Teachers at a school in Pune notice that some students grasp complex ideas quickly, learn well from past experience and find ways around obstacles, while others struggle with all three. Psychologists treat such differences as differences in one of the most popular psychological attributes. Which of the following also marks how people differ in that attribute?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Adapting to the environment
Option (1) Preferring some activities to others — Incorrect. This describes <strong>interest</strong>, a person's preference for engaging in one or more specific activities relative to others. It tells what a person likes doing, <strong>not how well the person understands, learns or copes</strong>.
Option (2) Adapting to the environment — Correct. First, the students differ in <strong>intelligence</strong>, the most popular attribute psychologists study. People differ in intelligence in their ability to understand complex ideas, <strong>adapt to environment</strong>, learn from experience, reason and overcome obstacles. So adapting to the environment belongs to the same set of abilities.
Option (3) Being outgoing rather than withdrawn — Incorrect. This is a <strong>personality</strong> trait, a relatively enduring characteristic that makes a person distinct from others. It is a style of dealing with people.
Option (4) Holding beliefs about ideal conduct — Incorrect. This describes <strong>values</strong>, enduring beliefs about an ideal mode of behaviour that guide a person's actions and judgements. A value is a belief a person holds, <strong>not an ability</strong> in which people perform better or worse.
NCERT (2026-27): “INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES IN HUMAN FUNCTIONING … |