Personality Social Psychology Term Paper

Personality Social Psychology

Suzanne Kobasa's Personality and Social Psychology article entitled "Stressful Life Events, Personality, and Health: An Inquiry into Hardiness" builds upon past research to examine individual and group differences regarding responses to stressful life events. The author provides extensive reviews of past literature, pointing out the limitations that led to her conducting the current study. Much literature has shown a correlation between stressful life events and physical illness; namely, that "stressful life events precipitate somatic and psychological disease," (Kobasa 1979, p.1). The current article in particular examines personality as a major mediating factor in the presence of physical illness following a series of stressful life events. Because prior research has shown that "the recent life histories of hospitalized persons contain significantly more frequent and serious stressful events than do histories of matched controls from the general population," Kobasa designed the current research to discover which personality factors were most significant in determining how a person reacts to stressful events.

Kobasa clearly defines her terms and her hypotheses. Based on the discoveries made by prior researchers, Kobasa chose to study one variable in particular on the relationship between stress and physical illness: personality. Studies have shown that many highly stressed individuals do not exhibit physical illness, and Kobasa concluded that the subjects who don't get ill are the ones most often overlooked. In particular, Kobasa discovered that research suggests that individuals who demonstrate a personality defined by hardiness are less likely to develop illnesses following stressful life events. The researcher narrowed down her hypothesis to focus on hardiness as a dependent variable. Hardiness is defined by three key characteristics: an internal locus of control; a strong sense of commitment; and an appreciation of change as a positive force.

Moreover, in accordance with current research, Kobasa defines stress as a life event that "causes changes in, and demands readjustment of, an average person's normal routine," (2). Stressful events can be "positive," such as marriage, or "negative," such as death of a loved one. Kobasa divides her hypothesis is divided into three key components, which she phrases: a) "Among persons under stress, those who have a greater sense of control over what occurs in their lives will remain healthier than those who feel powerless in the face of external forces," (Kobasa 1979, p.3); b) "Among persons under stress, those who feel committed to the various areas of their lives will remain healthier than those who are alienated," (Kobasa 1979, p. 3-4); c) "Among persons under stress, those who view change as a challenge will remain healthier than those who view it as a threat," (Kobasa 1979, p.4).

The population of interest for Kobasa's study is limited only to individuals who report a high number of stressful life events having had…