trait anxiety

Examples of trait anxiety in the following topics:

• Trait Anxiety

  • Trait anxiety is a form of neurosis; it is a long-term anxiety related to the very idea of public speaking.
  • The other is trait anxiety, which refers to a more long-term form of anxiety.
  • Trait anxiety tends to build up over time and may be the result of neurosis.
  • Trait anxiety may be conscious or unconscious.
  • Trait anxiety refers to a long-term form of anxiety, often stemming from neuroticism.

• Tools for Managing Trait Anxiety

  • Trait anxiety can be managed well in advance through positive imagery and guided meditation.
  • One of the biggest challenges for those dealing with trait anxiety is that their fear of public speaking may be a lifelong one.
  • In order to confront and combat this long-term anxiety, you may find it necessary to engage in coping techniques well before you are scheduled to speak in front of a group.
  • One of the keys to managing long-term anxieties about public speaking is to envision success.
  • So rather than get caught up in the anxiety, channel that nervous energy into giving the most powerful delivery of your speech that you can.

• Social Anxiety Disorder (Social Phobia)

  • As with specific phobias, social anxiety disorder is common in the United States; a little over 12% of all Americans experience social anxiety disorder during their lifetime (Kessler et al., 2005).
  • The heart of the anxiety in social anxiety disorder is the person’s concern that they may act in a humiliating or embarrassing way, such as appearing foolish, showing symptoms of anxiety (such as blushing), or doing or saying something that might lead to rejection (such as offending others).
  • When people with social anxiety disorder are unable to avoid situations that provoke anxiety, they typically perform safety behaviors: mental or behavioral acts that reduce anxiety in social situations by reducing the chance of negative social outcomes.
  • This anxiety—or efforts to avoid the anxiety-inducing situation—must cause considerable distress and an impaired ability to function in at least some parts of social, occupational, academic, or daily life.
  • Behavioral inhibition is thought to be an inherited trait, and it is characterized by a consistent tendency to show fear and restraint when presented with unfamiliar people or situations (Kagan, Reznick, & Snidman, 1988).

• Nature vs. Nurture

  • We are all born with specific genetic traits inherited from our parents, such as eye color, height, and certain personality traits.
  • Genes and the environment work together, communicating back and forth to create traits.
  • Trait B shows a high heritability, since the correlation of the trait rises sharply with the degree of genetic similarity.
  • Thus, the diathesis–stress model serves to explore how biological or genetic traits (diatheses) interact with environmental influences (stressors) to produce disorders, such as depression, anxiety, or schizophrenia.
  • However, this can vary widely by trait.

• Other Important Trait Theories

  • Gordon Allport's disposition theory includes cardinal traits, central traits, and secondary traits.
  • Cardinal trait: A trait that dominates and shapes a person's behavior.
  • An example of a central trait would be honesty.
  • Hans Eysenck rejected the idea that there are "tiers" of personality traits, theorizing instead that there are just three traits that describe human personality.
  • These traits are extroversion, neuroticism, and psychoticism.

• The Big Five Personality Traits

  • These five factors are assumed to represent the basic structure behind all personality traits.
  • However, as a result of their broad definitions, the Big Five personality traits are not nearly as powerful in predicting and explaining actual behavior as are the more numerous lower-level, specific traits.
  • Neuroticism - Neuroticism describes vulnerability to unpleasant emotions like anger, anxiety, depression, or vulnerability.
  • Employees are sometimes tested on the Big Five personality traits in collaborative situations to determine what strong personality traits they can add to the group dynamic.
  • The Big Five personality traits are typically examined through surveys and questionnaires.

• The Five-Factor Model

  • Many psychologists believe that the total number of personality traits can be reduced to five factors, with all other personality traits fitting within these five factors.
  • It is the most widely accepted structure among trait theorists and in personality psychology today, and the most accurate approximation of the basic trait dimensions (Funder, 2001).
  • High neuroticism is characterized by the tendency to experience unpleasant emotions, such as anger, anxiety, depression, or vulnerability.
  • It’s also important to note that the Big Five traits are relatively stable over our lifespan, but there is some tendency for the traits to increase or decrease slightly.
  • In the center column, notice that the first letter of each trait spells the mnemonic OCEAN.

• Introduction to Anxiety Disorders

  • Anxiety disorders involve extreme reactions to anxiety-inducing situations, including excessive worry, uneasiness, apprehension, or fear.
  • Anxiety disorders, however, are dysfunctional responses to anxiety-inducing situations.
  • The difference between normal anxiety and an anxiety disorder is that anxiety disorders cause such severe distress as to interfere with someone's ability to lead a normal life.
  • "Anxiety disorder" refers to any of a number of specific disorders, including generalized anxiety disorder, phobia, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and social anxiety disorder.
  • Anxiety in and of itself is not a bad thing.

• Personality Psychology

  • Personality psychology studies the long-standing traits and patterns that propel individuals to consistently think, feel, and behave in specific ways.
  • Personality refers to the long-standing traits and patterns that propel individuals to consistently think, feel, and behave in specific ways.
  • Adler is known for proposing the concept of the inferiority complex; Erikson proposed the psychosocial theory of development; Jung introduced the concepts of the collective unconscious and the persona; and Horney focused on the role of unconscious anxiety related to early childhood needs.
  • Trait theorists believe personality can be understood through the idea that all people have certain traits, or characteristic ways of behaving.
  • Western ideas about personality are not necessarily applicable to other cultures, and there is evidence that the strength of personality traits varies across cultures.

• Genetics, the Brain, and Personality

  • It focuses on why or how personality traits manifest through biology and investigates the links between personality, DNA, and processes in the brain.
  • For example, one person may immediately respond to a new stimulus with a high level of anxiety while another barely notices it.
  • Multiple twin studies have found that identical twins do have higher correlations in personality traits than fraternal twins.
  • One study measuring genetic influence on twins in five different countries found that correlations for traits between identical twins were 0.50 (i.e., they had 50% of traits in common), while for fraternal twins were about 0.20 (i.e., they had 20% of traits in common).
  • All factors are reduced to quantifiable variables that can be reliably measured by personality trait models and questionnaires.