PSYC 2130 Chapter Notes - Chapter 4: Walter Mischel, Clyde Kluckhohn, Richard E. Nisbett

• School: York University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 2130
• Professor: Krista Phillips

Document Summary

Dimensions of individual differences are the building blocks from which personality is constructed: raises a fundamental problem. Causal observation is sufficient to confirm that personality traits are not the only factors that control an individual"s behavior: situations also matter. Situations vary according to the people who are present and the implicit rules apply. Perhaps individuals" behaviour is so inconsistent and apt to change according to the given situation that there is no use characterizing them in terms of broad personality traits. Research shows that the stability of the differences between people increases with age: 30 yr olds more stable across time than children and adolescents, 50-70 yr olds most stable. The debate was triggered by the publication in 1968 of a book by walter mischel entitled. Personality and assessment: he argued that behaviour is too inconsistent from one situation to the next to allow individual differences to be characterized accurately in terms of broad personality traits, other psychologists disagreed.