Personality and Roles: Sources of Regularities in Social Behavior For behavioral scientists, whether they identify primarily with the science of psychology or with that of sociology, there may be no challenge greater than that of discovering regularities and consistencies in social behavior. After all, it is such regularities and consistencies that lend predictability to the behavior of individuals in social contexts-in particular, to those events that constitute dyadic interactions and group processes. In the search for behavioral consistencies, two theoretical constructs have emerged as guiding principles: personality and roles. The theoretical construct of personality seeks to understand regularities and consistencies in social behavior in terms of relatively stable traits, enduring dispositions, and other propensities (for example, needs, motives, and attitudes) that are thought to reside within individuals. Because it focuses primarily on the features of individuals, the construct of personality is fundamentally psychological in nature. By contrast, the theoretical construct of roles seeks to understand regularities and consistencies in social behavior in terms of the directive influence of coherent sets of rules and prescriptions that are provided by the interpersonal, occupational, and societal categories of which individuals are continuing members. Because it focuses primarily on features of social structures, the construct of roles is fundamentally sociological in nature.

The study of the relationship between the person and the situation has had a long history in psychology. Many theories of personality are set on an interpersonal stage and many social phenomena are played out differently as the cast of characters change. At times the study of persons and situations has been contentious, however, recent interest in process models of personality and social interaction have focused on the ways people navigate, influence, and are influenced by their social worlds. Personality and Social Behavior contains a series of essays on topics where a transactional analysis of the person and situation has proved most fruitful. Contributions span the personality and social psychology spectrum and include such topics as new units in personality; neuroscience perspectives on interpersonal personality; social and interpersonal frameworks for understanding the self and self-esteem; and personality process analyses of romantic relationships, prejudice, health, and leadership. This volume provides essential reading for researchers with an interest in this core topic in social psychology and may also be used as a text on related upper-level courses.

Originally published in 1977, the aim of this volume was to demonstrate in a concrete way the relevance of some of the most important individual variables for various domains of social behaviour. Eminent researchers at the time contributed original chapters that provided an up-to-date perspective on theory and research on important and widely used personality constructs. This volume should serve as a text for advanced level students seeking a historical introduction to specific personality variables and a survey of theory and research on the most widely used personality dimensions of the time.

Organized around the content areas, rather than around theories and approaches, this text emphasizes the methods of mainstream psychology. It offers a variety of conceptual tools, such as personal-social, overt-covert, active-passive and master-pawn dichotomies.

How do individual differences interact with situational factors to shape social behavior? Are people with certain traits more likely to form lasting marriages; experience test-taking anxiety; break the law; feel optimistic about the future? This handbook provides a comprehensive, authoritative examination of the full range of personality variables associated with interpersonal judgment, behavior, and emotion. The contributors are acknowledged experts who have conducted influential research on the constructs they address. Chapters discuss how each personality attribute is conceptualized and assessed, review the strengths and limitations of available measures (including child and adolescent measures, when available), present important findings related to social behavior, and identify directions for future study.

"Humans are social animals. Thus, we cannot survive in isolation. We satisfy our needs through seeking, maintaining, and engaging in relationships and interaction with other people. However, social interactions are complex"--