Deck 8: Personality and Patterns of Coping

Question 1

The adult's ability to express the true "inner self" is associated with which stage of development in Loevinger's theory?

A) Postformal
B) Integrated
C) Conscientious
D) Autonomous

Answer 1

B

Question 2

In Vaillant's ego psychology theory of personality, older adults are more likely to show which type of adaptation to the/stress in the/ir lives?

A) Conscientious-conformist.
B) Identity accommodation.
C) Mature defense mechanism.
D) Insecure attachment style.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

In comparing men and women on defense mechanisms, researchers find that women are more likely than men to engage in which approach to handling stress or anxiety?

A) self-blame
B) reaction formation
C) denial
D) acting out

Answer 3

A

Question 4

The notion of the "redemptive self," as proposed by McAdams comes closest to which stage of Erikson's psychosocial theory?

A) Generativity
B) Autonomy
C) Ego integrity
D) Identity

Question 5

Research on attachment styles in older adults shows that older adults have a variety of sources of security which provide a(n) _____________ when they are experiencing distress.

A) emotional island
B) mental respite
C) safe haven
D) self affirmation

Question 6

As pointed out in "Aging Today," people who view their situations in life honestly, if not with a slight sense of worry, can be considered high in:

A) neurotic sadness.
B) negative emotionalism.
C) depressive realism.
D) affective dysregulation.

Question 7

The "ego" in ego psychology approaches to adult development and aging refers to the fact that these theories emphasize:

A) inborn traits or constitutional dispositions.
B) biological patterns of responding to stimuli.
C) learned habits acquired through reinforcement.
D) a structure in personality proposed by Freudian theory.

Question 8

In longitudinal research on ego development in women conducted by Helson and her colleagues at Mills College, the results showed that during the years of adulthood, women decreased in:

A) feelings of independence.
B) degree of self-control.
C) perceived femininity.
D) self-rated leadership.

Question 9

In Erikson's theory, emerging adults who arrive at commitments but do not evaluate alternative commitments would be in which identity status?

A) Foreclosure.
B) Achieved.
C) Diffuse.
D) Moratorium.

Question 10

A 34-year-old woman is struggling to overcome her extreme anxiety that her friends will desert her, so she tends to stay away from making new friendships. According to the attachment style perspective, she would be considered to be _________ in her attachment style.

A) avoidant.
B) resistant.
C) secure.
D) autonomous.

Question 11

Because most adults in our society have internalized society's norms about what's right and wrong but do not necessarily have a true conscience, personality theorist Loevinger believed that they fall into the _______________ stage of ego development.

A) Introverted-Extraverted
B) Assimilation-Accommodation
C) Autonomy-shame/doubt
D) Conscientious-Conformist

Question 12

As people get older they should, according to Bauer, care less about themselves and more about others, an increase in what he calls:

A) quiet ego.
B) foreclosed identity.
C) secure attachment.
D) possible selves.

Question 13

A 27-year-old graduate student finds out that he failed his comprehensive exams, an experience that would normally be extremely anxiety-provoking. However, instead of becoming openly upset, he goes out drinking with his friends that night and never even mentions the failure. Even the next day, he doesn't actually act like anything has gone wrong with his career. Vaillant would classify this as an example of a(n):

A) identity vs. identity diffusion crisis.
B) self-actualization threat.
C) insecure attachment style.
D) immature defense mechanism.

Question 14

A major emphasis of psychodynamic theory is understanding the use of ________________ in adulthood.

A) defense mechanisms
B) traits
C) cognitive processes
D) five factors

Question 15

Because it studied patterns of individual changes over time, the Rochester Adult Longitudinal Study (RALS) on psychosocial development used the multivariate correlational method known as:

A) logistic regression.
B) analysis of variance.
C) hierarchical linear modeling.
D) meta-analysis.

Question 16

A 56-year old man has struggled with psychological disorder throughout his entire life, but he has finally managed to overcome his symptoms enough to establish himself in his community as a member of the town council. He has also found happiness in a committed relationship with a woman and they are talking about getting married. This man would fit which life pathway as described from research on the RALS?

A) Triumphant Trail.
B) Meandering Way.
C) Authentic Road.
D) Straight and Narrow.

Question 17

Using sequential methods made it possible for the RALS to investigate the role of ____________ in psychosocial development.

A) gender
B) race
C) marital status
D) cohort

Question 18

Research on identity in emerging adults suggests that those who are most likely to engage in delinquent and drug-related behaviors are in which identity status?

A) Achieved
B) Moratorium
C) Diffuse
D) Foreclosed

Question 19

A 60-year-old accountant feels satisfied with the life choices she's made even though she's still open to making changes in the future. Which of the five pathways in the Rochester Adult Longitudinal Study best describes her?

A) Authentic Road
B) Meandering Way
C) Triumphant Trail
D) Straight and Narrow

Question 20

Attachment theory fits into the ______________ perspective in personality and aging.

A) social cognitive
B) identity process
C) five-factor
D) psychodynamic

Question 21

The psychologist testing a 78-year-old new client administered the NEO-PI-R as part of a neuropsychological assessment. She noted that the client has markedly high scores on an Alzheimer's screening test. According to research on the Five Factor Model and Alzheimer's disease risk, which scale of the NEO-PI-R is likely to be abnormally high?

A) Agreeableness
B) Openness
C) Neuroticism
D) Defensiveness

Question 22

A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies on aging and the Five Factor Model revealed that, across many of these studies, individuals increased up until the age of about 40 in which trait?

A) neuroticism
B) psychopathology
C) disagreeableness
D) social dominance

Question 23

In the Type A behavior pattern, high scores on hostility seem strongly related to which health outcome?

A) Respiratory illness
B) Major depression
C) Cardiovascular disease
D) Hearing loss

Question 24

Research conducted by Lodi-Smith and colleagues (2010) comparing personality and preventive behaviors found that observer-rated personality traits were correlated with which measure relevant to health?

A) Type A behavior
B) smoking
C) education
D) blood pressure

Question 25

The idea of what you could become at some point in the future is known as your:

A) attachment style.
B) life structure.
C) possible self.
D) ego integrity.

Question 26

The Five Factor model of personality fits into which overall category of psychological theories?

A) trait
B) neo-behaviorist
C) cognitive
D) psychodynamic

Question 27

The ________________ principle would predict that, over time, a highly agreeable person would be more liked by other people, which would further increase that person's agreeableness over the years of adulthood.

A) accommodation
B) generativity
C) correspondence
D) stability

Question 28

A cardiologist/Dr. Al Fresco/ sees many middle-aged and older patients who suffer from heart disease and all seem to share a certain personality trait. Based on longitudinal research on adults from college through midlife, which personality trait is this likely to be?

A) hostility
B) conscientiousness
C) dutifulness
D) openness to experience

Question 29

Lower levels of IL-6 were associated in research on the MIDUS with which FFM personality trait?

A) hostility
B) openness
C) conscientiousness
D) agreeableness

Question 30

The amount of time a person has left to live is an important factor in personality according to which theory of development?

A) normative influence
B) secure attachment
C) socioemotional selectivity
D) ego integrity

Question 31

Researchers and clinicians use the Neuroticism-Extraversion-Openness Personality Inventory-Revised (NEO-PI-R) to study the _____________ model of personality in adulthood.

A) attachment style
B) ego development
C) five factor
D) defense mechanism

Question 32

The well-known psychologist who proposed that personality is "set in plaster" by the age of 30 was:

A) Loevinger.
B) Levinson.
C) James.
D) Erikson.

Question 33

People who use problem-focused coping are most likely to try to change ____________ when faced with a stressor.

A) their mood
B) the facts
C) their thoughts
D) the situation

Question 34

Studies testing the predictions of Socioemotional Selectivity Theory involving eye tracking measurements while people look at facial stimuli note that younger adults, compared to older adults, are more likely to focus on parts of the face showing:

A) happiness
B) delight
C) joy
D) anger

Question 35

Socioemotional selectivity theory predicts that we feel closer to ____________ as we get closer to the end of our lives.

A) casual acquaintances
B) our best friends
C) extended family
D) political leaders

Question 36

A behavioral health specialist working on a cardiologist's hospital team is called in to conduct a session with a new patient. After determining that the patient fits the Type A Behavior Pattern, what would be the best way for her to try to help this patient decrease his future heart disease risk?

A) Start a program of family therapy
B) Teach him to be less agreeable
C) Help him act out his feelings
D) Work on reducing his hostility

Question 37

As pointed out in socioemotional selectivity theory, people who value the _________ function of their relationships are likely to seek advice and practical tips from the people with whom they spend time.

A) affective
B) informational
C) mood-regulating
D) emotional

Question 38

According to the correspondence principle, personality __________ is enhanced over adulthood because people selectively experience life events that reinforce their existing personalities.

A) stability
B) change
C) identity
D) trait

Question 39

Supporting the theory known as ____________, Isaacowitz's research on eye movements showed that older people prefer to look at the happy parts of a face.

A) trait pattern stability
B) socioemotional selectivity
C) intrapsychic preference
D) identity process

Question 40

The personality trait within the Five Factor Model found to predict smoking and drug use in adulthood is:

A) Agreeableness
B) Conscientiousness
C) Extraversion
D) Introversion

Question 41

What criticisms might you make of research based on the NEO-PI-R, the trait measure of personality?

Question 42

People high in self-efficacy are likely to adapt to stress by using which type of coping methods?

A) affect regulation
B) problem-focused
C) secure attachment
D) emotion-focused

Question 43

What effect does a shortening of time perspective have on an individual's relationships with others?

Question 44

Provide a brief summary of five major findings from the Mills and Radcliffe Studies.

Question 45

Summarize the major findings from the Rochester Study.

Question 46

The patterning of an individual's personal development, occupation, family roles, religion, friendships, and religion at a particular point in time is referred to by Levinson as the:

A) life structure.
B) identity process.
C) coping style.
D) possible self.

Question 47

A 62-year-old woman was told by her physician, much to her own distress, that she needs to lose 15 pounds in order to reduce her risk of developing diabetes. Instead of following the physician's advice, though, she instead tries to make herself feel better by minimizing the importance of what she's just heard. This way of coping with stress is known as:

A) problem-focused.
B) support seeking.
C) emotion-focused.
D) possible self-affirmation.

Question 48

What are the two main forms of coping?

Question 49

Contrast the mature with the immature defense mechanisms in Vaillant's theory.

Question 50

As reported in your text, Costa and McCrae found that men who scored highest on their Midlife Crisis Scale had the highest scores on the __________factor as measured 10 years earlier.

A) Extroversion
B) Openness
C) Neuroticism
D) Conscientiousness

Question 51

A large-scale survey of adults from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS) showed that ______% indicated they had experienced a "midlife" crisis, though the ages associated with that crisis showed a wide range.

A) 95
B) 57
C) 78
D) 26

Question 52

Summarize the five factors in the Five Factor Model.

Question 53

In a large scale review of studies on midlife in women, the findings showed support for the idea that:

A) women experience a midlife crisis earlier than do men.
B) more women than men experience a midlife crisis.
C) the midlife crisis affects only unmarried women.
D) stage in midlife did not predict any outcome measures.

Question 54

The quality of _______________ refers being able to the ability to recover from stress.

A) extraversion
B) correspondence
C) resilience
D) attachment

Question 55

The inner narrative that people create of their experiences up to the present point is called the:

A) life structure.
B) feared self.
C) life story.
D) daily diary.

Question 56

According to your text, the idea that personality is subject to major upheavals in the middle years of adulthood reflects:

A) Erikson's theory .
B) Identity accommodation .
C) Current findings in trait theory .
D) A good story - "disaster mentality" .

Question 57

In later life, people who are low in self-esteem tend to be those who use the identity process of:

A) assimilation
B) balance
C) mistrust
D) accommodation

Question 58

How does socioemotional selectivity theory account for changes in later adulthood in emotions?

Question 59

Indicate the three major findings in support of stability from research on the Five Factor Model.

Question 60

Briefly describe the six stages of ego development in Loevinger's theory.

Question 61

Define the concept of "psychological mindsets" and indicate its importance in relation to the quality of life and longevity of older adults. How may it be adaptive as well as maladaptive?

Question 62

What type of evidence was provided by Levinson in support of the midlife crisis theory?

Question 63

Summarize the major stages of Levinson's theory.

Question 64

What personal observations in your life have you made about the validity of the midlife crisis concept? How do these observations fit with the theories and research on this topic in the adult development literature?

Question 65

Why has the midlife crisis concept received so much media attention? How would you explain the discrepancy between this sensationalism and empirical research?

Question 66

What are three major criticisms of midlife crisis theory?

Question 67

Define and contrast identity assimilation and identity accommodation. Which process is more adaptive in terms of self-esteem in later life?

Question 68

How do changes in physical functioning and health relate to personality changes in adulthood as described by the theories and research in this chapter?

Question 69

What are the implications of the alternative theories of personality in middle and later adulthood for treatment of psychological disorders?

Question 70

Which theories of personality development are most compatible with the midlife crisis theory? Why?

Question 71

Summarize the patterns of gender differences in development that are apparent from studies on personality in adulthood. What further work in this area needs to be done? Why?

Question 72

Compare predictions about adult personality development from the Five Factor Model with the results of
studies based on theories of ego development. Which results do you find more convincing? Why?