Empirical, theoretical, and practical advantages of the HEXACO model of personality structure.

The authors argue that a new six-dimensional framework for personality structure--the HEXACO model--constitutes a viable alternative to the well-known Big Five or five-factor model. The new model is consistent with the cross-culturally replicated finding of a common six-dimensional structure containing the factors Honesty-Humility (H), Emotionality (E), eExtraversion (X), Agreeableness (A), Conscientiousness (C), and Openness to Experience (O). Also, the HEXACO model predicts several personality phenomena that are not explained within the B5/FFM, including the relations of personality factors with theoretical biologists' constructs of reciprocal and kin altruism and the patterns of sex differences in personality traits. In addition, the HEXACO model accommodates several personality variables that are poorly assimilated within the B5/FFM.     

The prediction of Honesty–Humility-related criteria by the HEXACO and Five-Factor Models of personality

We examined two questions involving the relative validity of the HEXACO and Five-Factor Models of personality structure. First, would the HEXACO model outpredict the Five-Factor Model (FFM) with regard to several diverse criteria that are conceptually relevant to the Honesty–Humility dimension of personality? If so, would the addition of a proxy Honesty–Humility scale—as computed from relevant facets of the FFM Agreeableness domain—allow the FFM to achieve predictive validities matching those of the HEXACO model? Results from self- and observer ratings in three samples (each N > 200) indicated that the HEXACO model showed considerable predictive validity advantages over the FFM. When a measure of Honesty–Humility derived from the FFM was added to the original five domains of that model, the predictive validity reached that of the HEXACO model for some criteria, but remained substantially below for others.     

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.     

The Dutch HEXACO Personality Inventory: psychometric properties, self-other agreement, and relations with psychopathy among low and high acquaintanceship dyads

The HEXACO model (Lee & Ashton, 2004, 2006) of personality structure is based on 6 dimensions that have been recovered in lexical studies of personality in various languages. In this study, we examined a Dutch version of the HEXACO Personality Inventory (HEXACO-PI; Lee & Ashton, 2004) and found it to have satisfactory psychometric properties. Additionally, we examined the level of self-other agreement for the HEXACO-PI variables and the relation of HEXACO-PI Honesty-Humility with the Self-Report Psychopathy Scale (Williams, Paulhus, & Hare, 2007) at varying levels of self-other acquaintanceship. Self-other agreement was found to be high, especially among dyads with high levels of acquaintanceship. Self-reported and other-reported Honesty-Humility and Emotionality were the strongest predictors of psychopathy. The relation between other-reported Honesty-Humility and self-reported psychopathy was near zero for dyads with low levels of acquaintanceship but was moderately strong for dyads with high levels of acquaintanceship.     

Honesty-humility, the big five, and the five-factor model

This study investigated the relations of the proposed sixth factor of personality, Honesty-Humility, with the dimensions of the classic English lexical Big Five and the closely related Five-Factor Model (FFM). Results showed that although Honesty-Humility was largely unrelated to markers of the Big Five factors, it was substantially correlated with the FFM Agreeableness domain. This relation was largely due to the Straightforwardness and Modesty facets of FFM Agreeableness, which were only weakly correlated with the Big Five version of Agreeableness. A realignment of FFM facets to produce separate Honesty-Humility and Agreeableness factors provided better prediction of personality variables that involve deceit without hostility, such as Social Adroitness and Self-Monitoring. Results indicate the importance of assessing Honesty-Humility as a separate factor.     

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.     

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.     

Personality Traits Beyond the Big Five: Are They Within the HEXACO Space?

Paunonen (2002) recently developed the Supernumerary Personality Inventory (SPI), a measure of 10 traits that have low loadings within the space of the Big Five personality factors. If the SPI personality traits are representative of the domain of non-Big Five personality traits, then the major source of the variance in the SPI traits would be expected to correlate strongly with the sixth factor of personality, Honesty-Humility. We tested this hypothesis using self-report measures (N = 200) of the SPI traits, of the Big Five, and of the new six-dimensional ("HEXACO") structure. Results indicated that the first unrotated factor underlying the 10 SPI traits was heavily saturated with variance from Honesty-Humility (r = .65). Nevertheless, the 10 SPI traits contained substantial amounts of unique variance not accounted for by the HEXACO or the Big Five variables, highlighting the importance of the facet-level assessment of personality traits.     

The HEXACO and five-factor models of personality in relation to RIASEC vocational interests

The current study extended the empirical research on the overlap of vocational interests and personality by (a) testing hypothesized relations between RIASEC interests and the personality dimensions of the HEXACO model, and (b) exploring the HEXACO personality model's predictive advantage over the five-factor model (FFM) in capturing RIASEC interests. Results of correlations based on a sample of 437 college students (157 men and 280 women) revealed support for eight of 21 hypothesized HEXACO–RIASEC relations for men and nine of 21 for women. Results of multiple regressions revealed that HEXACO accounted for more variance in RIASEC interests than did the FFM, and that HEXACO accounted for significant incremental variance beyond that explained by the FFM in four of six RIASEC interests for men and in five of six RIASEC interests for women.     

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.     

Psychometric Properties of the HEXACO Personality Inventory

We introduce a personality inventory designed to measure six major dimensions of personality derived from lexical studies of personality structure. The HEXACO Personality Inventory (HEXACO-PI) consists of 24 facet-level personality trait scales that define the six personality factors named Honesty-Humility (H), Emotionality (E), Extraversion (X), Agreeableness (A), Conscientiousness (C), and Openness to Experience (O). In this validation study involving a sample of over 400 respondents, all HEXACO-PI scales showed high internal consistency reliabilities, conformed to the hypothesized six-factor structure, and showed adequate convergent validities with external variables. The HEXACO factor space, and the rotations of factors within that space, are discussed with reference to J. S. Wiggins' work on the circumplex.     

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.     

The HEXACO model of personality structure and indigenous lexical personality dimensions in Italian,Dutch, and English

We correlated the scales of the HEXACO Personality Inventory (HEXACO-PI) with adjective scale markers of personality factors previously obtained in indigenous lexical studies of personality structure in the Italian, Dutch, and English languages. Self-ratings were obtained from samples of 327 Italian, 161 Dutch, and 214 English-speaking Canadian participants. Results showed that each of the six HEXACO variables—including Honesty–Humility—correlated strongly with its hypothesized six-factor adjective scale counterpart in all three languages. In each case, convergent correlations were substantially stronger than discriminant correlations. Because the HEXACO model was developed without prior knowledge of the indigenous Dutch and English lexical factors, the results suggest that the HEXACO model of personality structure can be extended to the personality lexicons of those languages.     

The HEXACO Model of Personality Structure and the Importance of the H Factor

We give a brief summary of recent research on the structure of personality characteristics, describing the six‐dimensional ‘HEXACO’ model that has emerged as the most accurate representation of that structure. We then discuss the importance of personality as a predictor of socially important criteria, describing a variety of examples involving the Honesty–Humility (H) factor. The H dimension, alone or in combination with other factors of the HEXACO model, is related inversely to a wide array of criteria, including criminal activity and other unethical behaviors as well as materialistic and power‐seeking tendencies.     

More than the Big Five: Egoism and the HEXACO model of personality

Egoism is a personality trait that is associated with self‐enriching and self‐centred behaviours. Research has suggested that egoism lies beyond the Big Five personality factors. Recently, the HEXACO model of personality has been proposed as an alternative to the Big Five model. In three studies, the relation between the HEXACO Personality Inventory and egoism, conceptualized using three different questionnaires (DPQ Egoism, SPI Egotism and the Egoism Scale), is investigated. In all three studies, the HEXACO Honesty–Humility factor scale was the most important predictor of egoism. Additionally, in two studies in which FFM measures were used, the HEXACO Personality Inventory explained more variance in egoism than did the FFPI (Study 2) and the NEO‐PI‐R (Study 3). Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The 5-Dimensional Personality Test (5DPT): relationships with two lexically based instruments and the validation of the absorption scale

Although intended to assess vulnerability factors associated with psychopathology, the 5-Dimensional Personality Test (5DPT) shows at least a superficial similarity to instruments that adhere to the lexical tradition in personality psychology. To investigate to which extent this similarity goes, this article compares the 5DPT with 2 lexically based measures, the NEO-Five Factor Inventory and the HEXACO-Personality Inventory-Revised. Moreover, as the NEO Openness to Experience construct demonstrates little relationship with maladaptive personality, whereas the 5DPT Absorption factor was hypothesized to underlie the emergence of positive schizotypic symptoms and related phenomena, the 5DPT was also correlated with the Schizotypic Syndrome Questionnaire (SSQ), the Creative Experiences Questionnaire, Thalbourne's Transliminality Scale, the Launay-Slade Hallucination Scale, and the OLIFE-Unusual Experiences scale. On examining the correlations between the various instruments, it was ascertained (a) that there is no need to extend the theory-informed 5DPT with a 6th dimension similar to the HEXACO factor Honesty-Humility, (b) that the 5DPT dimensions were found on average to share only a moderate amount of variance with the Five-factor model/Big Five factors, and (c) that the 5DPT Absorption scale turned out as anticipated to correlate with the positive symptom scales of the SSQ, as well as with the remaining criterion scales that measure similar constructs.     

Validity of observer ratings of the five-factor model of personality traits: a meta-analysis

Conclusions reached in previous research about the magnitude and nature of personality-performance linkages have been based almost exclusively on self-report measures of personality. The purpose of this study is to address this void in the literature by conducting a meta-analysis of the relationship between observer ratings of the five-factor model (FFM) personality traits and overall job performance. Our results show that the operational validities of FFM traits based on observer ratings are higher than those based on self-report ratings. In addition, the results show that when based on observer ratings, all FFM traits are significant predictors of overall performance. Further, observer ratings of FFM traits show meaningful incremental validity over self-reports of corresponding FFM traits in predicting overall performance, but the reverse is not true. We conclude that the validity of FFM traits in predicting overall performance is higher than previously believed, and our results underscore the importance of disentangling the validity of personality traits from the method of measurement of the traits.     

Dichotomous Thinking and Personality Traits: From the Viewpoints of the Big Five and HEXACO1,2

Dichotomous thinking is a feature of certain personality traits, such as the Dark Triad and Cluster B personality disorders, which commonly reflect a fast life history strategy. The Big Five and HEXACO personality models are useful for understanding the personality structure and individual differences in life history strategy. Our study aimed to shed light on the propensity for dichotomous thinking using the framework of the Big Five and HEXACO personality models. Participants (n = 229) completed the Dichotomous Thinking Inventory, the 60-item HEXACO Personality Inventory – Revised, and the Ten-Item Personality Inventory. We examined correlations between dichotomous thinking and each domain of the Big Five and HEXACO personality models, and then computed multiple correlations predicting total and dimensional scores on the propensity for dichotomous thinking with scores on the Big Five and HEXACO personality traits. Results indicated that dichotomous thinking tendency is characterized by the set of low Agreeableness and Honesty–Humility. This study suggests that dichotomous thinking has antagonistic characteristics and a linkage to the fast life history strategy.     

Predicting appraisals of romantic revenge: The roles of Honesty-Humility, Agreeableness, and vengefulness

This study examined whether personality factors are associated with people’s appraisals of the costs and benefits of romantic revenge. Our goal was to extend our understanding of variables that influence individuals’ decisions to get even with romantic partners. Undergraduates (N = 130) completed the HEXACO personality inventory, the Vengeance Scale, and questionnaires examining people’s beliefs about revenge in romantic relationships. Honesty-Humility predicted individuals’ judgments of revenge as more desirable when appraising its benefits and less undesirable when appraising its costs, whereas Agreeableness only predicted benefit appraisals. Furthermore, vengefulness predicted individuals’ scores on the benefits- and costs-appraisal indices controlling for Honesty-Humility and Agreeableness. These findings provide a first step towards determining whether certain people may be quicker than others to see the benefits of romantic revenge while minimizing its costs.     

The Shedler and Westen Assessment Procedure from the perspective of general personality structure

The Shedler and Westen Assessment Procedure (SWAP-200; J. Shedler & D. Westen, 2004) has received increasing support as a dimensional model of personality pathology. However, only 1 prior study has related empirically the SWAP-200 with any other measure of personality or personality disorder. The purpose of the current study was to determine whether the SWAP-200 personality disorder and personality dimension scales relate meaningfully to the domains and facets of the five-factor model (FFM; J. M. Digman, 1990) of general personality structure. Individuals (n = 94) with significant personality pathology were described on instruments of general personality and personality pathology. The results of the current study suggest that most of the SWAP-200 personality and personality disorder scales relate to the domains and facets of the FFM in a manner consistent with FFM theory and previous FFM personality disorder research. Inconsistent findings and limitations are discussed, along with suggestions for future research.