Bridging the idiographic-nomothetic divide in ratings of self and others on the Big Five

Recent discussions of the idiographic-nomothetic debate were initially reviewed in this paper. Three important issues stemming from this debate were then expounded within the context of Personal Construct Theory and evaluated in an empirical study. Participants were required to rate themselves and people they knew on 25 marker items for the Big Five personality traits and on 12 of their own unique personal constructs. The ratings were analyzed using a number of novel statistical methods, including a simple type of confirmatory factor analysis and an informative graphing procedure. Results indicated that at least half of the statistical information derived from the idiographic, personal construct ratings was unique when compared to ratings on the nomothetic Big Five items. The implications of these methods and results for person-centered and trait conceptualizations of personality were discussed.     

Genetic and environmental structure of adjectives describing the domains of the Big Five Model of personality: A nationwide US twin study

We applied multivariate models specifying genetic and environmental influences on adjectives describing each of the five personality domains specified in the Big Five Model of personality (BFM; Extraversion, Neuroticism, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Openness). We selected the specific models to partition the observed covariance among the adjectives describing each domain into genetic and environmental components in order to assess the etiologic basis for each domain's phenotypic coherence. The sample on which our analyses were based was part of the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS). It consisted of 315 monozygotic and 275 same-sex dizygotic twin pairs. Results revealed both common and specific genetic and environmental influences for each domain, suggesting that all of the domains are etiologically complex. Models specifying the domains as latent phenotypic constructs fit more poorly than models suggesting more complex structures for all domains except Extraversion and Neuroticism. These results raise questions about the BFM as a coherent model of genetic and environmental influences on personality or, alternatively, about the etiological unity of latent phenotypic personality trait constructs beyond Extraversion and Neuroticism.     

Separating method factors and higher order traits of the Big Five: a meta-analytic multitrait-multimethod approach

Though most personality researchers now recognize that ratings of the Big Five are not orthogonal, the field has been divided about whether these trait intercorrelations are substantive (i.e., driven by higher order factors) or artifactual (i.e., driven by correlated measurement error). We used a meta-analytic multitrait-multirater study to estimate trait correlations after common method variance was controlled. Our results indicated that common method variance substantially inflates trait correlations, and, once controlled, correlations among the Big Five became relatively modest. We then evaluated whether two different theories of higher order factors could account for the pattern of Big Five trait correlations. Our results did not support Rushton and colleagues' (Rushton & Irwing, 2008; Rushton et al., 2009) proposed general factor of personality, but Digman's (1997) α and β metatraits (relabeled by DeYoung, Peterson, and Higgins (2002) as Stability and Plasticity, respectively) produced viable fit. However, our models showed considerable overlap between Stability and Emotional Stability and between Plasticity and Extraversion, raising the question of whether these metatraits are redundant with their dominant Big Five traits. This pattern of findings was robust when we included only studies whose observers were intimately acquainted with targets. Our results underscore the importance of using a multirater approach to studying personality and the need to separate the causes and outcomes of higher order metatraits from those of the Big Five. We discussed the implications of these findings for the array of research fields in which personality is studied.     

西方"大五"人格结构模型的建立和适用性分析

本文旨在对西方“大五”人格结构模型的形成过程及其适用性进行系统的分析。“大五”模型是依据“词汇学假设”,通过对英文人格特质形容词的分析建立起来的,有着明显的西方文化特点。跨文化比较的结果中支持“大五”模型的研究大多使用“强制的一致性”策略,而“衍生的一致性”策略往往得出与“大五”不同的结论。对中国人人格结构的研究也得到了不同于“大五”的“大七”模型,预示了“大五”模型不适合中国人的人格特点。     

Friend or Foe? Differential Use of the Self‐Based Heuristic as a Function of Relationship Satisfaction

ABSTRACT We report two studies investigating whether relationship satisfaction differentially influences the use of the "self-based heuristic" (SBH) or the degree to which an individual's own characteristics contribute to ratings of another's personality. Individuals rated themselves, a friend, and a person with whom they have experienced significant conflict (a "foe"); ratings were made on measures of the Big Five and trait affectivity. Replicating previous research, judges made greater use of the SBH when rating trait affectivity than when rating the Big Five. In addition, individuals were more likely to utilize the SBH when rating friends than when rating foes. Further, relationship satisfaction made significant independent contributions in accounting for the variance in trait ratings of others. These findings extend our understanding of the mechanisms involved with person perception beyond observable trait-related information.     

Anger and hostility from the perspective of the Big Five personality model

Sanz, J., García‐Vera, M. P. & Magán, I. (2010). Anger and hostility from the perspective of the Big Five personality model. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 51, 262–270. This study was aimed at examining the relationships of the personality dimensions of the five‐factor model or Big Five with trait anger and with two specific traits of hostility (mistrust and confrontational attitude), and identifying the similarities and differences between trait anger and hostility in the framework of the Big Five. In a sample of 353 male and female adults, the Big Five explained a significant percentage of individual differences in trait anger and hostility after controlling the effects due to the relationship between both constructs and content overlapping across scales. In addition, trait anger was primarily associated with neuroticism, whereas mistrust and confrontational attitude were principally related to low agreeableness. These findings are discussed in the context of the anger‐hostility‐aggression syndrome and the capability of the Big Five for organizing and clarifying related personality constructs.     

SELF-MONITORING AS A MODERATOR OF THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN PERSONALITY TRAITS AND PERFORMANCE

This study examined the hypothesis that self-monitoring moderates the relationship between Big Five personality traits and interpersonal performance. The findings from a sample of 102 employed Executive MBA students reveal that when self-monitoring was high the relationships between 3 of the Big Five personality traits (Extraversion, Emotional Stability, and Openness to Experience) and supervisory ratings of interpersonal performance were attenuated. These effects were replicated using peer ratings of interpersonal performance for Extraversion and Emotional Stability but not for Openness to Experience. Further, as expected, self-monitoring did not moderate the relationships between personality traits and supervisory or peer ratings of task performance. Implications for future research in the area of personality and other motivational theories are discussed.     

Probing the Big Five in Adolescence: Personality and Adjustment during a Developmental Transition

The present study probed the links among Big Five personality differences, self-reported personality differences, and adjustment to school among young adolescents. We used a multimethod converging analysis, with three sources of data: (a) adolescent self-report on standardized personality inventories; (b) classroom teacher trait ratings and evaluations of adjustment; and (c) school guidance counselor evaluations of adjustment. Evaluations of adolescent adjustment were systematically related to Big Five personality differences, as assessed by both classroom teachers' and school counselors' ratings. For classroom teachers, adjustment was closely related to evaluations on the Big Five dimension of Conscientiousness. Adolescent self-report on several standardized measures was not related to adult evaluation of school adjustment. We suggest that the five-factor model may be a useful tool for probing adjustment during the transition to adolescence.     

A hierarchical investigation of personality and behavior: Examining Neo-Socioanalytic models of health-related outcomes

Based on proposed hierarchical relations derived from the Neo-Socioanalytic Theory of personality [Roberts, B. W., & Wood, D. (2006). Personality development in the context of the Neo-Socioanalytic Model of personality. In D. K. Mroczek & T. D. Little (Eds.), Handbook of personality development (pp. 11–39). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers], the present study examined the relationships between trait and motivation constructs and health-related outcomes. Participants (N = 201) completed a Big Five measure of personality traits, parallel exercise and diet behavioral identity trait measures, measures of personal values, exercise and diet-related personal strivings, and exercise and diet self-reports. Participants also completed a physical activity assessment and were weighed on a calibrated electronic scale from which body fat percentage could be determined. It was expected that contextualized trait and motivation constructs would mediate the relations between broad trait and motivation constructs and the health-related outcomes. The patterns of relations across trait and motivation constructs also were explored. The trait domain exhibited the expected pattern of hierarchical relations, but the motivation domain showed a more complex pattern of relations. The results are discussed in relation to a hierarchical model of personality and behavior that brings together trait and motivation constructs at multiple levels of analysis.     

Culture and the behavioural manifestations of traits: an application of the Act Frequency Approach

The behavioural manifestations of Big Five traits were compared across cultures using the Act Frequency Approach. American (n = 176) and Filipino (n = 195) students completed a Big Five measure and act frequency ratings for behaviours performed during the past month. Acts for specific traits cohered to an equivalent degree across cultures. In both cultures, the structure of act composites resembled the Big Five and the strength of trait‐behaviour relationships was very similar. Many acts were multidimensional and analyses revealed cultural commonalities and differences in the relevance and prevalence of acts for the Big Five traits. The results were more consistent with trait than cultural psychology perspectives, because traits predicted behaviour equally well, on average, in the two cultures. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Integration of the big five and circumplex approaches to trait structure.

To integrate the 5-dimensional simple-structure and circumplex models of personality, the Abridged Big Five Dimensional Circumplex (AB5C) taxonomy of personality traits was developed, consisting of the 10 circumplexes that can be formed by pitting each of the Big Five factors against one another. The model maps facets of the Big Five dimensions as blends of 2 factors. An application to data consisting of 636 self-ratings and peer ratings on 540 personality trait adjectives yielded 34 well-defined facets out of a possible 45. The AB5C solution is compared with simple-structure and lower dimensional circumplex solutions, and its integrative and corrective potential are discussed, as well as its limitations.     

Asymmetry in judgments of personality: others are less differentiated than the self

Previous evidence suggests that judges rely more heavily on implicit personality theories when they rate relatively unfamiliar others. One further implication of this evidence is that correlations among traits should be stronger in other ratings than in self-ratings, particularly when (a) judges lack trait relevant information and/or (b) motivational accuracy is low. We tested these predictions by comparing self- versus other ratings on the Big Five in two studies. Study 1 used previously published data to demonstrate clear self/peer differences in the average relations between Big Five dimensions (excluding Extraversion). Study 2 was based on self- versus other ratings in 12 samples. Overall, the intercorrelations among Big Five traits (excluding Extraversion) tended to be significantly stronger in peer ratings than in self-ratings. The most consistent effect involved the relation between Neuroticism and Agreeableness (overall r=-.43 and -.29 in the peer ratings and self-ratings, respectively). In addition, as expected, the degree of relation among traits varied depending upon the type of target being rated (i.e., spouse vs. dating partner vs. friend vs. stranger). Implications of these findings are discussed.     

Fakability of Implicit and Explicit Measures of the Big Five: Research findings from organizational settings

This study investigates the extent to which response distortion occur when implicit measures of personality traits are used in applied settings. Two groups composed of 58 security guards and 45 semiskilled workers, respectively, completed five Implicit Association Tests (IATs) for assessing the Big Five personality traits as a part of a personnel assessment program. They additionally completed a self‐report measure of the same personality dimensions. Scores on the Big Five IATs and self‐ratings of personality were obtained also by 52 volunteers who responded anonymously for research purposes. Results showed that participants under evaluative testing conditions scored significantly higher than volunteers on explicit measures of agreeableness, conscientiousness, and emotional stability. On the contrary, no significant differences were found in the Big Five IATs. Practical implications of findings and future research directions are discussed.     

On the temporal stability of personality: evidence for differential stability and the role of life experiences

The authors investigated the stability of personality and trait affect in young adults. In Studies 1 and 2, young adults were retested on a Big Five personality measure and a trait affect inventory over a 2.5-year and a 2-month period, respectively. Results from Study 1 point to positive mean-level changes; participants scored higher on Extraversion, Openness, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness at Time 2. Affectively, participants experienced less negative affect and more positive affect at Time 2. Results from both retests provide clear evidence of differential stability. Affective traits were consistently less stable than the Big Five. Other analyses suggest that life events influence the stability of affective traits more than the Big Five.     

Investigating intellect from a trait activation perspective: Identification of situational moderators for the correlation with work-related criteria

We applied trait activation theory to investigate the situational properties that moderate the correlation of intellect, a sub-dimension of the Big Five factor openness to experience, with work-related criteria. We collected data from a sample of 185 employees from diverse organizations and positions. Results from moderated hierarchical regression analyses revealed that perceived situational properties at the task level moderated the correlation between intellect and job performance. Additionally, correlations between intellect and organizational commitment were moderated at task and organizational levels. This study shows how trait activation theory can be utilized to investigate the situational properties moderating the correlation of personality variables with external criteria. Implications for applied purposes are discussed.     

The location of trait emotional intelligence in personality factor space

The construct of trait emotional intelligence (trait EI or trait emotional self‐efficacy) provides a comprehensive operationalization of emotion‐related self‐perceptions and dispositions. In the first part of the present study (N = 274, 92 males), we performed two joint factor analyses to determine the location of trait EI in Eysenckian and Big Five factor space. The results showed that trait EI is a compound personality construct located at the lower levels of the two taxonomies. In the second part of the study, we performed six two‐step hierarchical regressions to investigate the incremental validity of trait EI in predicting, over and above the Giant Three and Big Five personality dimensions, six distinct criteria (life satisfaction, rumination, two adaptive and two maladaptive coping styles). Trait EI incrementally predicted four criteria over the Giant Three and five criteria over the Big Five. The discussion addresses common questions about the operationalization of emotional intelligence as a personality trait.     

Body image and personality: Associations between the Big Five Personality Factors,actual‐ideal weight discrepancy,and body appreciation

Studies have suggested associations between personality dimensions and body image constructs, but these have not been conclusively established. In two studies, we examined direct associations between the Big Five dimensions and two body image constructs, actual‐ideal weight discrepancy and body appreciation. In Study 1, 950 women completed measures of both body image constructs and a brief measure of the Big Five dimensions. In Study 2, 339 women completed measures of the body image constructs and a more reliable measure of the Big Five. Both studies showed that Neuroticism was significantly associated with actual‐ideal weight discrepancy (positively) and body appreciation (negatively) once the effects of body mass index and social status had been accounted for. These results are consistent with the suggestion that Neuroticism is a trait of public health significance requiring attention by body image scholars.