A PSYCHOPHYSICAL APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF PERSONALITY TRAITS

A total of 366 school children were rated by 12 teachers in respect of 11 personality traits. In a laboratory experiment, a group of 10 teachers estimated the degree of perceived similarity between the same traits. In a second laboratory experiment, estimates were obtained of the frequency with which the traits occur together. It was found that similarity of traits was proportional to the squared coefficient of inter-trait ccmelation. A similar relation was demonstrated for estimated co-frequency and inter-trait corre- lation. Furthermore, factor analyses of the three sets of data revealed essentially the same three factors of Intelligence, Sociability and Dependability. The results are discussed within a psychophysical framework regarding the subjects rated and traits estimated as stimuli in a person-perception experiment.