Practice test for Theories of Personality
Note: These questions are part of a larger data base of questions & are selected
to represent the type of question you should expect on exams. Exam questions,
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Use these sample questions to test yourself & to practice for the test.
1. If you are describing characteristics of your child such as irritability or adaptability,
psychologists would say you are not describing their personality but rather their
character.
consciousness.
mood.
temperament.
2. According to Freud, the __________ works off of the pleasure principle while the __________
is often perceived as the executive director of your personality.
id; ego
ego; superego
superego; id
superego; ego
3. You are shocked to hear that two of your coworkers who seemingly hated one another
are now getting married. According to Freud, what defense mechanism best explains their
prior behavior?
projection
reaction formation
repression
regression
4. Four-year old Brandon has watched his father as he has mowed the lawn. This year,
Brandon has asked for a lawn mower of his own for his birthday. Freud would say that
Brandon is beginning the process of __________ as a way of resolving his Oedipal conflict.
compensation
identification
sublimation
denial
5. Your professor explains how all females have an inner masculine side that adds to their
personality. This concept is known as a(n)
anima.
animus.
shadow.
source trait.
6. According to Adler, firstborn children with younger siblings tend to be
overachieving.
competitive.
pampered.
filled with feelings of inferiority.
7. Karen Horney's study of the personality focused on
anxiety during childhood.
biological changes during adolescence.
trait-based characteristic that were present in infancy.
environmental influences through adulthood.
8. Candice believes that fate will help her find the right man with whom to live her life.
According to Rotter, she has a(an)
external locus of control.
internal lotus of control.
strong self-efficacy.
perceived sense of control.
9. Keisha works hard at her job because it will increase her chances for a promotion.
According to Julian Rotter's theory her effort is an example of what he calls
reinforcement value.
expectancy.
archetypes.
latency stage.
10. What is a primary advantage of the social cognitive view of personality over the psychodynamic view?
The social cognitive view tries to explain how people become the people they are.
The social cognitive view stresses the importance of early childhood in
personality development.
The social cognitive view is fully able to explain all the complexities of
human behavior.
The social cognitive view has concepts that can be tested scientifically.
11. Which perspective of psychology focuses on the role of each person's conscious life
experience and choices in personality development?
trait
behavior
humanistic
psychodynamic
12. An old motto of the U.S. Army was, "Be all you can be." This concept fits well
with Carl Rogers's theory of
unconditional positive regard.
empathy.
self-actualizing tendency.
real versus the ideal self.
13. According to Rogers, a mismatch between the real and ideal self
typically motivates individuals to close the gap.
can result in anxiety and neurotic behavior.
causes one to beter understand their unconscious motives.
causes an increase in unconditional positive regard.
14. Dr. Hill is constantly late for meetings. She often arrives at her classes 5-10 minutes
late and leaves student waiting at her door during office hours for up to 30 minutes. Using
the five-factor model which dimension would show a very low score for Dr. Hill?
self-sufficiency
openness
agreeableness
conscientiousness
15. To explain an individual's personality, trait theorists would look to
early childhood emotional traumas.
the kind of love, warmth, and affection given to the person by his or her parents.
the early experiences of rewards and punishments for certain behavior.
the constellation of personality characteristics possessed by the person.
16. Studies of the hereditability of personality traits found
little evidence to support the belief that personality can be passed by genetics.
evidence to support the belief that personality can be passed by genetics but only
in highly developed counties.
strong evidence to support some personality traits can be passed by genetics.
strong evidence that personality is passed exclusively by genetics.
17. As examples of what might be required as parts of specific projective tests,
the __________ asks clients to look at a picture and tell a story while the
__________ asks clients to report everything they see in an ambiguous figure.
Rorschach; Thematic Apperception Test
MMPI; Thematic Apperception Test
MMPI; NEO-PI-R
Thematic Apperception Test; Rorschach
18. Which type of assessment would be the most reliable?
subjective test
projective test
personality inventory
observational study
19. The __________ is based on the five-factor model while __________ is based
on the work of Raymond Cattell.
NEO-PI-R; 16PF
MBTI; NEO-PI-R
MMPI-2; MBTI
16PF; MMPI-2
20. Personality neuroscience is an emerging field offering evidence of a possible relationship
between the various aspects of personality with
brain structure and function.
the structure and function of individual neurons.
skull shape and size.
neuroticism.
21. What is the MMPI-2?
An objective personality test
A self-report inventory
A test designed for people who have psychological disorders
all of these
22. According to Freud, during what stage does the superego emerge?
Genital
Oral
Phallic
Anal
23. Attributing ones own unacceptable thoughts or feelings to someone else is called what?
Reaction formation
Projection
Displacement
Sublimation
24. What is the part of the personality that compels people to act in perfect accordance with moral ideals?
The id
The superego
The pleasure principle
The reality principle
25. Which theorist focused on the importance of the self-concept in personality?
Carl Rogers
Alfred Adler
Walter Mischel
Hans Eysenck
26. Which one of the following statements about humanistic theories is false?
They do not provide insight into the evil side of human nature
They are biased because they are based on individualistic values
They are based on studies of people with psychological disorders
They are difficult to test empirically
27. Studies of temperament provide evidence for which of the following?
The concept of congruence
Maslows concept of the self-actualizing person
Sublimation
Genetic contributions to personality
28. When he was young, Gregs father was consistently promoted at work for his
diligence. Greg saw this and learned to be a conscientious worker himself. This fact could
most easily provide evidence for whose theory of personality?
Sigmund Freud
Albert Bandura
Abraham Maslow
Hans Eysenck
29. What is an advantage of projective personality tests?
Different people would score them the same way
They are very reliable
They are not transparent to the subject
They have lie scales that indicate whether subjects are being deceptive
30. Which of Jungs beliefs differed from Freuds theories?
Everyone has a collective unconscious
The unconscious is important in shaping personality
The main motivation for behavior is a striving for superiority
Behavior depends on the consequences that follow it
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Robert C. Gates
Some for the Glories of This World; and some
Sigh for the Prophet's Paradise to come;
Ah, take the Cash, and let the Credit go,
Nor heed the rumble of a distant Drum!
- Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam