Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Adaptability (Personality trait)'

Due to the dominance of the trait approach, personality is widely reduced to a set of trait scores which represent ‘usual’ behaviour. However, individuals show substantial variation within their personality (e.g. Fleeson, 2001; 2004). Thus there is a need for research into the personality characteristics which underlie this variance so that personality can be more fully quantified. To this end, the current thesis investigated a previously unresearched personality characteristic: personality adaptability, which was defined as: accurate and goal directed selection of personality states across situations which is designed to gain a desired outcomes and which may result in behaviour which is in accordance or discordance with the individual’s personal preferences in any given situation. Two studies were run to investigate whether personality adaptability exists as an individual difference. The studies also assessed the validity of personality adaptability by establishing its level of divergence from self-monitoring (Snyder, 1974), and role as a predictor of task performance and satisfaction with life (Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1985). Study 1 utilised a repeated measures design. Participants completed two tasks, within a laboratory setting, designed to require the opposite poles of normal extraversion. Personality adaptability was quantified by calculating the distance between participants’ extraversion level in the two tasks (goal directed state range), and the distance between the required state and observed behaviour in each task (task specific personality adaptability). Within study 2, overt naturalistic observation of stand-up comedians performing stand-up comedy was undertaken. Personality adaptability was represented by calculating the distance between the required state for achieving a successful task outcome and the observed behaviour of each comedian, along comedy relevant facets of personality. Participants of both studies also completed the Satisfaction with Life Scale (Diener et al., 1985) and Self-Monitoring Scale (Snyder, 1974). The study 1 participants also completed a 7-item version of the Big Five Inventory’s (BFI) (John & Srivastava, 1999) trait extraversion scale while study 2 participants completed the full BFI. The results of study 1 indicated that, on average, individuals adapted their behaviour in line with the task requirements showing substantially higher levels of extraversion in the high extraversion requiring task, compared to the low extraversion task (d = -1.43, p < 0.001). Consistency between personality (extraversion) state was also shown across the tasks (r = .43, p < 0.01) implicating trait personality as a determinant of personality state alongside personality adaptability. Both studies indicated personality adaptability to be an individual difference with the factor models extracted, in both studies, indicating a single factor of personality adaptability. Personality adaptability was also shown to be distinct from self-monitoring and trait personality in both studies, and to be the most pervasive predictor of task performance when compared to trait personality and self-monitoring. In study 1, personality adaptability represented by goal directed state range accounted for up to 11% of the variance in the measures of task performance while task specific personality adaptability accounted for up to 47%. In study 2, personality adaptability accounted for up to 41% of the variance in measures of task performance. Self-monitoring and trait personality did not account for any unique variance in task performance within study 2. However, trait extraversion showed a similar effect to goal directed state range on task 1 performance, within study 1 (Beta = .23 and .21, respectively). Personality adaptability was not shown in either study to be a significant predictor of satisfaction with life. Rather the trait personality and self-monitoring factors were the unique predictors of this dependent variable.

Cerebral Palsy is a complex, non-progressive condition that manifests in various forms of motor impairments. This life-long condition holds numerous challenges for the entire family throughout the family life-cycle. While the challenges that these families have to face are many, families seem to have the ability to "bounce back" and to be resilient. Research on the construct of resilience and more specifically family resilience has increased in recent times. South African family resilience research is relatively limited. This study aimed to identify, explore and describe the resiliency factors that facilitate adjustment and adaptation in families that include a child living with Cerebral Palsy. The Resiliency Model of Family Stress, Adjustment and Adaptation was used to conceptualise the level of family adaptation. The study was triangular in nature, with an exploratory, descriptive approach. Non-probability purposive and snowball sampling techniques were employed. The sample consisted of 30 female caregivers. Biographical questionnaires with two open-ended questions, in conjunction with seven structured questionnaires were used to gather the data. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the biographical information. Correlation and regression analysis was used to analyse the quantitative data, while content analysis was used to analyse the qualitative data. The results of the quantitative component of the study indicated five significant positive correlations with the FACI8. These variables were family hardiness (measured by the FHI), family time together and routines (measured by the FTRI), social support (measured by the SSI), relative and friends support (measure by the RFS), and spiritual support (measured by the F-COPES). The results of the qualitative analysis revealed that social support, the caregivers' acceptance of the condition, and spirituality and religion were the most important strength factors that contributed to the families' adjustment and adaptation. Although the sample was small and the study has limitations, it could be used as a stepping-stone for future research on resilience in families living with a child with a physical disability and will contribute to the broader context of family resilience research in South Africa.

Many historically disadvantaged South Africans are entering into universities, where they are expected to perform academically not only to secure themselves a continued place at university, but also to secure themselves a place in the competitive job-market post university. Not only have these individuals been disadvantaged by an inferior schooling system, which is the legacy of apartheid, but they also struggle against the grasp of poverty, attempting to sustain themselves financially in order to afford the necessities for their survival, while still attempting to cope academically. Resilience has been presented as a process that helps individuals deal effectively with stressful events and adverse conditions. An attempt is therefore made to investigate whether resilience plays this role in the experience of disadvantaged students at university, where academic performance and adjustment represent the expected measures of coping. The aim of the study was therefore to explore the role of resilience constructs in the relationship between socio-economic and demographic variables and academic coping. The study is based within the broad framework of Psychofortology, which is the science of psychological strengths. The resilience constructs used included fortitude (measured by the Fortitude Questionnaire), hardiness (measured by the Personal Views Survey) and sense of coherence (measured by the Sense of Coherence Scale). Demographic variables included age, sex, language, town (urban/rural), with household income as an indicator of socio-economic status. Academic coping (outcome) was measured using students&rsquo
academic performance (average grade) and their adjustment to university (measured by the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire). Participants included 164 third year Psychology students from the University of the Western Cape. Results indicate statistically significant relationships between various demographic and resilience variables
between various demographic and outcome variables
and between various resilience and outcome variables. Resilience variables were also found to play a role in the relationship between demographic and outcome variables, as various resilience variables emerged as significant predictors of outcome variables, or as having either direct, moderating, mediating or indirect effects on the relationship between demographic and outcome variables. Research suggesting the health-sustaining and stress-reducing (buffering) roles of resilience constructs, as well resilience constructs as influencing the perceptions of adverse conditions or stressors is therefore supported by these findings. Limitations of the study were also discussed, as well as recommendations for future research put forward.

Thesis (MA (Psychology))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009.
Family resiliency refers to the ability of families to withstand and rebound from crises and adversity, and entails adequate or more than adequate adaptation in the face of adversity. The aim of this study was to identify those qualities or resources that young families have employed in their adaptation to the addition of a child to the couple/family relationship and which have deemed them resilient during this normative crisis. Grounded within family systems theory (Carter & McGoldrick, 2003), both the Resiliency Model of Family Stress, Adjustment and Adaptation (McCubbin & McCubbin, 1996) and the Key Family Processes as outlined by Walsh (2002) served as the theoretical frameworks that guided the execution of the research. Eighty-nine families, in which the eldest child was no older than four years of age, took part in this study. Seven quantitative questionnaires were used in the assessment of family adaptation, whilst the participating parents also completed a demographic questionnaire and answered an open-ended question. The qualitative dimension of this study revealed that families regarded the resources of social support, effective and caring communication, flexibility in family roles, rules and relationships and, lastly, commitment to the family as important resources in the process of adapting to the presence of a young child in the family. The quantitative results indicate that resilience may be bolstered by spending time together and managing a routine, as well as valuing the family unit highly.

As it becomes more common for individuals to work in many different jobs throughout their lives, career adaptability becomes more important to understanding how individuals deal with this changing environment. This study examined the history and background of career adaptability and personality, as well as current research in the field. A total of 196 students from a large Midwestern university completed the Career Futures Inventory – Revised and a Big Five measure from the International Personality Item Pool to examine potential relationships between individual personality traits and career adaptability. Pearson correlations, linear and hierarchical regression analyses, and analysis of variance were used to analyze possible relationships. The results of the study indicated that 39.7% of career adaptability was accounted for by the Big Five personality traits. All five personality traits and career adaptability were moderately correlated and neuroticism, conscientiousness, and extraversion predicted participants’ overall career adaptability. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that career adaptability and career agency both predicted major satisfaction above and beyond personality. Key words: career adaptability, Big Five personality, major satisfaction

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2014.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Families with a transracially adopted child are confronted with normal family crises, crises due to the adoption as well as challenges specific to a transracial family. When this transracial family is a single-parent family, it could be assumed that the challenges the family faces will be even more. Consequently, the need developed to investigate characteristics and family patterns which contribute to family adaptation in crises in the single-parent family where a child from a different race than the parent has been adopted. The research question in this study was: “What are resilience factors in single-parent transracial families?” The strength perspective formed the basis of this study and the theories of Walsh (2003) and McCubbin and McCubbin (1996) provided the theoretical grounding. An explorative research design was used to address the research question. Data were collected by means of semistructured interviews and conventional content analysis was performed to analyse the data by using the Atlas.ti. computer program. Interviews were conducted with six white women who adopted a child or children from a different race than themselves. These women were all single parents living in the Western Cape, South Africa. At the time of the study, the ages of these transracially adopted children ranged from three to 10 years. A biographical questionnaire and an in-depth interview with each participant were used to collect the data. The results indicated that an important resilience factor in the transracially adopted family is equipping the adopted child with specific skills to cope with crises that may result due to his/her unique situation. Effective preparation of the adoptive mother before adoption, social contact and the support of the extended family were also found to be important resilience factors. Family routines, openness about the adoption and the utilisation of external resources were identified as important sources of resilience for the single-parent transracial family. The results of this study provide important information to the potential transracially adopting parent to prepare him/herself for transracial adoption. The results of this study also provide important information to everyone involved in transracial adoption (for example the social worker) in South-Africa.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Gesinne met ʼn aangenome kind van ʼn ander ras as die ouer(s) word gekonfronteer met alle normale gesinskrisisse, krisisse wat ontstaan weens die aanneming, sowel as uitdagings wat spesifiek aan ʼn transrasgesin gestel word. Indien die transrasgesin ʼn enkelouergesin is, kan daar verwag word dat verdere uitdagings aan hierdie gesin gestel sal word. Gevolglik het die vraag ontstaan watter gesinskenmerke en -patrone ʼn bydrae lewer tot gesinsaanpassing in krisissituasies in enkelouergesinne waar ʼn kind van ʼn ander ras as die ouer aangeneem is. Gevolglik was die navorsingsvraag in hierdie ondersoek: “Wat is veerkragtigheidskenmerke van enkelouer-transrasgesinne?” Die sterkteperspektief het as uitgangspunt vir hierdie studie gedien en die teorieë van Walsh (2003) en McCubbin en McCubbin (1996) is as teoretiese grondslag benut. ʼn Eksploratiewe navorsingsontwerp is gebruik om die navorsingsvraag te ondersoek. Data is deur middel van semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude ingesamel en konvensionele inhoudsontleding is gedoen om ingesamelde data met behulp van die Atlas.tirekenaarprogram te ontleed. Onderhoude is met ses wit vroue wat ʼn kind of kinders van ʼn ander ras as hulself aangeneem het, gevoer. Hierdie vroue is almal enkelouers en woonagtig in die Wes-Kaap, Suid-Afrika. Tydens die ondersoek het die ouderdomme van die transrasaangenome kinders gewissel tussen drie en 10 jaar. ʼn Biografiese vraelys en ʼn diepgaande onderhoud met elke deelnemer is gebruik om data in te samel. Daar is bevind dat ʼn belangrike veerkragtigheidsfaktor in die transrasaangenome gesin is om die transrasaangenome kind toe te rus met vaardighede om potensiële krisisse rakende sy/haar transrasaangenome status effektief te hanteer. Die effektiewe voorbereiding van die moeder voor aanneming, sosiale kontak en die ondersteuning van die uitgebreide familie is ook as belangrike veerkragtigheidsfaktore in die transrasgesin geïdentifiseer. Spesifieke gesinspatrone, openlikheid oor die aanneming en die benutting van eksterne hulpbronne help ook die transrasgesin om krisissituasies effektief te hanteer. Hierdie inligting is ʼn belangrike hulpbron vir potensiële aanneemouers ten einde hulle effektief voor te berei vir die aanneming van ʼn kind van ʼn ander ras as hulself. Die resultate van hierdie studie verskaf ook belangrike inligting aan die ondersteuningspartye (byvoorbeeld die maatskaplike werker) wat betrokke is by transrasaanneming in Suid-Afrika.

Cognitive adaptability has been conceptualised as the ability to effectively and appropriately change decision policies (i.e. to learn) given feedback (inputs) from the environmental context in which cognitive processing is embedded. Based on a large sample of 2650 established entrepreneurs in South Africa, this study attempts to determine how entrepreneurs cognitively adapt to unpredictable entrepreneurial environments. Multidimensional constructs representing cognitive adaptability and the Big Five personality traits were operationalised and empirically investigated. It was hypothesised that the Big Five personality trait dimensions of openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion and agreeableness are positively related to the cognitive adaptability dimensions of goal orientation, metacognitive knowledge, metacognitive experience, and metacognitive choice and monitoring. Neuroticism was hypthesised to be negatively related to the cognitive adaptability dimensions of goal orientation, metacognitive knowledge, metacognitive experience, metacognitive choice and monitoring. Hypotheses were tested using structured equation modelling and correlational and regression analysis. Results provide support for subcomponents of the Big Five personality traits. Intellectual interest (openness to experience), goal striving (conscientiousness), activity (extraversion), prosocial orientation (agreeableness) were found to be positively related to cognitive adaptability. They were found to be negatively related to prior metacognitive knowledge. Self-reproach (neuroticism) was found to be negatively related to cognitive adaptability. It was found to be positively related to prior metacognitive knowledge. This research builds on and extends existing literature on cognitive adaptability in an entrepreneurial context by bringing together two streams of literature from psychology metacognition and personality traits. The implications of the process for dynamic, adaptable thinking are important in an emerging context such as that found in South Africa. The results of this study will inform the practice of policy makers who are trying to encourage start-up entrepreneurs to think about thinking in unpredictable entrepreneurial environments. In terms of methodology, the use of a sample of established entrepreneurs is desirable for this type of research since metacognition is better studied in entrepreneurs who are involved in a series of activities.
Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2016.
Business Management
PhD
Unrestricted

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Notre Dame, 2007.
Thesis directed by Cindy S. Bergeman for the Department of Psychology. "April 2007." "Graduate Program in Developmental Psychology"--T.p. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 47-55).

This study addresses the factors that assist families towards family adaptation during adversities and contribute to family resilience. The study aimed to identify, describe and explore family resilience factors that enable urban Shona Christian families to withstand life crises in the midst of a society facing economic hardships and manage to bounce back from these challenges. The study also sought to reach out to families facing challenges and who are struggling to adapt and recover from their challenges. The Resiliency model of Family Stress, Adjustment and Adaptation was used as a theoretical framework for this study (McCubbin, Thompson & McCubbin, 2001). A quantitative method was employed. A total of 106 participants including parents and adolescents from 53 families independently completed 6 questionnaires including a biographical questionnaire. The questionnaires measured family adaptation and aspects of family functioning in accordance with the Resiliency model of Family Stress, Adjustment and Adaptation. The data collected was subjected to correlation regression analysis which was computed using SPSS to identify family resilience factors that assisted families in family adaptation. The results showed that family adaptation was fostered by first, the family’s internal strengths; affirming and less incendiary communication; passive appraisal; and control over life events and hardships. Secondly, the family’s external strengths; seeking spiritual support; social support from within the community; and mobilising the family to acquire community resources and accept help from others. These findings could be used to develop interventions that promote family resilience and establish the potential of family members within a family when facing adversities.
Psychology
M.A. (Social Science)

The primary objective of this study was to explore the relationship between personality and employability using a sample of 100 employees at a meat producing company in South Africa. A secondary objective was to determine if personality could be used to predict employability, and whether individuals from different demographic groups differed regarding their employability. The instruments used were the sixteen personality factor inventory (16PF) and the Van Der Heidje employability measure. The research findings indicated that the personality factors of submissiveness and seriousness correlated to the employability dimensions of anticipation/ optimization and occupational expertise respectively. Openness and corporate sense were also correlated, with anxiety in particular correlating with the overall employability measure. Differences between the race groups and employability were also noted. Particular interventions aimed at improving individual career decision making and employability practices within the organisation concluded the study.
M.A. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)

碩士
國立臺灣師範大學
教育心理與輔導學系
100
The purpose of the study was to explore the differences and relations among big five personality traits, career self-efficacy, and career adaptability of master students under different demographic backgrounds. In addition, the study aimed to construct a career adaptability model and to validate the appropriateness of the model applying to master students in Taiwan. The study adopted survey research design. Participants were 664 master students (Male=245; Female=419) from 28 universities in Taiwan, aged between 21 and 50 years old (M=25.2). They completed the NEO-FII, Self-efficacy Subscale, and Career Adaptability Subscale. Data collected was analyzed by descriptive statistics, MANOVA, canonical correlation, and SEM. The findings indicated that (1) there were significant differences in master students’ personality traits under different genders, grades, ages, majors, work experiences, and marital statuses, (2) there were significant differences in master students’ career self-efficacy under different genders, ages, majors, work experiences, and marital statuses, (3) there were significant differences in master students’ career adaptability under different ages, majors, work experiences, and marital statuses, (4) the canonical correlation between personality traits and career self-efficacy, personality traits and career adaptability, and career self-efficacy and career adaptability were significant, (5) the modified model proposed to describe the causal relationship among personality traits, career self-efficacy, and career adaptability was partially supported by the data in this study. Findings in this study were discussed and implications for practice and further research were also provided.

碩士
朝陽科技大學
休閒事業管理系碩士班
96
ABSTRACT The academic communion between Taiwan and Vietnam is becoming more and more frequent in recent years. Therefore, it provided Vietnam-based students with the opportunities to be educated in Taiwan. Vietnam-based students who study abroad in Taiwan must involve in social culture in Taiwan. In the processes of getting along with teachers and peers, Vietnam-based students must have influence and impact on local culture in Taiwan, values, language, customs and so forth. This would arise the problems of adapting going aboard. For Vietnam-based students who study abroad in Taiwan, appropriate leisure activities can not only assist improve the mental and physical health of Vietnam-based students, but also help reduce the pressure task at school. The purposes of this study are to explore the preference of leisure involvement and adaptation for going aboard for Vietnam-based students at vocational schools in Taiwan with a view to further understanding the differences personalities impact on adaptation going aboard and leisure activities. Participants of this research are composed of Vietnam-based students studying at Chaoyang University of Technology, National Yunlin University of Science & Technology and National Kaoshiung University of Applied Sciences. Because only a few Vietnam-based students are available, Grey System Theory is utilized in this study in order to eliminate the deficiency of fewer samples and to examine the preference of leisure involvement for Vietnam-based students in Taiwan and adaptation going aboard in Taiwan. Also, the Correlation Coefficients and Regression Analysis were used to explore the impact on personalities and leisure activities toward adaptation going aboard The results indicated that Vietnam-based students in Taiwan adapted well in Taiwan. However, because of the estrangement on language and characters, Vietnam-based students still need a long time to adapt learning. And, Vietnam-based students possessed different personalities would have difference preference of leisure activities. Also, with different personalities would have difference of adaptation going aboard for Vietnam-based students. Finally, different leisure activities had impact on adaptation going aboard. Progressively, this study aims to provide the suggestion to the authorities concerned with education in Taiwan.