Trait Theory
The trait theory is what the name implies. It's a personality perspective dealing with traits. Traits are, by definition, a characteristic pattern of behavior or a disposition to feel and act, as assessed by self-report inventories and peer reports. The trait theory has two different kinds of traits it analyzes: source and surface traits. Source traits are ingrained qualities which are permanent. Surface traits on the other hand are superficial and are emotions such as happiness.
The trait theory was developed originally by Raymond Cattell. He identified 16 traits that people have, some of which are seriousness or practicality. Later Eysenk argued that there were only 3: Introverted vs. Extroverted, Stable vs. Neurotic, and Psychotic. Finally, Robert McCrae and Paul Costa, Jr. developed what is know as the Big Five pulling from both previous theories: Openness to Experience, Conscientiousness, Extroversion, Agreeableness, Neuroticism.
The trait theory was developed originally by Raymond Cattell. He identified 16 traits that people have, some of which are seriousness or practicality. Later Eysenk argued that there were only 3: Introverted vs. Extroverted, Stable vs. Neurotic, and Psychotic. Finally, Robert McCrae and Paul Costa, Jr. developed what is know as the Big Five pulling from both previous theories: Openness to Experience, Conscientiousness, Extroversion, Agreeableness, Neuroticism.
Personality Inventories and the MMPI
There are different kinds of personality inventories (longer questionnaires covering a wide range of feelings and behaviors). The most widely researched and clinically used of which is the MMPI. The MMPI or Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory was originally developed to identify emotional disorders. This is still considered its most appropriate use, however is it also used for many other screening purposes. The items on the MMPI are considered empirically derived or rather chosen from a large pool of items. The questions are grouped into 10 clinical scales. This is not the only kind of personality inventory.
Criticisms of the Trait Theory
The trait perspective fails to account for the context of the situation. This debate is called the Person-Situation Controversy. When psychologists look at traits, they look for genuine personality traits that tend to persist over time and across situations. However, the trait perspective does not do that. Personality traits may be stable and strong, however the consistency of those behaviors from one situation to another may not. The inconsistencies of these behaviors makes the personality test scores weak predictors of a person's behavior. Despite this, a person's average outgoing happiness , outgoingness, or carelessness over a situation is predictable. Also, while the trait perspective accounts for personality traits across many cultures, it fails to account for all traits as well as why or how they develop.