Cross-sectional age differences in personality: Evidence from nationally representative samples from Switzerland and the United States

Identifying reliable patterns of age differences in personality can help clarify the nature of adult personality development. Previous studies have been limited because many have relied on convenience samples. In this study, we examined age differences in personality in two nationally representative samples, one from Switzerland and one from the United States. The results indicated that Agreeableness and Conscientiousness were positively associated with age, whereas Extraversion was negatively associated with age. However, the magnitude of age differences for Extraversion was much smaller than for Agreeableness and Conscientiousness. Openness showed a more complex trend such that 30- to 34-year-olds scored lower on Openness than younger age groups, whereas older groups scored somewhere in between. Inconsistent age differences were observed for Neuroticism.     

The IPIP–HEXACO scales: An alternative, public-domain measure of the personality constructs in the HEXACO model

Recently, Lee and Ashton (2004) described the HEXACO Personality Inventory (HEXACO-PI), a new instrument designed to assess the six dimensions observed in lexical studies of personality structure of various languages. Here, we describe the development of an alternative measure of the HEXACO factors and their facets, using the items of the International Personality Item Pool (IPIP). The scales of the resulting IPIP–HEXACO inventory showed satisfactory psychometric properties, as assessed by internal-consistency reliability, convergent and discriminant correlations with the original HEXACO-PI scales, and factor structure. We discuss the potential usefulness of the new IPIP–HEXACO inventory and its strengths and limitations.     

The religious person revisited: cross-cultural evidence from the HEXACO model of personality structure

The relationship of religiousness with the HEXACO (Honesty-Humility, Emotionality, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Openness) model of personality was studied in Iran and the United States. Correlations of personality factors and religiousness were generally similar across the two societies. In both countries, religiousness was associated with higher scores on Honesty-Humility, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness. The Honesty-Humility factor was one of the strongest correlates of religiousness in both countries. These findings support Saroglou's observation that the main personality characteristics of religiousness are consistent across different religious contexts and personality measures and models.     

Taking a person-centered approach to personality: A latent-profile analysis of the HEXACO model of personality

Our study applies a person-centered approach to the HEXACO model of personality using latent profile analysis (LPA). While the traditional variable-centered approach assumes that the relations among variables within a population are homogenous, the person-centered approach identifies subgroups within samples that have similar scores on several variables of interest, in this case, the six factors of personality. Data from two independent samples were collected at a large North American university. The results of LPA revealed five distinct and interpretable profiles that replicated and were found to be consistent across both samples. We discuss how our findings attest to the meaningfulness of personality profiles, and suggest additional ways in which a person-centered approach might be applied in personality research.     

HEXACO personality and Schwartz's personal values: A facet-level analysis

This study systematically examined the correlates of Schwartz’s basic values with the broad and narrow traits of the HEXACO model of personality. A sample of 1244 adults (53% male; M age = 44, SD = 12) completed the 200-item HEXACO-PI-R and the Portrait Values Questionnaire measuring Schwartz’s 10 basic personal values. Regression models predicting each of the ten basic values from personality revealed mean-adjusted multiple correlations of .39 for HEXACO factors without honesty-humility, .45 for all HEXACO factors, and .53 for HEXACO facets. The facet-level multiple correlations were particularly large (>.60) for power, universalism, and cooperation. Results suggest that individual differences in personality and values overlap to a greater extent than implied by past literature.     

The impact of the HEXACO personality model in predicting socio-political attitudes: The moderating role of interest in politics

In this paper, the relationships between the HEXACO personality model and socio-political attitudes were investigated. It was hypothesized that the relationship between Honesty-Humility and Social Dominance Orientation (SDO) and that between Openness and Right Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) were moderated by interest in politics. Three hundred and forty-four individuals participated in the study. Results showed that Honesty-Humility affected SDO and Openness affected RWA more strongly among individuals with a higher level of interest in politics. Facet-level analyses revealed that Humility and Experiential Openness were uniquely connected to ideology. These effects were also moderated by interest in politics.     

A sixth personality domain that is independent of the Big Five domains: The psychometric properties of the HEXACO Personality Inventory in a Japanese sample

We investigated the reliability of the HEXACO‐Personality Inventory (HEXACO‐PI) using the NEO Five‐Factor Inventory (NEO‐FFI) and the International Personality Item Pool (IPIP) Big Five scales in a Japanese sample of 492 respondents (mean age = 20.4 years). The psychometric properties of the HEXACO‐PI were examined and found to be satisfactory. The results of the factor analysis showed that the six hypothesized personality domains were found independently. A total of 307 participants responded to the NEO‐FFI and the IPIP Big Five scales. The results showed that the five domains of the HEXACO model corresponded to the Five‐Factor domains and were relative to the Big Five personality domains as a whole, but the sixth domain, Honesty‐Humility, showed weak to moderate correlations with some factors of the NEO‐FFI and the IPIP Big Five scales. These results suggest that the Honesty‐Humility domain is independent of the five fundamental personality factors and that the HEXACO‐PI is a useful and reliable questionnaire for investigating personality structure in cross‐cultural and other context.     

Personality change in adolescence: Results from a Japanese sample

We examined developmental trends in personality traits during adolescence by using data from the secondary school affiliated with the University of Tokyo (N = 3656; range 12–18; 1832 female), collected from 1981 to 2010. Hierarchical linear modeling analyses revealed cumulative mean-level changes in personality averaging approximately 1 SD across adolescence. Scales related to Neuroticism showed linear increases, and those related to Extraversion showed distinct developmental patterns: General Activity and Rhathymia did not change, while Ascendance and Social Extroversion declined. Additionally, we found significant gender and birth cohort effects on personality. Although the intercepts differed according to both factors, the trajectories were different only for the birth cohort. These findings suggest that personality development trajectories differ according to the sociocultural context.     

At the interface of social cognition and psychometrics: Manipulating the sex of the reference class modulates sex differences in personality traits

Psychometric surveys suggest that sex differences in personality are minimal. Herein, we argue that (a) the mind is likely biased toward assessing oneself relative to same-sex others, and (b) this bias may affect the measurement of sex differences in personality. In support of this, an experiment demonstrates modulation of sex differences on the HEXACO facets by manipulating the sex of the “reference class”—the group of people subjects compare themselves to when making self-assessments on survey items. Although patterns varied across traits, sex differences were relatively small in the “unspecified” and “same-sex” reference class conditions—but substantially larger in the “opposite-sex” condition. These findings point to a same-sex comparison bias that may impact the measurement of sex differences in personality.     

Functional coordination of personality strategies with physical strength and attractiveness: A multi-sample investigation at the HEXACO facet-level

Previous research has supported adaptationist hypotheses pertaining to the functional coordination of personality strategies with phenotypic determinants of bargaining power, such as physical strength and attractiveness. However, prior studies have focused primarily on explaining variation in Extraversion and Emotionality/Neuroticism as broadband traits. The current study synthesizes data from three subject samples (N = 766) to test correlations of physical strength and attractiveness with the HEXACO factors and facets among young adults. Our analyses reveal specific, functionally meaningful, patterns of phenotypic coordination, and thereby help illuminate which facets drive previously documented associations at the factor-level. Among both sexes, strength was an especially important predictor of facets whose secondary loadings place them in the quadrant of factor space defined by high Extraversion (Expressiveness, Liveliness, Social Boldness) and low Emotionality (Fearfulness, Anxiety). Findings bolster the hypothesis that specific personality strategies are coordinated with phenotypic components of bargaining power, and suggest that granular measures of personality (such as facets) may provide more mechanistic and functional insight than broadband trait factors.     

Age differences in the personality hierarchy: A multi-sample replication study across the life span

This replication and extension of Mõttus and Rozgonjuk (2019) compared the extents of age-related information captured by different levels of the personality trait hierarchy (domains, facets and nuances, indexed by individual items) in several samples (N = 51,524) of different age ranges and cultural backgrounds, and tested with different instruments. Across samples and measures, lower trait hierarchy levels (especially nuances) tended to contain substantially more age-sensitive information than higher levels; most of the unique age-sensitive information was in nuances. Besides showing the need for more nuanced personality (development) research, the findings suggest ways of testing novel hypotheses that rely on systematic between-trait variance in age differences.     

God,the good life,and HEXACO: the relations among religion,subjective well-being and personality

The relations among religiousness, subjective well-being (SWB) and the HEXACO (Honesty–Humility, Emotionality, eXtraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Openness) model of personality were studied in a Muslim population. As expected, Extraversion and Honesty-Humility factors were the strongest correlates of SWB and religiosity, respectively. Religiosity also correlated with higher levels of SWB, and explained variance in SWB beyond personality factors, showing that religion is a unique predictor of well-being. Results have been discussed within the religious orientation paradigm, and the HEXACO model of personality structure.     

Phobic tendency within the Five-Factor and HEXACO models of personality structure

Recent research has indicated that the various specific phobias are only modestly correlated with the personality dimensions of the Big Five or Five-Factor Model (B5/FFM). We tested the hypothesis that the specific phobias would be more strongly associated with the dimensions of an alternative framework, the HEXACO model of personality structure. Self-reports on the Phobic Stimuli Response Scales (PSRS) were obtained along with self- and peer reports on measures of the B5/FFM and HEXACO dimensions from a sample of 248 non-clinical participants. The PSRS variables assessing specific phobias showed stronger correlations with the HEXACO Emotionality factor than with any B5/FFM dimension, and a stronger multiple correlation with the HEXACO factors than with the B5/FFM dimensions. Findings were similar across self- and peer reports of the personality variables. The results suggest that phobic tendency can be understood in terms of normal personality variation as conceptualized in the HEXACO framework.     

Relating the Spherical representation of vocational interests to the HEXACO personality model

The present study extends previous research on interests–personality relations by comparing recent models of vocational interests (using the Personal Globe Inventory; PGI, Tracey, 2002) and personality (using the HEXACO-PI-R; Ashton, Lee, & de Vries, 2014) with each other. First, the structure of the Spherical representation was adequately replicated in a Dutch sample (N = 656). Second, in so far as comparisons were possible, the relations between interests and personality were found to be congruent with previous findings. Third, Prestige interests, the defining feature of the Spherical representation, were related, albeit weakly, to Openness to Experience and to Extraversion. Last of all, Honesty–Humility and Openness to Experience were related to profile elevation in interest scores. All results were obtained for normative and ipsatized scales, revealing several meaningful differences in interests–personality relations depending on the type of interest scoring procedure.     

Active versus reactive cooperativeness in Borderline Psychopathology: A dissection based on the HEXACO model of personality

The concept of personality disorders (PDs) is shifting from categorical to dimensional, conceptualizing PDs as maladaptive variants of basic personality traits. The Agreeableness trait in the Five Factor Model of personality classically represents dispositional cooperativeness, which is associated with PDs characterized by interpersonal impairments. However, recent research designates two separate dispositional tendencies: active and reactive cooperativeness. Using the HEXACO model of personality we assessed traits representing these tendencies (Honesty–Humility and Agreeableness) and investigated their relation to Borderline features in 602 individuals. Borderline features were associated with low Agreeableness scores, representing low reactive cooperation, entailing a tendency to retaliate. Yet, there was no association with Honesty–Humility, implying intact active cooperativeness and non-exploitation. These findings extend prior results on the relation between Borderline PD and basic personality dimensions driving prosocial behavior. Implications for the understanding of interpersonal problems in PDs and the refinement of existing therapies are discussed.     

Cantankerous creativity: Honesty-Humility, Agreeableness, and the HEXACO structure of creative achievement

Creativity research has suggested that creative people are low in agreeableness. To explore this issue, we applied the HEXACO model of personality structure, which offers an expanded representation of interpersonal traits, particularly a distinction between Honesty-Humility and Agreeableness. A sample of 1304 adults completed the HEXACO-60 and several measures of creative achievement and activities. Latent variable models found that Agreeableness had no relationship with creativity, but Honesty-Humility did: people lower in Honesty-Humility had higher creativity scores, consistent with past work on arrogance and pretentiousness among creative people.     

Age trends in HEXACO-PI-R self-reports

We examined age differences in the six broad HEXACO personality factors and their defining facets, using self-reports from an online sample (N ≈ 100,000, ages 14–74). Honesty-Humility showed an upward trend of about one full standard deviation unit between ages 18 and 60. Age trends for Emotionality and Extraversion differed by facet, but overall were downward for Emotionality and upward for Extraversion. Agreeableness showed relatively weak age trends. Conscientiousness and Openness showed upward age trends during the teen years (extending to the mid-20s for Conscientiousness), but age trends thereafter differed considerably by facet. Results are discussed in relation to previous findings for the Big Five, to the “age-crime curve”, and to possible evolved developmental origins.     

The stability of adult personality varies across age: Evidence from a two-year longitudinal sample of adult New Zealanders

We model developmental patterns in the stability of Big-Six personality markers over a two-year period in a multi-cohort panel study of adult New Zealanders (n = 3910). Structural Equation Models testing patterns of linear, quadratic and cubic effects identified considerable variation in the stability of most aspects of personality across the adult age range (20–80 years). Agreeableness showed a slight linear decrease in consistency with increasing age. Extraversion, Conscientiousness, Neuroticism, Openness to Experience, and Honesty–Humility exhibited quadratic ‘inverted U’ patterns of rank-order stability. Unlike Agreeableness, the two-year consistency of these other personality dimensions increased from young adulthood towards middle age, then decreased as people progressed toward old age. Implications for personality research and emerging trends are discussed.