Personality dynamics in the brain: Individual differences in updating of representations and their phylogenetic roots

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mattie Tops ◽  
Hans IJzerman ◽  
Markus Quirin
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Political Thought ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Animal Personality ◽  
Internal Models ◽  
Personality Dimensions ◽  
The Brain ◽  
The Continuum

To cope with changing and unfamiliar situations, individuals process novel information and integrate this information into internal models that were formed through previous experiences. We propose that the continuum of the degree to which people update these internal models when encountering novel information is central to personality dynamics. Personality traits therefore arise at both ends of this continuum. Personality dimensions and behavioral manifestations (such as those reflected in liberal and conservative political thought) are classified at different points along this continuum, as well as according to the availability and flexible situational accessibility of internal models. Our model is rooted in neurobiological evidence (interactions of large-scale brain networks in particular) and shows strong parallels with models of basic animal personality traits. The model thus permits to explain both personality traits and personality dynamics, including phasic and stable adaptations to environmental conditions. Moreover, the model sheds light on the development of personality and its origins through phylogenetic and ontogenetic time.

scholarly journals Network Neuroscience and Personality

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Markett ◽  
Christian Montag ◽  
Martin Reuter
Keyword(s):  
Nervous System ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Brain Connectivity ◽  
Gray Matter Volume ◽  
Actual Behavior ◽  
Present Contribution ◽  
Nervous Systems ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Network Neuroscience

AbstractPersonality and individual differences originate from the brain. Despite major advances in the affective and cognitive neurosciences, however, it is still not well understood how personality and single personality traits are represented within the brain. Most research on brain-personality correlates has focused either on morphological aspects of the brain such as increases or decreases in local gray matter volume, or has investigated how personality traits can account for individual differences in activation differences in various tasks. Here, we propose that personality neuroscience can be advanced by adding a network perspective on brain structure and function, an endeavor that we label personality network neuroscience.With the rise of resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), the establishment of connectomics as a theoretical framework for structural and functional connectivity modeling, and recent advancements in the application of mathematical graph theory to brain connectivity data, several new tools and techniques are readily available to be applied in personality neuroscience. The present contribution introduces these concepts, reviews recent progress in their application to the study of individual differences, and explores their potential to advance our understanding of the neural implementation of personality.Trait theorists have long argued that personality traits are biophysical entities that are not mere abstractions of and metaphors for human behavior. Traits are thought to actually exist in the brain, presumably in the form of conceptual nervous systems. A conceptual nervous system refers to the attempt to describe parts of the central nervous system in functional terms with relevance to psychology and behavior. We contend that personality network neuroscience can characterize these conceptual nervous systems on a functional and anatomical level and has the potential do link dispositional neural correlates to actual behavior.

It’s the Situation and Your Disposition: A Test of Two Honesty Hypotheses

2020 ◽  
pp. 194855061989897 ◽  
Author(s):  
David M. Markowitz ◽  
Timothy R. Levine
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Dark Triad ◽  
Current Experiment ◽  
Experimental Task ◽  
Personality Dimensions ◽  
Situational Influences ◽  
Public Data

Research has documented substantial individual differences in the proclivity for honesty or dishonesty and that personality traits meaningfully account for variations in honesty–dishonesty. Research also shows important situational variation related to deception, as situations can motivate or discourage dishonest behaviors. The current experiment examines personality and situational influences on honesty–dishonesty in tandem, arguing that their effects may not be additive. Participants ( N = 114) engaged in an experimental task providing the opportunity to cheat for tangible gain. The situation varied to encourage or discourage cheating. Participants completed the HEXACO-100 and the Dark Triad of Personality scales. Both situational variation and personality dimensions predicted honesty–dishonesty, but the effects of personality were not uniform across situations. These results were also supported using public data from an independent, multilab sample ( N = 5,757). We outline how these results inform our understanding of deception, situational influences, and the role of disposition in honesty.

scholarly journals Brain network topology and personality traits: a source level magnetoencephalographic study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emahnuel Troisi Lopez ◽  
Valentina Colonnello ◽  
Marianna Liparoti ◽  
Mauro Castaldi ◽  
Paolo Maria Russo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Caudate Nucleus ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Brain Network ◽  
Neural Communication ◽  
Character Inventory ◽  
Left Caudate ◽  
Source Level ◽  
Large Scale Networks

Abstract Personality neuroscience is focusing on the correlation between individual differences and the efficiency of large-scale networks from the perspective of the brain as an interconnected network. A suitable technique to explore this relationship is the magnetoencephalography (MEG), but little are MEG studies aimed at investigating topological properties correlated to personality traits. By using MEG, the present study is aimed at evaluating how individual differences described in Cloninger’s psychobiological model are correlated with specific cerebral structures. Fifty healthy individuals (20 males, 30 females, mean age: 27.4 ± 4.8 years) underwent Temperament and Character Inventory examination and MEG recording during a resting state condition. High harm avoidance scores were associated with a reduced centrality of the left caudate nucleus and this negative correlation was maintained in females when we analyzed gender differences. Our data suggest that the caudate nucleus plays a key role in adaptive behavior and could be a critical node in insular salience network. The clear difference between males and females allows us to suggest that topological organization correlated to personality is highly dependent on gender. Our findings provide new insights to evaluate the mutual influences of topological and functional connectivity in neural communication efficiency and disruption as biomarkers of psychopathological traits.

scholarly journals Do you see the “face”? Individual differences in face pareidolia

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liu-Fang Zhou ◽  
Ming Meng
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Face Perception ◽  
Clinical Applications ◽  
Neural Mechanisms ◽  
Developmental Factors ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Brain

Abstract People tend to see faces from non-face objects or meaningless patterns. Such illusory face perception is called face pareidolia. Previous studies have revealed an interesting fact that there are huge individual differences in face pareidolia experience among the population. Here, we review previous findings on individual differences in face pareidolia experience from four categories: sex differences, developmental factors, personality traits and neurodevelopmental factors. We further discuss underlying cognitive or neural mechanisms to explain why some perceive the objects as faces while others do not. The individual differences in face pareidolia could not only offer scientific insights on how the brain works to process face information, but also suggest potential clinical applications.

scholarly journals Musical Preferences Predict Personality: Evidence From Active Listening and Facebook Likes

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (7) ◽  
pp. 1145-1158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gideon Nave ◽  
Juri Minxha ◽  
David M. Greenberg ◽  
Michal Kosinski ◽  
David Stillwell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
External Validity ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Active Listening ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Musical Excerpts ◽  
Self Reports ◽  
Genre Preferences ◽  
Musical Preferences

Research over the past decade has shown that various personality traits are communicated through musical preferences. One limitation of that research is external validity, as most studies have assessed individual differences in musical preferences using self-reports of music-genre preferences. Are personality traits communicated through behavioral manifestations of musical preferences? We addressed this question in two large-scale online studies with demographically diverse populations. Study 1 ( N = 22,252) shows that reactions to unfamiliar musical excerpts predicted individual differences in personality—most notably, openness and extraversion—above and beyond demographic characteristics. Moreover, these personality traits were differentially associated with particular music-preference dimensions. The results from Study 2 ( N = 21,929) replicated and extended these findings by showing that an active measure of naturally occurring behavior, Facebook Likes for musical artists, also predicted individual differences in personality. In general, our findings establish the robustness and external validity of the links between musical preferences and personality.

scholarly journals Parasitism and the evolutionary ecology of animal personality

2010 ◽  
Vol 365 (1560) ◽  
pp. 4077-4088 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iain Barber ◽  
Niels J. Dingemanse
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Evolutionary Ecology ◽  
Resource Competition ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Animal Personality ◽  
Behavioural Syndromes ◽  
Parasite Infections ◽  
Animal Personalities ◽  
Host Behaviour

The ecological factors responsible for the evolution of individual differences in animal personality (consistent individual differences in the same behaviour across time and contexts) are currently the subject of intense debate. A limited number of ecological factors have been investigated to date, with most attention focusing on the roles of resource competition and predation. We suggest here that parasitism may play a potentially important, but largely overlooked, role in the evolution of animal personalities. We identify two major routes by which parasites might influence the evolution of animal personality. First, because the risk of acquiring parasites can be influenced by an individual's behavioural type, local parasite regimes may impose selection on personality traits and behavioural syndromes (correlations between personality traits). Second, because parasite infections have consequences for aspects of host ‘state’, parasites might induce the evolution of individual differences in certain types of host behaviour in populations with endemic infections. Also, because infection often leads to specific changes in axes of personality, parasite infections have the potential to decouple behavioural syndromes. Host–parasite systems therefore provide researchers with valuable tools to study personality variation and behavioural syndromes from a proximate and ultimate perspective.

scholarly journals Correlations between personality traits and specific groups of alpha waves in the human EEG

PeerJ ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. e2245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomas Johannisson
Keyword(s):  
Personality Traits ◽  
Bimodal Distribution ◽  
Personality Profiles ◽  
Personality Dimensions ◽  
Personality Item ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
General Organization ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Large Systematic Error ◽  
Alpha Waves

Background.Different individuals have alpha waves with different wavelengths. The distribution of the wavelengths is assumed to be bell-shaped and smooth. Although this view is generally accepted, it is still just an assumption and has never been critically tested. When exploring the relationship between alpha waves and personality traits, it makes a huge difference if the distribution of the alpha waves is smooth or if specific groups of alpha waves can be demonstrated. Previous studies have not considered the possibility that specific groups of alpha waves may exist.Methods.Computerized EEGs have become standard, but wavelength measurements are problematic when based on averaging procedures using the Fourier transformation because such procedures cause a large systematic error. If the actual wavelength is of interest, it is necessary to go back to basic physiology and use raw EEG signals. In the present study, measurements were made directly from sequences of alpha waves where every wave could be identified. Personality dimensions were measured using an inventory derived from the International Personality Item Pool.Results.Recordings from 200 healthy individuals revealed that there are three main groups of alpha waves. These groups had frequencies around 8, 10, and 12 waves per second. The middle group had a bimodal distribution, and a subdivision gave a total of four alpha groups. In the center of each group, the degree of extraversion was high and the degree of neuroticism was low. Many small differences in personality traits were found when the centers were compared with one another. This gave four personality profiles that resemble the four classical temperaments. When people in the surrounding zones were compared with those in the centers, relatively large differences in personality traits were found.Conclusions.Specific groups of alpha waves exist, and these groups have to be taken into account when correlations are made to personality dimensions and temperament types. There is a link between alpha waves and personality traits, and this link implies that there is an underlying relationship. To explain the nature of this relationship, there are two hypotheses that can be applied. One of these deals with the general organization of the forebrain and the other explains why the brain generates alpha waves.

Individual Differences in Students' Preferences for Lecturers' Personalities

2005 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 176-184 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrian Furnham ◽  
Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Big Five ◽  
Student Ratings ◽  
Descriptive Statistics ◽  
Personality Profile ◽  
Similarity Effect ◽  
Intelligence Scores ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract. This study examines the relationship between students' personality and intelligence scores with their preferences for the personality profile of their lecturers. Student ratings (N = 136) of 30 lecturer trait characteristics were coded into an internally reliable Big Five taxonomy ( Costa & McCrae, 1992 ). Descriptive statistics showed that, overall, students tended to prefer conscientious, open, and stable lecturers, though correlations revealed that these preferences were largely a function of students' own personality traits. Thus, open students preferred open lecturers, while agreeable students preferred agreeable lecturers. There was evidence of a similarity effect for both Agreeableness and Openness. In addition, less intelligent students were more likely to prefer agreeable lecturers than their more intelligent counterparts were. A series of regressions showed that individual differences are particularly good predictors of preferences for agreeable lecturers, and modest, albeit significant, predictors of preferences for open and neurotic lecturers. Educational and vocational implications are considered.

Investment Traits and Intelligence in Adulthood

2013 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 82-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophie von Stumm
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Fluid Intelligence ◽  
Need For Cognition ◽  
Openness To Experience ◽  
Intelligence Tests ◽  
Crystallized Intelligence ◽  
New Knowledge ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Over Time

Intelligence-as-knowledge in adulthood is influenced by individual differences in intelligence-as-process (i.e., fluid intelligence) and in personality traits that determine when, where, and how people invest their intelligence over time. Here, the relationship between two investment traits (i.e., Openness to Experience and Need for Cognition), intelligence-as-process and intelligence-as-knowledge, as assessed by a battery of crystallized intelligence tests and a new knowledge measure, was examined. The results showed that (1) both investment traits were positively associated with intelligence-as-knowledge; (2) this effect was stronger for Openness to Experience than for Need for Cognition; and (3) associations between investment and intelligence-as-knowledge reduced when adjusting for intelligence-as-process but remained mostly significant.

Large-Scale Demonstration Experiment of Mental Imagery Ability

1993 ◽  
Vol 76 (3_suppl) ◽  
pp. 1089-1090 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Richard Ferraro
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Present Article ◽  
Mental Imagery ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Introductory Psychology Class ◽  
Imagery Ability ◽  
Psychology Class ◽  
Demonstration Experiment ◽  
And Gender

The present article describes a demonstration experiment used in a large introductory psychology class pertaining to mental imagery ability. The experiment is effective in providing a concrete instance of mental imagery as well as an effective discussion regarding individual differences and gender differences in imagery ability.

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