Sample Personality Exam Questions

04 Oct Sample Personality Exam Questions

Sample Personality Exam Questions (answers at bottom of document)

1. How many trait dimensions did Cattell propose?

a. 2

b. 3

c. 5

d. 16

2. Which statement best describes how Allport and Odbert attempted to define the trait universe?

a. correlational analysis of trait adjectives

b. factor analysis of trait adjectives

c. selection of trait adjectives that describe psychological differences between people

d. selection of trait adjectives that people use to evaluate each other

3. Which is of the following statements about factor analysis is correct?

a. finds groups of variables that have similar meanings

b. finds groups of variables that correlate with one another

c. finds groups of variables that can be factored

d. finds groups of variables that have similar means

4. Which of the following is not an established alternative label for the relevant Big Five factor?

a. Extraversion & “Surgency”

b. Conscientiousness & “Morality”

c. Neuroticism & “Emotional instability”

d. Openness to Experience & “Culture”

5. Which of the following statements correctly describes the relationships between Big Five traits and emotion dimensions?

a. Extraversion is related to more positive affect and Neuroticism to more negative affect

b. Extraversion is related to more positive affect and Neuroticism to less positive affect

c. Extraversion is related to less negative affect and Neuroticism to less positive affect

d. Extraversion is related to less negative affect and Neuroticism to more negative affect

6. Which of the following statements about Eysenck’s and Gray’s theories is incorrect?

a. For Eysenck, Neuroticism is related to limbic system reactivity.

b. For Gray, the “behavioural activation system” is linked to sensitivity to reward and pleasure.

c. For Gray, Impulsivity involves having a weak “behavioural inhibition system”.

d. Gray’s Anxiety dimension corresponds to a mixture of Neuroticism and Introversion in Eysenck’s system.

7. Which of the following statements about traits and values is incorrect?

a. the structure of values appears to differ across cultures more than the structure of traits

b. values are cognitions, traits are not

c. traits appear to have more dimensions than values

d. unlike traits, values are inherently desirable to the person who has them

8. Which of the following is NOT one of the six virtue classes in the VIA classification of strengths?

a. Justice

b. Transcendence

c. Humanity

d. Creativity

9. Which two vocational interest types are next to one another in Holland’s model?

a. Realistic & Enterprising

b. Conventional & Social

c. Artistic & Investigative

d. Realistic & Artistic

10. Which of the following statements is TRUE regarding biological research and theory

on personality?

a. extraverts’ brains are typically over-stimulated

b. shared environmental factors are more important than nonshared factors

c. the heritability of personality traits is sometimes calculated from twin studies

d. 2D:4D digit ratio research shows the importance of circulating levels of neurotransmitters in the brain

11. Which of the following statements about Eysenck’s work on personality is correct?

a. Introverts have highly arousable autonomic nervous systems

b. Neuroticism is associated with stimulus hunger

c. Extraverts tend to like stimulant drugs more than Introverts

d. High levels of Psychoticism put people at risk of depression

12. Roughly what proportion of the variability in most personality traits tends to be heritable?