Extending the search for folk personality constructs: the dimensionality of the personality-relevant proverb domain

College students (95 men and 264 women) rated how well 211 familiar proverbs described their behavior and beliefs. A factor analysis of these data yielded 7 major dimensions; many of the factors were similar to recognized lexical personality factors. Big Five Conscientiousness and Neuroticism were each strongly associated with a single proverb dimension (interpreted as Restraint and Enjoys Life, respectively). Big Five Agreeableness, Extraversion, and Intellect/Imagination were all associated with several proverb dimensions. Agreeableness was most strongly associated with proverb dimensions representing Machiavellian behavior and strong Group Ties, and both Extraversion and Intellect showed particularly notable associations with an Achievement Striving dimension. The 2 remaining proverb dimensions, which represented a belief that Life is Fair and an attitude of Cynicism, could not be accounted for by the Big Five.     

Five personality factors and sex: preliminary findings

This study assessed the relationships between the Big Five personality domains, attitudes to sex, and three specific sexual behaviours. Respondents were 123 undergraduate students (51 males; 72 females). Men were found to score significantly higher than women on measures of sexual curiosity and sexual excitement, while women were higher on sexual satisfaction. Neuroticism (N) and Extraversion (E) appeared to be the most important predictors of attitudes to sex, although Conscientiousness (C) and Openness to experience (O) were also implicated. N, C, and Agreeableness (A) were implicated in sexual behaviours. Some suggestions for future research are made.     

Long-term stability in the Big Five personality traits in adulthood

This study investigated the stability of the Big Five personality traits in adulthood from age 33 to 42. Participants (89 men, 103 women) were drawn from the ongoing Jyväskylä Longitudinal Study of Personality and Social Development. The results showed that the mean‐level of Neuroticism decreased whereas the mean‐level of Extraversion, Openness to Experience, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness increased from age 33 to 42. The Structural Equation Modeling analyses revealed both gender differences and similarities in the rank‐order stability of the Big Five: Neuroticism and Extraversion were more stable in men than in women, whereas Openness to Experience, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness were as stable in men as in women. Stability coefficients for the Big Five personality traits across 9 years were moderate to high, ranging from 0.73 to 0.97 in men and from 0.65 to 0.95 in women. The highest gender‐equal stability was found for Openness to Experience and the lowest for Conscientiousness.     

Gender differences in implicit and explicit personality traits

This article investigates gender differences in implicit and explicit measures of the Big Five traits of personality. In a high-powered study (N = 14,348), we replicated previous research showing that women report higher levels of Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion and Neuroticism. For implicit measures, gender differences were much smaller for all, and opposite in sign for Extraversion. Somewhat higher levels of implicit Neuroticism and Agreeableness were observed in women, and somewhat higher levels of implicit Extraversion and Openness were observed in men. There was no gender difference in implicit Conscientiousness. A possible explanation is that explicit self-concepts partly reflect social norms and self-expectations about gender roles, while implicit self-concepts may mostly reflect self-related experiences.     

Big Five Personality Traits as the Predictors of Creative Self‐Efficacy and Creative Personal Identity: Does Gender Matter?

The aim of this study was to examine the relation of the Big Five personality factors to two self‐concept variables of growing importance in creativity literature: creative self‐efficacy (CSE) and creative personal identity (CPI). The analysis, conducted on a large (N = 2674, 49.6% women) and varied‐in‐age (15–59 years old) nationwide sample of Poles, using the structural equation model, demonstrated that personality factors are responsible for 23% of CSE and 21% of CPI variances. CSE and CPI were associated with all five personality dimensions: positively with Openness to Experience, Extraversion and Conscientiousness, negatively with Neuroticism and Agreeableness. The separate analyses conducted on men and women showed the differences among the predictors of CSE and CPI. Although Openness to Experience, Conscientiousness, and Neuroticism predicted CSE among both men and women, Extraversion was positively and Agreeableness negatively related to women's CSE. Conscientiousness was positively related to CPI only among men, and Agreeableness was negatively related to it only among women. Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Openness predicted CPI in the same manner among men and women.     

Personality profiles and health: Longitudinal evidence among Finnish adults

Kinnunen, M.‐L., Metsäpelto, R. L., Feldt, T., Kokko, K., Tolvanen, A., Kinnunen, U., Leppänen, E. & Pulkkinen, L. (2012). Personality profiles and health: Longitudinal evidence among Finnish adults. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 53, 512–522. This study investigates the associations of longitudinal Big Five personality profiles with long‐term health in 304 adults (53% males). Personality traits (Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness, Conscientiousness, Agreeableness) were assessed at ages 33, 42, and 50. Subjective (self‐rated health, symptoms, psychological distress) and objective (body mass index, waist‐to‐hip ratio, blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides) indicators of health were measured at ages 42 and 50. Five longitudinally stable personality profiles were extracted over 17 years by latent profile analysis. The levels of traits were the same in each profile at each age. Resilient individuals (N = 65; Neuroticism low, other traits high) had the best subjective health and Overcontrolled individuals (N = 40; Neuroticism high, other traits low) the poorest health over eight years. Reserved individuals (N = 25; high Conscientiousness, other traits low), Undercontrolled (N = 41; high Openness and Extraversion, low Conscientiousness), and Ordinary (N = 133; all traits scored medium) individuals were in the middle of these extremes in subjective health. No differences between the profiles were found in the objective indicators of health. Thus, overcontrol and resilience were most discriminative in terms of good health. Moreover, personality profiles revealed associations with health to be more nuanced than simply being composed of single traits. High Extraversion needed to be combined with high Conscientiousness (Resilients) in order to be associated with the best health; high Extraversion with low Conscientiousness (Undercontrolled) was associated with average health; and low Extraversion with high Neuroticism (Overcontrolled) was associated with the poorest health.     

Sex differences on the five personality factors in Spanish students

This study examined sex differences in the Big Five Personality factors in a sample of 255 Spanish university students (196 women and 59 men) whose mean age was 21.4 yr. (SD=3.91). They responded to the short Spanish version of the Big Five Personality scale. The goals of this study were first, to check the utility of this scale to evaluate personality traits in the Spanish university population, and, second, to check the sensitivity of this shorter scale in evaluating possible differences between sexes on these factors of personality. Analysis supported the published factorial structure, and significant differences were found between men and women on the factors of Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Conscientiousness.     

What coping tells about personality

In this study, 123 participants (non‐psychology students) who responded to an interpersonal stress situation staged in the laboratory were judged by unacquainted observers in terms of the Big Five dimensions, intelligence and social attractiveness. Coping behaviour appeared to predict personality impressions in a way that mirrors the relations between personality and coping observed in previous research: Overall, higher levels of Extraversion (E), Agreeableness (A), Conscientiousness (C) and Openness to experience (O) (as well as intelligence and social attractiveness) were predicted by problem‐focussed behaviour and cognitive restructuring, whereas higher levels of Neuroticism (N) were predicted by withdrawal/passivity. The interpersonal impact of the particular coping reactions, as indicated by a positive personality impression, were largely inconsistent with their impact on affect following the stress induction. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Structure of Sexual Orientation and its Relation to Masculinity,Femininity, and Gender Diagnosticity: Different for Men and Women

Three hundred ninety-four college students (148 men and 246 women; 42% White, 25% Hispanic, and 23% Asian) were assessed on masculine instrumentality (M), feminine expressiveness (F), gender diagnosticity (GD), and the Big Five personality traits (Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Neuroticism, and Openness). Participants completed a 16-item sexual behavior and attitude questionnaire that asked about their attraction to men, their attraction to women, their degree of emotional commitment in sexual relationships, their level of sex drive, and their interest in visual sexual stimuli and fantasy. Factor analysis of sexual behavior and attitude items for men showed four factors: Bipolar Sexual Orientation, Emotional Commitment, Sex Drive, and Sexual Fantasy. Factor analysis of items for women showed four somewhat different factors: Homosexuality, Heterosexuality, Emotional Commitment, and Sex Drive. Thus, sexual orientation proved to be bipolar for men, but two-dimensional for women. For men, Sexual Orientation correlated most strongly with GD, less with M, and not at all with F. Among women, there were few significant correlations between personality measures and Homosexuality or Heterosexuality.     

Optimism and the Big Five factors of personality: Beyond Neuroticism and Extraversion

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the relationship between the Big Five factors of personality and dispositional optimism. Data from five samples were collected (Total N = 4332) using three different measures of optimism and five different measures of the Big Five. Results indicated strong positive relationships between optimism and four of the Big Five factors: Emotional Stability, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness. Agreeableness and Conscientiousness explained additional variance in dispositional optimism over and above Neuroticism and Extraversion, providing evidence for the complexity of optimism. The position of optimism in the larger web of human personality constructs is discussed.     

The Role of Hostile and Benevolent Sexism in Women's and Men's Perceptions of the Menstruating Woman

Perceptions of menstruating women were studied in a sample of 244, predominantly European American, college freshmen. Both women and men rated the menstruating woman, as compared with the average woman, as higher on the Neuroticism factor from Lippa's (1991) measure of the Big Five personality factors. Men also rated her as lower on the Openness, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness factors, and women rated her lower on the Extraversion factor. Women rated her as perceiving herself as less masculine and more feminine. Both women and men rated her as less "energized" and "sexy," but more "irritable,""sad," and "angry." In addition, men rated her as less "clean and fresh,""nurturing," and "reasonable," and more "spacey" and "annoying." Significant relationships were found between negative impressions of the menstruating woman and the Hostile Sexism Scale ( Glick & Fiske, 1996 ). Although most ratings by men and women were negative, women perceived the menstruating woman as more "maternal,""strong," and "trustworthy."     

Optimism and the Big Five factors of personality: Beyond Neuroticism and Extraversion

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the relationship between the Big Five factors of personality and dispositional optimism. Data from five samples were collected (Total N = 4332) using three different measures of optimism and five different measures of the Big Five. Results indicated strong positive relationships between optimism and four of the Big Five factors: Emotional Stability, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness. Agreeableness and Conscientiousness explained additional variance in dispositional optimism over and above Neuroticism and Extraversion, providing evidence for the complexity of optimism. The position of optimism in the larger web of human personality constructs is discussed.     

Personality judgment at zero acquaintance: agreement, assumed similarity, and implicit simplicity

Previously unacquainted participants (N = 218) were assessed in small-group sessions in which they rated themselves and each other on (a) the Big Five (e.g., Costa & McCrae, 1992) and (b) an instrument assessing various traits not traditionally measured in the Big Five taxonomy as well as sociopolitical attitudes. Replicating earlier research, we obtained a significant self-stranger correlation on Extraversion; in addition, we found significant agreement on ratings of thriftiness, athleticism, traditionalism, conservatism, and attractiveness. Assumed similarity correlations were substantial for Neuroticism, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness; furthermore, consistent with previous findings, there was a strong inverse relation between agreement and assumed similarity across the assessed characteristics. Finally, the correlations between Neuroticism, Openness, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness were significantly greater in the strangers' ratings than in the self-ratings, indicating that these peer judgments are less complex. We also compared our Big Five findings with those from previous samples of varying acquaintanceship; these analyses indicated that the strangers' ratings were characterized by lower levels of self-other agreement (for all traits except Extraversion) and somewhat higher levels of assumed similarity (for ratings of Neuroticism and Agreeableness).     

Personality traits and health‐risk behaviours in university students

Relations between personality and health‐risk behaviours in university undergraduates were examined using multiple measures of personality across multiple samples (N = 1151). Big Five personality variables, at both factor and facet levels, were used to predict three specific health‐risk behaviours: (a) tobacco consumption, (b) alcohol consumption and (c) speeding in an automobile. Our findings showed that low Conscientiousness and low Agreeableness were uniformly associated with this cluster of potentially health damaging behaviours. Extraversion was additionally associated with alcohol use. Interaction effects were found between Conscientiousness and Agreeableness on smoking and (for men only) on drinking. Other personality variables not centrally related to the Big Five, such as Risk‐Taking (high) and Integrity (low), were also implicated in the present health‐risk behaviours. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

White Racial Identity Statuses and NEO Personality Constructs: An Exploratory Analysis

This study investigated the relationship between White racial identity development as proposed by J. E. Helms (1995) and the personality constructs Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness. Participants were 105 White college students (55 women and 50 men) who were administered the White Racial Identity Attitude Scale (J. E. Helms & R. T. Carter, 1993), the NEO Five‐Factor Inventory (P. T. Costa & R. R. McCrae, 1992) and the New Racism Scale (C. K Jacobson, 1985). Results indicated that White racial identity was differentially related to several personality constructs and aversive racism. Implications for future White racial identity research are discussed.     

The five and seven factors personality models: differences and similitude between the TCI-R, NEO-FFI-R and ZKPQ-50-CC

The present study tests the relationships between the three frequently used personality models evaluated by the Temperament Character Inventory-Revised (TCI-R), Neuroticism Extraversion Openness Five Factor Inventory - Revised (NEO-FFI-R) and Zuckerman-Kuhlman Personality Questionnaire-50- Cross-Cultural (ZKPQ-50-CC). The results were obtained with a sample of 928 volunteer subjects from the general population aged between 17 and 28 years old. Frequency distributions and alpha reliabilities with the three instruments were acceptable. Correlational and factorial analyses showed that several scales in the three instruments share an appreciable amount of common variance. Five factors emerged from principal components analysis. The first factor was integrated by A (Agreeableness), Co (Cooperativeness) and Agg-Host (Aggressiveness-Hostility), with secondary loadings in C (Conscientiousness) and SD (Self-directiveness) from other factors. The second factor was composed by N (Neuroticism), N-Anx (Neuroticism-Anxiety), HA (Harm Avoidance) and SD (Self-directiveness). The third factor was integrated by Sy (Sociability), E (Extraversion), RD (Reward Dependence), ImpSS (Impulsive Sensation Seeking) and NS (novelty Seeking). The fourth factor was integrated by Ps (Persistence), Act (Activity), and C, whereas the fifth and last factor was composed by O (Openness) and ST (Self- Transcendence). Confirmatory factor analyses indicate that the scales in each model are highly interrelated and define the specified latent dimension well. Similarities and differences between these three instruments are further discussed.     

成年人某些个性特征的年龄差异研究

采用ＮＥＯ—ＦＦＩ简式对５９３名２０至９４岁成年人进行了个性特征的年龄差异研究。被试分为青年（２０～３９岁）、中年（４０～５９岁）、老年（６０～７４岁）和老老年（７５岁及以上）４组,文化程度均初中以上。结果表明：问卷表再测信度合格,自评与亲友评定间有显著相关;除开放性特征（Ｏ）随增龄下降,即青年组较年长三组更加开放外,神经质（Ｎ）、内外向（Ｅ）、和谐性（Ａ）和认真负责（Ｃ）量表分均无明显年龄差异;两性个性特点比较,女性Ｎ分及Ａ分均明显高于男性;除年龄和性别因素外,健康善对Ｎ、Ｅ、Ｃ分,文化程度对Ｎ和Ｏ分,职业对Ｅ分均有影响。     

Book Reviews

Book reviewed in this article: Handbook of Clinical Psychobiology and Pathology . Sanford I. Cohen and Robert N. Ross. N.Y. Hemisphere Images of Illness . Linda L. Viney. Malabar, Florida. Robert E. Kreiger Organisational Behaviour: The Australian Context . Russell Lansbury and Robert Spillane. Youth, Transition and Social Research . D.S. Anderson and C. Blakers. Motivation, Career Striving and Aging . Joel Raynor and Elliot Entin. Educational Policy and Management: Sex Differentials . Patricia A. Schmuck, W.W. Charters and Richard O. Carlson (Eds.). Sex Education in the Eighties . Lorna Brown (Ed.). Children's Sexual Thinking . Ronald and Juliette Goldman. Routledge & Kegan Paul. Birth Order: Its Influence on Personality . Cécile Ernst and Jules Angst. Measuring Emotions in Infants and Children . Carroll E. Izard (Ed.). Three Further Clinical Faces of Childhood . E.J. Anthony and D.C. Gilpin (Eds.). Television and the Socialization of the Minority Child . Gordon L. Berry and Claudia Mitchell-Kernan (Eds.). Strangers in the World . Leo Eitinger and David Schwarz (Eds.). Group Psychotherapy: A Peer Focused Approach . Richard A. Hogan. Models of Influence in Psychotherapy . Patrick Pentony. New York. Psychotherapy, Insight and Style . Len Bergantino. Understanding the Mid-Life Crisis . Peter O'Connor. Melbourne. Present and Past in Middle Life . Dorothy Eichorn and John Clausen (Eds.). Confusion, Prevention and Care . Mary O. Wolanin and Linda R.F. Phillips. Adjustment: The Development and Organization of Human Behavior . R. Douglas Whitman. Anger and Aggression . James R. Averill.     

Relation between alexithymia and the five-factor model of personality: a facet-level analysis

The relation between alexithymia and both the domain and the facet level of the five-factor model (FFM) of personality was examined in a sample of 101 university students by using the Twenty-Item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20; Bagby, Taylor, & Parker, 1994) and the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (Costa & McCrae, 1992c). Consistent with the alexithymia construct, the TAS-20 was positively correlated with Neuroticism (N) and negatively correlated with Extraversion (E) and Openness (O), whereas no significant relations were found with Agreeableness (A) and Conscientiousness (C). Analysis of the lower order traits (i.e., facets) of the FFM revealed that depression for N; positive emotions and assertiveness for E; feelings and actions for O; altruism, tender-mindedness, and modesty for A; and competence for C predicted alexithymia. These results support the uniqueness of the alexithymia construct, which is represented by a cluster of traits across the dimensions and facets of the FFM.     

Big Five personality development in adolescence and adulthood

The present article examines Big Five personality development across adolescence and middle adulthood. Two adolescents and their fathers and mothers from 285 Dutch families rated their own and their family members' personality. Using accelerated longitudinal growth curve analyses, mean level change in Big Five factors was estimated. For boys, Extraversion and Openness decreased and for girls, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Openness increased. Whereas mothers' Emotional Stability and Conscientiousness increased, fathers' Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Emotional Stability decreased. Differences in self‐ and other‐reported personality change were found, as well as interindividual differences in personality change. Results confirm that personality change is possible across the life course but these changes are not similar for all individuals and depend on the type of observer. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.