore
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
lead to inconclusive findings when used on personality.
|| || || || || || ||
Five Factor Model - ✔✔Discovered in the 1940 but not seriously pursued until later. Factors
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
resembling the Big Five kept appearing and by the early 1990s, the Big Five dominated the
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
, 2
field (OCEAN). There are remaining disputes over whether to include more things or if
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
they are just combinations of the OCEAN factors (ex. is anger a new factor or is it high N +
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
low A?)||
The general factor of personality - ✔✔Musek (2007) and Rushton and Irwing (2008)
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
claimed that there is something like a g factor for personality. However, while intelligence
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
correlated very closely between different factors using different methods, personality scales
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
were only correlated because the same method was used to measure all of them (bias). In
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
other words, correlations between factors were not substantive and inter-factor correlations
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
over time were weak
|| || ||
Why might there seem like there are multiple personality factors? - ✔✔Correlations
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
between items, scales, etc. could come about via multiple processes. Latent variable view
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
assumes that they represent common observed or unobserved causes. However, network
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
view suggests activation of neighboring traits leads to factors.
|| || || || || || || ||
The Standard Model of Social Science - ✔✔Test associations between environment and
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
behavior (ex. studies done on children in early intensive day care had poorer parent-child
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
relationships, were more aggressive and less compliant, and more likely to have behavioral
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
problems.)
Problems with the standard model - ✔✔There are too many other possible variables (need
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
to set up a comparison/experimental study with random assignments and control groups)
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
Meiosis - ✔✔Basis of sexual reproduction and responsible for genetic diversity
|| || || || || || || || || ||
Genetic diversity - ✔✔Chromosomes of diploid cells, such as human somatic cells, re-
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
segregate and produce four haploid daughter cells. Two sets of haploid cells (ova and
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
sperm) come together to create diploid cells that make a new organism.
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
Edinburgh Psych 2A Exam with precise detailed solutions || || || || || || ||
Traits - ✔✔Characteristics possessed by individuals that are stable over time and can be
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
used to distinguish one individual from another. We infer their existence because they
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
influence other things. || ||
Characteristics of good measures - ✔✔Criterion validity, internal consistency, restest
|| || || || || || || || || ||
reliability, freedom from bias, and measurement invariance
|| || || || || ||
Intelligence measures - ✔✔- IQ tests (Stanford-Binet IQ, Wechsler's Adult Intelligence Scale
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
(WAIS))
||
- Aptitude tests (Scholastic Aptitude test (SAT))
|| || || || || ||
- Ability tests
|| ||
Bias in IQ testing - ✔✔Some items are more easily answered by one group despite there
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
being no IQ difference. Group differences are larger than they should be if the tests are
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
'culture free'. IQ tests better predict performance measures in one group than another.
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
Types of personality tests - ✔✔Projective or objective (empirical, theoretical/ factor
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
analytic)
Projective personality tests - ✔✔Participants project their feelings on something, and that
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
projection can be used to reveal aspects of their personality. (ex. Ink Blot test, picture
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
interpretation, Sigmund Freud) || ||
,2
Objective empirical personality tests - ✔✔Match groups that differ in a crucial way (ex. one
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
with a psychiatric disorder, one without) and administer a test to both; see if you can see a
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
difference
Objective theoretical/factor analytic personality tests - ✔✔Start with an idea of what traits
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
are out there and devise a questionnaire containing markers of these traits (ex. adjectives).
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
Then use factor analysis and related methods to identify underlying domains (ex. the Big
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
Five Inventory or Eysenck Personality traits)
|| || || || ||
Are theoretical personality tests good measures? - ✔✔There is a lot of evidence that
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
personality tests are very good measures because they have high re-test stability, self-and-
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
rater reports agree, different measures of the same dimensions are correlated, and the
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
perception of personality traits is based on cues related to personality.
|| || || || || || || || || ||
The NEO (case study) - ✔✔Traits of Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Openness were
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
developed using analysis of the 16PF test (1976). Costa and McCrae added Agreeableness
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
and Conscientiousness in 1983 then measures of them were added to the other NEO
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
measures soon after. || ||
How do MMPI questions differ from questions from theoretically devised scales? Is this a
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
'feature' or a 'bug'? - ✔✔MMPI questions (ex. do you feel as if you are being watched?) are
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
more sneaky than theoretically devised questions (ex. are you nervous?)
|| || || || || || || || ||
Nomothetic - ✔✔Approach that helps us make sense of 'stuff'. Involves categorization using
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
theory or observations and analyzing the data to see what happens
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
Data reduction - ✔✔Statistical analysis used to reduce a lot of independent variables into a
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
smaller set (ex. principal components analysis and factor analysis)
|| || || || || || || ||
Factor g vs. multiple intelligences - ✔✔All measures of cognitive ability are g-loaded vs.
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
there are many different 'kinds' of intelligence
|| || || || || ||
,2
Thurstone's primary mental abilities theory - ✔✔our intelligence may be broken down into
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
7 factors: word fluency, verbal comprehension, spatial ability, perceptual speed, numerical
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
ability, inductive reasoning, and memory
|| || || ||
Sternberg's Triarchic Theory - ✔✔our intelligence is best classified into three areas that
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
predict real-world success: analytical, creative, and practical. This theory was disproven
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
because analytical ability alone predicts 75% of the overall score compared to other
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
intelligences like creativity. || ||
Gardner's Multiple Intelligences theory - ✔✔8 types of intelligence:
|| || || || || || || ||
Logical-mathematical, linguistic musical, spatial, naturalist, bodily-kinesthetic, || || || || || ||
interpersonal, intrapersonal. ||
What are the implications of a g-factor? - ✔✔If someone is good at one thing, chances are
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
they will probably be good at other things.
|| || || || || || ||
Why do people hang on to multiple-intelligence theories when they have been disproven? -
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
✔✔They are zombie theories that people may hold on to because they don't want to accept
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
that they have a low IQ.
|| || || || ||
How many factors make up personality? - ✔✔There is no way to tell how many factors you
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
have. Judgment had and still has to be guided by theory, further analysis, etc.
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
Why don't scree plots, kaiser criterion, and structure inspections work to measure
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
personality? - ✔✔They are hard to interpret consistently between researchers and therefore
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
lead to inconclusive findings when used on personality.
|| || || || || || ||
Five Factor Model - ✔✔Discovered in the 1940 but not seriously pursued until later. Factors
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
resembling the Big Five kept appearing and by the early 1990s, the Big Five dominated the
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
, 2
field (OCEAN). There are remaining disputes over whether to include more things or if
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
they are just combinations of the OCEAN factors (ex. is anger a new factor or is it high N +
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
low A?)||
The general factor of personality - ✔✔Musek (2007) and Rushton and Irwing (2008)
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
claimed that there is something like a g factor for personality. However, while intelligence
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
correlated very closely between different factors using different methods, personality scales
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
were only correlated because the same method was used to measure all of them (bias). In
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
other words, correlations between factors were not substantive and inter-factor correlations
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
over time were weak
|| || ||
Why might there seem like there are multiple personality factors? - ✔✔Correlations
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
between items, scales, etc. could come about via multiple processes. Latent variable view
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
assumes that they represent common observed or unobserved causes. However, network
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
view suggests activation of neighboring traits leads to factors.
|| || || || || || || ||
The Standard Model of Social Science - ✔✔Test associations between environment and
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
behavior (ex. studies done on children in early intensive day care had poorer parent-child
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
relationships, were more aggressive and less compliant, and more likely to have behavioral
|| || || || || || || || || || || || ||
problems.)
Problems with the standard model - ✔✔There are too many other possible variables (need
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
to set up a comparison/experimental study with random assignments and control groups)
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
Meiosis - ✔✔Basis of sexual reproduction and responsible for genetic diversity
|| || || || || || || || || ||
Genetic diversity - ✔✔Chromosomes of diploid cells, such as human somatic cells, re-
|| || || || || || || || || || || ||
segregate and produce four haploid daughter cells. Two sets of haploid cells (ova and
|| || || || || || || || || || || || || ||
sperm) come together to create diploid cells that make a new organism.
|| || || || || || || || || || ||
