Hans Eysenck

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HANS JURGEN EYSENCK: FACTOR Overview of the Biologically Based Trait Theory

THEORY • Similar to McCrae and Costa’s factor theory but


Biography based his taxonomy in both factor analysis and
biology.
 Used 2 factor analysis
o Neuroticism and extraversion that lead • The 5 factors are Extraversion,
him to the publication of his book Agreeableness, Conscientiousness,
“dimensions of personality” Neuroticism, and Openness.
Biologically based tendency to behave in particular ways • Derivation of only 3 dimensions of
from very early in life personality: Extraversion (E),
Evidence for biological basis of personality Neuroticism (N), and Psychoticism (P).
 Temperament: • Individual differences in humans are biological
o Fetal activity and fetal heart rate in 36
and not merely psychological aspects of
week old foetus foreshadowed less
personality.
predictable eating and sleeping habits
• Genetic factors have a greater impact on
at 3 and 6 months after birth
o A high heart rate predicted a less subsequent behaviors than do childhood
experiences.
emotional infant at 6 months after
birth
Eysenck’s Factor Theory
o The prenatal environment plays an
important role in shaping personality
• Core of Eysenck’s view of psychology derives
( example: amount of stress of mom
from his conviction that measurement is
during pregnancy may alter infant’s
fundamental to all scientific advances.
own stress response)
• Taxonomy as the crucial first step.
 Behavioural genetics:
o The scientific study of the role of • Psychometric and biological components.
heredity in behaviour • Due to findings in twin studies.
o Heritability: extent to which • Factor Analysis – Statistical technique that
characteristic is influenced by genetics can identify groups, clusters, or factors of
o Mccrae & costa: used twin-adoption related items.
studies and gene-by-environment • Must be able to detect structures in
studies to study heritability personality.
o Twin-adoption: research into • Factors – dimensions of personality used to
hereditary influence on twins describe human behavior.
(identical/fraternal- raised or • Criteria for identifying factors
adopted)
• Existence of psychometric
o Gene-by-environment interaction
evidence.
research: allows researchers to assess
• Possession of heritability.
how genetic differences interact with
environment to produce certain • Sensibility from a theoretical
behaviour in some people but not in view.
others • Possession of social relevance.
 Brain measure research Hierarchy of behavior organization
o EEG (electroencephalography) to • Recognized a four-level hierarchy of behaviour
record the electrical activity of the organization
brain o Specific acts: Lowest level, individual
 EEG is superior when behaviours or thoughts that may or may not
showing ‘when’ brain activity be characteristic of a person (ex. Student
occurs but not that accurate finishing a reading assignment)
on ‘where’ activity occurs o Habitual acts or cognitions: responses that
recur under similar conditions ( ex. If a
student frequently keeps at an assignment  Carl Jung: essentially subjective/ individualized
until it is finished, this behaviour becomes way of looking at things
habitual) – reasonably reliable and consistent  Hans Eysenck: Quiet, passive, unsociable,
o Trait: third-level of behaviour; important careful, reserved, thoughtful, pessimistic, peaceful,
semi-permanent personality dispositions (ex. sober and controlled
Students have the trait of persistence)
o Also defined in term of significant Principal differences
intercorrelations between different
 Carl Jung: the direction of libido
habitual behaviours
 Hans Eysenck: biological and genetic in nature
o An observed consistency among the
o Cortical arousal level, a physiological
habits or repeated acts of the subject.
condition that is largely inherited rather
o Identified systematically through
than learned
factor analysis.
o Delineation of personality types relies
on detailed trait description. Extraverts for Hans Eysenck
o Type/superfactors: Fourth level, made up of • Lower level of cortical arousal
several interrelated traits • Higher sensory of threshold = lesser
Types (Superfactors) reactions to sensory stimulation
• Highest level. • participate more often in exciting and
• An observed constellation or syndrome of traits. stimulating activities
• Most generalized and inclusive variety of • Sexual intercourse earlier
organization. • frequently, wide range of partners in a
3 Dimensions of Personality greater # of positions, with a larger variety
Bipolarity: meaning equally distributed, at the center of of sexual behavior and will indulge in longer
the dimension precoital love play
• Extraversion-Introversion • quickly accustomed to strong stimuli
o Sociable, lively, active, assertive, Introverts for Hans Eysenck
Sensation-seeking, carefree, Dominant,
• Higher level of arousal
surgent, ventruesome
• Lower sensory threshold = greater reaction
• Neuroticism-Stability
o Anxious, Depressed, Guilt feelings, Low to sensory stimulation
self-esteems, Tense, Emotional, Moody, • avoid situations that will cause too much
Shy, Irrational excitement
• Psychoticism-Superego function
o Impersonal, Tough-minded, Impulsive, • less likely to become bored and uninterested
Egocentric, Creative, Unempathic, in routine activities carried on with the same
Antisocial, Cold, Aggressive people
 Intelligence Neuroticism/Stability
 Unimodal distribution
• Neurotics are characterized as moody, tense,
 Independence of factors (zero correlation)
anxious, depressed and irrational.
• Tendency to overreact emotionally and
EXTRAVERSION:
may have difficulty in returning to their
 Carl Jung: objective/non personalized view of
normal state after emotional arousal.
the world
• Does not necessarily suggest a neurosis.
 Hans Eysenck: sociability & impulsiveness but
also jocularity, liveliness, quick-wittedness, • Diathesis-stress model of psychiatric illness
optimism and other traits indicative of people • Diathesis – Predisposition
who are rewarded for behavior association with • High N scorers usually only need a lower
others level of stress to produce a neurotic
disorder.
INTROVERSION: Psychoticism/Superego function
• High P scorers are found to be cruel, hostile, and
insensitive to the needs and feelings of others.
• High level of creativity.
• Controlling and Authoritarian.
• Whereas low P scorers are caring,
DNA
cooperative, altruistic, and conventional.
• Diathesis-stress model also applies for Genetic Origins of the personality
Psychoticism and those who are high scorers are 1. What causes one person to have a low threshold
at risk of psychotic breaks. of response in the hypothalamus and another a
high threshold?
The Biological Basis of Personality 2. Why does one individual have balance in favor of
inhibitory potentials?
• Personality types result from differences in central
Two broad possibilities suggested in the past are:
nervous system (CNS) functioning
• 1. Either the traits are inherited and the individual
Implications: was born that way
• 2. Environmental influences produced the
• Genetic basis of personality pertinent characteristics
• Relatively stable & unchanging • The logic of genetic studies rests upon the known
ARAS system: Collection of nerve fibers located at the amounts of genetic relatedness to be found in
base of the spinal cord and lower portion of the brain. different pairs of person

• Help regulate level of arousal in the brain Psychopathology


• Ascending Reticular Activation System Personality Measurement tests
• Cortical excitation & inhibition • Lie: Scale to detect faking
High ARAS arousal:
Maudsley Eysenck Junior Eysenck
• Predisposes to introversion
Personality Personality
Eysenck Personality
Low ARAS arousal: Inventory InventoryPersonality Questionair
Inventory e
• Predisposes to extroversion Extraversio Extraversio Extraversio Extraversion
• Antecedents: genetic and biological n n n
• Consequences: experimental variables as Neuroticism Neuroticism Neuroticism Neuroticism
conditioning experiences, sensitivity and memory
Lie Lie Lie
as well as social behaviors such as criminality,
creativity, psychopathology, and sexual behavior Psychoticism
• Personality has genetic determinants that
indirectly shape biological intermediaries, and How psychopathology occurs
these biological intermediaries help mold P, E, and • Eysenck suggests that high neuroticism is
N correlated to developing a neurotic disorder.
Disorder:
PERSONALITY • Eysenck didn’t give any specific pathology but too
much of extraversion or introversion may cause a
person to have:
o Phobias, compulsions, obsessions or
Limbic P Conditioning Sociability become a psychopath.
system sensitivity Diathesis-Stress Model
arousal Criminality • Diathesis: makes it more or less likely that an
Vigilance individual will succumb to the development of
Distal antecedents (Generic personality determinants)
Creativity psychopathology if a certain stress is encountered
proximal antecedents (biological intermediaries)
psychometric trait constellations proximal consequences
(experimental studies) distal consequences (social
behaviour)
• Stress: a life event that disrupts the equilibrium of
a person’s life.
• Diathesis-stress model: asserts that if the
combination of the predisposition and the stress
exceeds a threshold, the person will develop a
disorder
Change
Eysenck on psychotherapy
• Stated that psychotherapy, had no evidence for
efficacy and studies supporting psychotherapy
were flawed
• Behavior therapy began as a way of applying
research relating to learning and conditioning to
clinical problems
• Eysenck’s emphasis on biological basis of
personality is consistent with biological therapies
• Heredity has a strong role in neuroticism,
extraversion, and psychoticism.
• Nonetheless, Eysenck maintains that all neurotic
behavior is learned.
• According to Eysenck, the core phenomenon in
neurosis is a conditioned fear reaction.
• Since behaviors are learned, they can be
unlearned, using behavior therapies
Behavior Therapy Methods
• Counter Conditioning: procedure often
utilized for therapeutic purposes, in which a
conditioned response (CR) is weakened by
associating the stimulus (CS) that evokes it
with a new response that is antagonistic
(incompatible) with the CR.
• Modeling: demonstration of behavior by one
person so that another person can imitate it.
• Flooding: form of behavior therapy in which the
client is exposed to the most intense stimuli that
evoke fear, typically for prolonged periods of
time, in an effort to extinguish it.
• Systematic Desensitization: technique designed to
reduce the strong anxieties associated with various
stimuli; the client is gradually exposed to them
and, at each level in the anxiety hierarchy, learns
new responses through counter conditioning

“There are no secrets to success. It is the result of


preparation, hard work learning from failure.”
Goodluuuck! –Maemae Sepulveda 

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