Measures of Cognitive Complexity and Its Development in Chinese Adolescents

There are various controversies over the measurement of cognitive complexity and few studies concerning its development in adolescents, especially in China. Based on a sample of 234 Chinese adolescents from Grades 7 through 11, the present study first compared 2 instruments and 12 corresponding indices of cognitive complexity—11 traditional and new forms of cognitive complexity scores on the Repgrid, and 1 score on the Role Category Questionnaire (RCQ)—then adopted the most appropriate tool to investigate the development of cognitive complexity. The results showed that the RCQ may have relatively more construct validity than the Repgrid in terms of the assessment of adolescents’ cognitive complexity. Using the RCQ, it was found that adolescents of different grades, gender, peer status, and academic achievement had different levels of cognitive complexity.     

Alternative measures of cognitive complexity as predictors of communication performance

Two studies were conducted to compare the predictive validity of the two of the most popular measures of cognitive complexity: Bieri et al.'s (1966) grid-based measure (elicited and provided versions) and Crockett's (1965) Role Category Questionnaire (RCQ). Two other grid-based measures of construct system quality also were included. Criterion measures included indices of the accommodative, person-centered quality of communication behavior and social reasoning in a variety of contexts.

Results of both studies consistently show Crockett's measure to be a significant predictor of all criterion measures. Bieri et al.'s measures were generally unrelated, although the elicited construct version performed best as a predictor. The two measures of complexity were essentially unrelated in both studies. Implications of the findings for future use of the RCQ and grid-based measures of complexity are discussed. For those interested in the relation of constructs and communication behavior, the RCQ is recommended.     

Personal and Organizational Characteristics of Employment Counselors

Eleven personal and organizational variables were measured in a large national sample of employment counselors. Data indicate that female counselors were younger than males, older counselors had higher educational levels than younger ones, and as the level of education increased, so did the number of professional association memberships and time spent in counseling activities. Employment counselors with first-line supervisors who had counseling experience tended to be older, spent more time in counseling activities, had higher education levels, and belonged to more professional associations than did counselors whose supervisors did not have counseling experience.     

CONCEPTUALIZING CONVERSATIONAL COMPLEXITY

A successful conversation requires participants to have knowledge of both the topic under discussion and the nature of conversation. This study asks whether people who are more sophisticated in their representation of conversation behave differently than their less sophisticated counterparts. This issue was probed by devising two operationalizations of what we call Conversational complexity. The two measures assessed peoples' constructs about conversation (operationalized by a measure of construct differentiation) and the manner in which people psychologically structure conversations (via a sorting task tapping the degree to which they focus on the surface features, or deeper structures, of conversations). Individuals who completed the two measures of complexity also participated in conversations and completed a number of personality indices. Each operationalization of conversational complexity was positively correlated with a variety of conversational involvement behaviors, measures of conversational enjoyment and person complexity, and memory for the interactions. Generally speaking, effective interactants who enjoyed conversations and recalled them well tended to have more constructs about conversations and psychologically represented conversations at a deeper level than their counterparts.     

Vocational decision status and the effect of four types of occupational information on cognitive complexity

Because most vocational counseling interventions focus on giving occupational information, research investigating effects of information giving on cognitive processing styles has governed attention in the recent past. The present study was intended to determine some aspects of occupational information relevance while assessing differences in cognitive complexity between vocationally decided and undecided subjects. Two hundred eighty college student volunteers were assigned to eight groups based on their decision status (decided versus undecided) and random distribution of four types of occupational information packets. Cognitive complexity levels were measured, using the Cognitive Differentiation Grid, 48 hr after the packets were distributed. A 2 × 4 analysis of variance found no differences between decided and undecided subjects' cognitive complexity scores as a function of type of occupational information received. There was a significant main effect for information received. There was a significant main effect for information across decision status in the positively and negatively toned information groups: the positive information was associated with relatively greater cognitive simplicity scores and the negative information was associated with relatively greater cognitive complexity scores. Implications of results and further necessary research is specified.     

Clarifying the Linguistic Signature: Measuring Personality From Natural Speech

In this study, we examined the viability of measuring personality using computerized lexical analysis of natural speech. Two well-validated models of personality were measured, one involving trait positive affectivity (PA) and negative affectivity (NA) dimensions and the other involving a separate behavioral inhibition motivational system (BIS) and a behavioral activation motivational system (BAS). Individuals with high levels of trait PA and sensitive BAS expressed high levels of positive emotion in their natural speech, whereas individuals with high levels of trait NA and sensitive BIS tended to express high levels of negative emotion. The personality variables accounted for almost a quarter of the variance in emotional expressivity.     

Clarifying the linguistic signature: measuring personality from natural speech

In this study, we examined the viability of measuring personality using computerized lexical analysis of natural speech. Two well-validated models of personality were measured, one involving trait positive affectivity (PA) and negative affectivity (NA) dimensions and the other involving a separate behavioral inhibition motivational system (BIS) and a behavioral activation motivational system (BAS). Individuals with high levels of trait PA and sensitive BAS expressed high levels of positive emotion in their natural speech, whereas individuals with high levels of trait NA and sensitive BIS tended to express high levels of negative emotion. The personality variables accounted for almost a quarter of the variance in emotional expressivity.     

Personality and Intelligence in Business People: A Study of Two Personality and Two Intelligence Measures

This study examined the overlap and correlations among two well-known personality measures (NEO-PI–R; Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, MBTI) and two widely used intelligence tests (the Graduate Management Assessment (GMA), Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal (WGCTA)). The GMA measures both fluid intelligence (Gf) and crystallized intelligence (Gc), whereas WGCTA mainly assess Gc. A total of over 3,500 participants completed the four measures in a middle management assessment event. Correlational analysis showed that Extraversion on the MBTI tended to be associated with Openness and Stability on the NEO. Intuition was associated with Openness and Introversion. Feeling types tended to be both Agreeable and Neurotic while perceiving types were high on Openness but low on Agreeableness. The NEO Big Five factor of Openness was most consistently and significantly associated with both measures of intelligence (r = .09 to r =.12). Results from the MBTI showed that Intuition and Perceiving scores were positively and significantly associated with both intelligence test scores which were intercorrelated (r = .38). Regressional analysis showed that personality traits are logically and coherently related to intelligence test scores. Implications for selection and assessment are considered.     

The relationships between morningness-eveningness, ageing and personality

In an attempt to study the relationship between ageing and personality and the morningness-eveningness dimension two experiments were carried out. In experiment I, an Italian version of the Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire (MEQ) was administered to 435 Ss ranging in age from 20 to 79 yr, and divided in to six age groups. In comparison with younger people older S tended to display greater Morningness-Eveningness scores. These results suggest that ageing relates to a shifting toward morningness. In Experiment II the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) and the MEQ were administered to 233 Ss (20–29 yr). Morning-types had significantly higher N scores and tended to be insignificantly more introverted. Evening-types had significantly higher N scores and tended to be insignificantly more extraverted. The present findings are consistent with reports of a tendency for morning-types to be introverted and for evening-types extraverted. However, they do provide some evidence of individual differences on the neuroticism and psychoticism dimensions of personality between the two diurnal types.     

Forgive and Forget? Forgiveness,Personality, and Wellness Among Counselors‐in‐Training

Forgiveness as a method of addressing “wounds” has been linked to enduring aspects of personality and improved physical and mental health outcomes. The aim of this study was to understand the effects of forgiveness on counseling students’ overall wellness. Counseling students (N= 115) from 5 universities completed self‐report measures of forgiveness, wellness, and personality. Results indicate that, when personality factors are controlled, forgiveness contributes a significant proportion (10%) of the variance in wellness for counseling students. Implications for counselor training and counseling are discussed.     

Personality correlates of offence style

The relationship between style of offending, recorded with a 45‐item self‐report inventory (the D45), and personality, as assessed by the Element B measure of FIRO theory (Schutz, 1958, 1992, 1994) was examined for 207 young offenders. Different styles of offending behaviour were identified with a Smallest Space Analysis (SSA‐I) of co‐occurrence among the 45 criminal and deviant behaviours in the D45. This revealed differentiation between Person and Property offences and between Expressive and Instrumental aspects of these styles. Examination of the Element B measures as external variables on the SSA‐I plot revealed a number of relationships between interpersonal personality and offence style. Overall variations in offence style related more clearly to aspects of Control than to interpersonal elements of Inclusion. Property offences, especially acts of vandalism, tended to be committed by individuals who reported higher levels of control from others (Received Control) than did Person offences. Expressive Person style crimes, typically behaviours incorporating violence, or threats thereof, especially where a weapon was involved, reported higher levels of the need for power and dominance (Expressed Control) in their interpersonal relationships. Offenders involved in Expressive Property crimes tended to be individuals for whom other people were felt to be more emotionally open and intimate (Received Openness) than other offenders. The conceptual and theoretical ramifications of this evidence for a differential relationship between personality and style of offending are explored as they relate to Investigative Psychology and ‘Offender Profiling’. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Self-esteem and proactive personality as predictors of future work self and career adaptability: An examination of mediating and moderating processes

Basing on career construction theory and self-verification theory, current research examined the mediating and moderating models for the relations among self-esteem, proactive personality, career exploration, future work self and career adaptability. A two-wave survey study was conducted among Chinese university students (N = 305). The results showed that both self-esteem and proactive personality (measured at time 1) positively predicted future work self and career adaptability (measured at time 2), with these relationships mediated by career exploration (measured at time 1). In addition, the results further revealed that the positive effect of self-esteem on career exploration was stronger among students who had a higher level of proactive personality. In support of the hypothesized moderated mediation model, for individuals with a higher level of proactive personality, the indirect effects of self-esteem on future work self and career adaptability through career exploration were stronger. These findings carry implications for research on career construction theory and career counseling practices.     

Levels and Domains In Personality: An Introduction

ABSTRACT This special issue is centered around the problem of levels and domains in personality functioning. What kind of constructs—and at what levels and in what domains—are needed to understand what a person is like? To account for the complexity and scope of human lives, personality psychologists have traditionally put forth lists and taxonomies of factors, features, and variables that must be taken into consideration in formulating an adequate psychological portrait of the whole person. The five-factor model of personality traits has recently been offered as a comprehensive framework; however, critical analyses of the trait concept have revealed the limitations of a trait-based model of personality. Recognizing that the concept of trait is indispensable to a vital psychology of personality, this special issue aims to (a) communicate recent developments and organizational frameworks for understanding the person at multiple levels and in varied domains, and (b) articulate and elaborate units of analysis that, when combined with trait assessments, yield a psychology of personality that is commensurate with the complexity of individual functioning and that offers greater potential for the attainment of the original goals of the discipline.     

Sex stereotypes and implicit personality theory. II. A trait-inference approach to the assessment of sex stereotypes

Two experiments were conducted to assess sex stereotypes using the trait-inference method originated by Asch (1946). In both, subjects were asked to make inferences about the personality of a male or a female stimulus target who was introduced by a brief list of traits. In Experiment 1 this trait list described the target as either good or bad in intellectual activities and as either warm or cold while in Experiment 2 the introductory list comprised traits which are relatively neutral in terms of evaluation. Subjects rated the stimulus persons on adjective scales selected to reflect dimensions of personality perception reported in previous research. In both studies, male targets were rated significantly higher than females in terms of the Intellectual Desirability dimension. In addition, female targets tended to be rated higher on Communion in Experiment 1 (p<.06), and lower than males on Potency in Experiment 2 (p<.07). No differences as a function of stimulus sex were obtained for Social Desirability, Activity, and Agency. The results suggest that the dimension of implicit personality theory most closely associated with perceived sex differences is a combination of Intellectual Desirability and Potency. The male end of this dimension is relatively well defined by traits which convey a hard-headed, rational approach to problem solving. The female end is much less elaborated and consists of traits reflecting soft-heartedness.     

Personality, coping, and coping effectiveness in an adult sample

Two studies of coping among community-dwelling adults (N= 255,151) were used to examine the influence of personality on coping responses, the perceived effectiveness of coping mechanisms, and the effects of coping and personality on well-being In both studies a wide range of potential stressors was examined, categorized as losses, threats, or challenges The personality dimensions of neuroticism, extraversion, and openness to experience, as measured by both self-reports and spouse- and peer-ratings, were systematically related to coping mechanisms in both studies There was general agreement across types of stressors on the use and perceived effectiveness of the 27 coping mechanisms, and individuals who used more effective ways of coping generally reported higher subsequent happiness and life satisfaction However, personality variables are also known to be determinants of well-being, and the associations between coping and well-being were reduced when personality measures were partialled out Some implications for the design and interpretation of coping effectiveness studies are discussed     

Cracking the Plaster Cast: Big Five Personality Change during Intensive Outpatient Counseling

This study attempted to evaluate the ability of an outpatient drug rehabilitation program to effect significant shifts on the five major dimensions of personality. A mostly African American sample of 82 men and 50 women entering a 6-week program were assessed at admission, and the 99 who completed were again measured at termination. Follow-up assessments were completed on 30 clients an average of 15 months later. Results indicated significant shifts on all five personality domains from pre- to posttreatment (mean Cohen's d = .38). Significant shifts on Neuroticism, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness were maintained over follow-up (mean Cohen's d = .28). These results suggest that personality change may be possible in the context of treatment.     

Couples in marital distress: a study of personality factors as measured by the MMPI-2

This study examines the relationship between Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) measured personality characteristics and marital distress and provides empirical validation for using the MMPI-2 with a marital therapy population. Studied were 150 couples in marital therapy and 841 normal couples who participated in the MMPI-2 restandardization study. The MMPI-2, a biographical form, a partner rating form, and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS) were administered to all couples. The marital counseling group resembled previous marital counseling samples studied with the MMPI and scored significantly higher than the normative sample on several MMPI-2 scales. Relationships between the DAS and MMPI-2 clinical and content scale scores are reported. The Psychopathic Deviate (Pd) clinical scale and Family Problems (FAM) content scale were the most powerful group discriminators and strongest correlates of the DAS; their use as indices of marital distress is tested. The meaning of Pd as an index in assessing personality factors in marital distress is explored.     

Ego Development and a General Model for Counseling and Psychotherapy

Swensen describes a general model within which various techniques of counseling and psychotherapy may be integrated. This model is based on Lewin's formula, B = f (P, E), that is, behavior is a function of the person and the environment. Therapists should assess both the personality of the client and the environment. Client assessment is based on the concept of ego development. The behavior of clients who are at simpler levels of ego development is determined largely by reward and punishment in the environment. As a consequence, professionals should direct therapy with these clients toward changing the reinforcement contingencies in the environment. On the other hand, behavior of clients at more complex levels of ego development is more self-controlled. Therefore, therapy with these clients should concentrate on self-directed and self-controlled change.     

Developing Multicultural Counseling Competencies in Undergraduate Students

The authors assessed the impact of training undergraduates in multicultural counseling competencies. When compared with a control group of students in a psychology of personality course (n = 20), repeated measures analyses of variance confirmed that multicultural counseling trainees (n = 21) significantly increased levels of multicultural counseling awareness and knowledge. As expected, there were no significant changes in either multicultural counseling skills or empathic responding. Los autores evaluaron el impacto de educar a estudiantes universitarios sobre las competencias de consejería multicultural. Comparados con un grupo de control matriculado en un curso de psicología de la personalidad (n = 20), un análisis de variaeión de medidas repetidas confirmó que los niveles de consciencia y conocimiento de los estudiantes de consejería multicultural (n = 21) fueron significativamente aumentados. Como esperado, no se observaron cambios significativos en las habilidades de consejería multicultural ni en las reacciones empáticas.