Theories_of_Personality 7th Ed Feist

Feist−Feist: Theories of

Personality, Seventh

Edition

IV. Dispositional Theories 14. Eysenck, McCrae, and

Costa’s Trait and Factor

Theories

© The McGraw−Hill^415

Companies, 2009

are “defined in terms of significant intercorrelations between different habitual be-
haviors” (Eysenck, 1990, p. 244). Most of Cattell’s 35 normal and abnormal primary
source traits are at this third level of organization, which accounts for the fact that
he identified far more personality dimensions than either Eysenck or advocates of
the Five-Factor Theory.
Eysenck concentrated on the fourth level, that of types or superfactors. A type
is made up of several interrelated traits. For example, persistence may be related to
inferiority, poor emotional adjustment, social shyness, and several other traits, with
the entire cluster forming the introverted type.Each of the four levels of behavior or-
ganization are shown in Figure 14.3.

Dimensions of Personality

We have seen that Eysenck and Cattell arrived at a different number of personality
dimensions because they worked at different levels of factoring. Cattell’s 35 traits are
all at the third level of the hierarchical structure, whereas Eysenck’s superfactors are
at the fourth level.
How many general superfactors exist? Many current factor theorists insist that
ample evidence exists that five—and no more and no fewer—general factors will
emerge from nearly all factor analyses of personality traits. Eysenck, however, ex-
tracted only three general superfactors. His three personality dimensions are extra-
version (E), neuroticism (N),and psychoticism (P),although he did not rule out
“the possibility that further dimensions may be added later” (Eysenck, 1994b,
p. 151). Figure 14.4 shows the hierarchical structure of Eysenck’s P, E, and N.

Chapter 14 Eysenck, McCrae, and Costa’s Trait and Factor Theories 409

Type:

Habits:

Specific Behaviors:

Introversion

Persistence shynessSocial

Keeps at

school

work

Persists

with

hobbies

Finishes

a job

Studies

alone

Turns

down

invitations

Works on

hobbies

alone

Traits:

FIGURE 14.3 The organization of behavior into specific actions, habitual responses, traits, and types. Besides
persistence and social shyness, other traits such as inferiority, low activity, and serious-mindedness contribute to
introversion.