measuring the person © copyright 2006 allyn & bacon mayers personality: a systems approach part...

Measuring the Person

© Copyright 2006 Allyn & Bacon Mayer’s Personality: A Systems Approach

PART 1: EXPLORING PERSONALITY CHAPTER 2: RESEARCH IN PERSONALITY


Theme and Variation on

Topic 2. Research In Personality

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Comparison to Personality: A Systems Approach…

• Chapter 2: Research in Personality 1. Where Do Data Come

From?*

2. What Research Designs are Used in Personality?

3. What Does it Mean to Measure Personality?

4. How do Psychologists Study So Many Variables?

• Lecture 2: Measuring the Person1. Collecting data

2. Measuring the person1. Reliability

2. Validity

3. Simplifying multiple measures




Gathering Data about the Person




Molecular-Molar Dimension (Review)

Molar (e.g., sociological level)

Intermediate (e.g., psychological level)

Molecular (e.g., biological level)




Personality and Its Position: ReviewMolar (e.g., sociological)

The Incorporative Environment

Intermediate (e.g., psychological)

The Personality System

The Situation

Molecular (e.g., biological)

The Brain and Nervous System

The Setting




Two Main Sources of Data Molar The Incorporative Environment

Intermed-iate The Personality System

The Situation

Molecular The Brain and Nervous System

The Setting

• External source data – from outside the person• Personal report data – from inside the person




External Source Data: ExamplesMolar (e.g., sociological)

Institutional Data (School records, Marriage certificates)

Intermediate (e.g., psychological) Personality

Informant Data (What a friend says about you)

Molecular (e.g., biological)

Biological Data (Medical records)

Setting Data: (Neighborhood qualities)




Major Types of Personal Report Data Molar The Incorporative Environment

Intermed-iate The Personality System

The Situation

Molecular The Brain and Nervous System

The Setting

Self-Judgment Agreeing or disagreeing with a given statement about oneself

Convergent-Report Constructing a response that meets a criterion

Thematic-Report Creating responses that reflect themes or ideas

Process-Report Pertaining to something going on in your mind at the moment




Measuring the Person (Psychometrics)




Review of Correlation

• Correlation co-relates…

• It relates one variable to another

• The size of the correlation indexes the strength of the relationship r = 1.0 is a perfect positive relationship r = 0 is no relationship r = -1.0 is a perfect negative relationship




Measurement of Attributes

• Measure attributes of the object

• For example, measurement of– length (to right)– weight (to right)




Psychometric Theory

A. Theories of how to measure abstract, mental phenomena

B. The central equation:X = T + e

X, the obtained test scoreT, the true scoree, the error score




Reliability in Physical Measurement

Things to Remember Measuring a Window for Window Blinds:

• Use a steel tape for accuracy. • Measure the exact width of the window at 3

different places. • Make all measurements to the nearest 1/8 inch.




Definitions of Reliability

• Informal: that a test measures what it measures with consistency

• Formal: the correlation, r, between the true score and the obtained score.




(A hard) Pop Question

When is a mental test perfectly reliable?

A. X = 0

B. T = 0

C. e = 0

D. X = T




Measurement Validity

A. Definition: That a test measures what it is supposed to measure

B. Types of Validity:1. Content

2. Criterion

3. Structural

4. Construct




Content Validity

A test’s items accurately sample from the content domain




Criterion (or Predictive) Validity

A test predicts a specific, measurable outcome, such as a life variable

Examples:

marriage

grade point average

occupational success

(or postdicts it, or concurrently indicates it)




Pop Question

A. Which of the following correlations between two variables is most useful for the purposes of predicting one from the other?

a) -.75

b) .00

c) +.25

d) +.50




Structural Validity

• A test measure the number of things it claims to measure

• Technical Test: Factor Analysis…– How many factors does a test measure? – Factor: An “underlying” variable




Construct Validity

• A test behaves the way it is supposed to behave according to theoretical statements, over numerous circumstances and tests




Handling Multiple Variables

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Multiple Variables

• Personality is a complex, multifaceted system

• This means that a lot of variables may be examined at a time

• How does one cope?




Multivariate Techniques

• Multivariate techniques handle multiple variables

• One crucial kind of technique examines “how many things” are being measured

• This class of techniques includes:– Factor analysis (the example here)– Multidimensional scaling– Cluster analysis




Logic of Factor Analysis

• Factor analysis uses correlational logic– If multiple variables correlate highly, they are

the same thing– If the variables don’t, they are different things

• Example:– If happiness and joy correlate highly: the

same– If they don’t: different




1. What does a factor look like?

I am: I

Curious .40

Interested .60

Thoughtful .80

Bored -.40

• The test items from the original test are in the left-most column

• A factor is represented by a column of factor loadings under a roman numeral

• The factor loading is the correlation between a test item and a factor




Simplified Rules for Interpreting a Factor• Step 1: Identify original test items with high

positive loadings • Step 2: Ask, what are the items trying to “get at”?

(That’s the primary name of the factor). (e.g., extraversion)

• Step 3: Locate the items loading negatively on the same factor. Those tell you the “polar opposite” label (e.g., introversion) – if there is one

• Step 4: No high loadings? Then, the factor is a “garbage” factor.




Example A

I II• Do you like parties? .70 -.15• Are you often nervous? .30 .80

Are you sociable? .75 -.01• Do you prefer to read over -.70 -.09

going to parties?• Are you often in a bad mood? .04 .70




Example B

I feel… I II III

Happiness .80 .20 .01

Sadness -.70 .10 .05

Excitement .60 .75 -.10

Anxiety -.25 .40 -.15

Calm .20 -.50 .20




Example C

I can be described as I II III

conscientious .80 .20 .01

often late -.70 .10 .05

warm .20 .75 -.10

friendly -.25 .40 -.15

cold -.20 -.50 .20




~ End ~

measuring the person © copyright 2006 allyn & bacon mayers personality: a systems approach part...

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