In class we will be discussing theories of personality and personality assessment. One of the theories we will cover is the Five-Factor Model of Personality (aka The Big Five) posited by Robert McCrae and Paul Costa.
Where do you fall along the Big Five dimensions? Take an online personality test here to find out! Should you choose to take the test for course credit for blog comments, please do the following:
- Take the personality test linked above.
- Explain each trait outlined in the Big Five.
- How did McCrae and Costa arrive at the 5 higher-order personality traits that make up the Big Five?
- What are some advantages/disadvantages of self-report inventories when assessing personality (Hint - use pp. 65-66 in your text).
- Provide your reaction to the results of your personality test. Do you think your results accurately describe you?
For even more fun, you can fill this out about your roommates, friends, family members, or significant others. :)
Openness to Experience/Intellect, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism are the traits outlined in the Big Five. Openness to Experience/Intellect tells high scorers that they are original, creative, curious, and complex and low scorers that they are conventional, down to earth, narrow interests, and uncreative. Conscientiousness tells high scorers that they are reliable, well-organized, self-disciplined, and careful and low scorers that they are disorganized, undependable, and negligent. Extraversion tells high scorers that they are sociable, friendly, fun loving, and talkative and low scorers that they are introverted, reserved, inhibited, and quiet. Agreeableness tells high scorers that they are good natured, sympathetic, forgiving, and courteous, and low scorers tend to be critical, rude, harsh, and callous. Neuroticism tells high scorers that they are nervous, high-strung, insecure, worrying and low scorers that they are calm, relaxed, secure, and hardy.
ReplyDeleteMcCrae and Costa wrote an article called "Four Ways Five Factors Are Basic," in which they explain four claims of reasoning and evidence of their Five Factors: "(a) longitudinal and cross-observer studies demonstrate that all five factors are enduring dispositions that are manifest in patterns of behavior; (b) traits related to each of the factors are found in a variety of personality systems and in the natural language of trait description; (c) the factors are found in different age, sex, race, and language groups, although they may be somewhat differently expressed in different cultures; and (d) evidence of heritability suggests that all have some biological basis."
Some disadvantages of this self-report inventory can be deliberate deception, unconsciousness of influence by social desirability or acceptability of statements, and trying to make one’s self look good. Some advantages, however, are that self-report inventories are more in-depth and detailed than a casual observation would be because it provides an exact comparison with other typically reported behaviors.
I think the personality test accurately describes me. I took the test in comparison to my friend Emily. I feel like the test didn’t quite accurately describe Emily as well as it did me, but put us up against each other in the correct proportions, if that makes sense. What I like about these tests is if you really focus and stay completely honest you can really come to terms with yourself or even learn about yourself, which I did do this time around.
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ReplyDeleteMy percentages for the Big Five Personality Test were as follows:
ReplyDeleteOpenness to Experience/Intellect: 41%
Conscientiousness: 83%
Extraversion: 79%
Agreeableness: 96%
Neuroticism: 7%
Overall, I agree with the percentages of the personality test. The only one that stumped me a little would be the openness to experience/intellect. The score is somewhat low compared to the others; however, the test said that if the score was low, you might just be down to earth. That part definitely describes me well, but I would also like to think I am open to new ideas and can see others’ perspectives. The rest of the scores seemed very accurate along with the explanations including organization, social, supportive, and calm. For me, openness to experience and intellect meant that I was down to earth. This is the only one that I somewhat disagree with, because I am also a very curious person. Conscientiousness means that is reliability verse disorganization. Extraversion and introversion are opposites in the comparison to one’s social life with others. Agreeableness was my highest percentage and meant I am “good-natured, courteous, and supportive.” Neuroticism refers to the way one handles stress and handles his or her worries.
McCrae and Costa arrived at the big five by using a combination of correlated traits for each personality category in the acronym OCEAN. A disadvantage of using the Big Five Personality test would be that sometimes it is hard to judge yourself. People often like to give themselves the benefit of the doubt, and seem to think everything is conditional or revolves around their circumstances. They may try to make themselves look better than what they actually are or take the test in regards to how they want to be instead of how they actually are. An advantage of this personality test would be that self-report tests are more detailed than a simple observation.
The Big 5 includes: neuroticism, extraversion, openness to exprience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. Neuroticism personality shows characterists of being worried, insecure, and self-pitying. Extraversion shows characterists of being socialble, fun-loving, and affectionate. Openness to experience has characterists as being imaginative, preference for variety, and independence. Agreeable shows characterists of being softhearted, trusting, and helpful. And lastly, conscientiousness shows characterists of being well organized, careful, and self-disciplined.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the textbook, "McCrae and Costa maintain that personality can be described adequately by measuring the five basic traits they've identified. Their bold claim has been supported in many studies by other researchers, and the five-factor model has become the dominant conception of personality structure in contemporary psychology" (John, Naumann, & Soto, 2008; McCrae, 2005). There are different advantages and disadvantages of self-report inventories. Some of the disadvantages are that the person taking the test may not be truthful or they may not know how to anwser the question. They may also not understand what the question is acting. An advantage is the it is quick and easy.
My results from talking the test showed that I scored low in the openness to experience. I was in the 1 percentile. I think this is true, however I don't believe I am that low. In the conscientiousness area I scored fairly high, I was in the 74 percentile. I believe I am organized, careful, and pretty reliable. In the extraversion section I scored pretty low, I was in the 27 percentile. I think that I am pretty shy at first if I don't know a person that well, but after I get to know the person I am more outgoing and open. In the agreeable section I scored was more towards the high end, I was in the 69 percentile. I do consider others feelings and I like to help others. I scored highest in the neuroticism section, I was in the 78 percentile. I believe I am a nervous and worried person. Overall, I think my results were pretty accurate compared to my personality.
There are five traits outlined in the Big Five personality test, which are Openness to experience/intellect, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism. Openness to experience/intellect is the wiliness to new ideas. Conscientiousness is the organization and dependency of a person. Extraversion is whether a person is social or reserved. Agreeableness is the way a person treats others. Neuroticism is how a person feels whether they are anxious or relaxed.
ReplyDeleteMcCare and Coasta found that the 5 aspects of a person’s personality are referred to the OCEAN model. These five major dimensions exempt major components to a person’s character.
Advantages of the self-report would be that a person can express how they feel about themselves. Being able to express your own feelings on the report gives an honest opinion on who you think you are as a person. Disadvantages of self-report would be that a person may not be fully honest with some of the questions.
I found my personality test very accurate. For my openness of experience/intellect I find myself more drawn back from new experiences. For conscientiousness it expresses that I am well-organized and reliable, which I believe is true. For extraversion the results say that I am both social and reserved. This is true depending on the situation. If I am confident in myself in a situation I am very social, yet, if I am unsure about a topic or area I find myself reserved. For agreeableness it expresses that I consider feelings of others. I agree with this because I am always conscious of how my words or actions will affect others. Lastly, for neuroticism, it says that I become anxious and nervous. Like I said earlier, it just depends on the situation.
The Big Five personality traits are openness to experience (inventive/curious vs. consistent/cautious), conscientiousness (efficient/organized vs. easy-going/careless), extraversion (outgoing/energetic vs. solitary/reserved), agreeableness (friendly/compassionate vs. cold/unkind) , and neuroticism (sensitive/nervous vs. secure/confident).
ReplyDeleteMcCrae and Costa arrived at the conclusion of the Big Five personality traits by using a factor analysis. They argued that the majority of personality traits derive from these five higher-order traits.
Some advantages of self-report inventories are that you know yourself better than others and can report the truth without feeling embarrassed. Some disadvantages of self-report inventories are deliberate deception and the want to feel normal and misreport.
My results for the Big Five Personality Test were:
- Openness to experience/intellect (84 percentile)
- Conscientiousness (89 percentile)
- Extraversion (22 percentile)
- Agreeableness (90 percentile)
- Neuroticism (11 percentile)
These results are very true. I am very open to experience, conscientious, and agreeable. I also keep to myself often and stay calm in stressful situations.
Openness to experience/intellect -59
ReplyDeleteConscientiousness-92
extraversion-59
agreeableness-93
neuroticism-37
There are five traits to the Big Five which are, openness to experience/intellect, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. Openness to experience shows that people are curious vs those who are cautious. Conscientiousness reflects people being well organized and efficient workers. Extraversion shows people being energetic and having an outgoing personality. Agreeableness reflects the person being compassionate towards others and being friendly. Finally neuroticism reflects that a person is nervous and get anxious.
McCrae and Costa determined the Big Five traits after many research was done. They used the OCEAN to help determine the different traits. Then the published Four ways Five factors are basic. This helped determine the traits, factors, evidence, and all collected over time. The advantages of the self-report is that people know themselves better. The disadvantage is that people are not always honest.
My results are that I am neither introverted nor extroverted. I find this to be true. I am a very outgoing, well organized, kind-hearted, and supportive person. I think that when I am stressed my personality does depend on the situation.
The five traits are:
ReplyDelete1.Openness to Experience/Intellect- People who are original and creative versus those who are conventional and uncreative.
2.Conscientiousness-People who are dependable and organized versus those who are undependable and disorganized.
3.Extraversion- People who are extraverts versus introverts.
4.Agreeableness-People who are sympathetic and courteous versus those who are critical and rude.
5.Neuroticism- People who are nervous and anxious versus those who are calm and relaxed.
McCrae and Costa came up with the Big Five using Factor Analysis. An advantage of using the Self-Report Inventories is that it is more thorough than a casual observation because you are able to compare your behavior to other respondents for a similar circumstance. A disadvantage is deception on the test-taker's part. People are not necessarily honest.
My results of the test are : Openness to Experience:47, Conscientiousness:83, Extraversion:22, Agreeableness:63, Neuroticism:60. I think some of my results describe me. I agree with all but Extraversion and Neuroticism. I felt that my Extraversion score was really low. I am more reserved in situations but I do not consider myself an introvert to such a great extent. Also, I felt Neuroticism was high. I do worry and can be anxious in some situations but I don't consider my levels of nervousness to be so high.
The five traits included in the Big Five are extraversion (level to which one is outgoing in nature; a social butterfly), neuroticism (emotional instability, nervous, anxious), openness to experience (imagination, creativity), agreeableness (trusting and cooperative), and conscientiousness (reliability, organization).
ReplyDeleteRobert McCrae and Paul Costa arrived at the Big Five through a series of questionnaires and models designed to build relationships and find correlations between many different traits and characteristics, this model showed that personalities can be adequately described through only five broad personality traits.
Advantages of self reporting are that no one knows you as well as you do and it’s a simple way to gain knowledge about a person, however, self reporting can be biased by the desire for social acceptance or misinformation.
I believe the results of my test were accurate; I was found to be more on the introverted side, very organized, accepting and agreeable as well as relaxed. I think this is accurate because I do enjoy alone time as much as social time, and I only become stressed and nervous when I feel unprepared or unorganized (therefore I make sure those things don’t happen).
Openness to experience/intellect means that high scores tend to be original, creative, curious, and complex. A low score means the person tends to be conventional, down to earth, narrow interests, and uncreative. Another trait is conscientiousness and high scorers tend to be reliable, well-organized, self-disciplines, and careful. Low scores are more disorganized, undependable, and negligent. The thirst trait is extraversion and high scorers are more sociable, friendly, fun loving, and talkative. Low scorers for this trait are more introverted, reserved, inhibited, and quiet. The fourth trait is agreeableness and higher scorers are good natured, sympathetic, forgiving, and courteous. Lower scorers are more critical, rude, harsh, and callous. The final trait is neuroticism and high scorers are more nervous, high-strung, insecure, and worrisome. Low scorers tend to be more calm, relaxed, secure, and hardy.
ReplyDeleteMcCrae and Costa came up with the five traits because they are the most common traits to explain someone’s personality, regardless of language or culture. Being on one end or the other of any one of these traits is a drastic change.
Self-report inventories are not always accurate to describe your personality because the test taker may use responses how they want to be, not how they actually are. Without realizing it, the test taker will respond to questions in a way to make them look good. Some answers also depend on relating yourself to others but people are around different types of people and their answers would change from that as well. It is said that personality test results should always be considered as suggestive rather than definitive.
In the openness to experience/intellect trait, I scored in the 12 percentile which means I prefer traditional and familiar experiences. In the conscientious trait, I scored in the 79 percentile which means I am well-organized and reliable. I scored in the 59 percentile for extraversion, which means I am neither more social nor more reserved. In the fourth trait, agreeableness, I scored in the 22 percentile which means I find it easy to express irritation with others. My highest percentile was in the neuroticism trait at a 93 percent. This means I am a generally anxious person and tend to worry about things. For the most part, I believe that these results explain me pretty well. The neuroticism one is accurate, but I think the openness to experience/intellect trait is a little low.
The traits spelled out in the Big Five spell out OCEAN. The O describes people's Opennes to Experience/Intellect. High scorers tend to be original, creative, curious, complex; Low scorers tend to be conventional, down to earth, narrow interests, uncreative. The C describes peoples Conscientiousness. High scorers tend to be reliable, well-organized, self-disciplined, careful; Low scorers tend to be disorganized, undependable, negligent. E describes Extraversion. High scorers tend to be sociable, friendly, fun loving, talkative; Low scorers tend to be introverted, reserved, inhibited, quiet. A describes Agreableness. High scorers tend to be good natured, sympathetic, forgiving, courteous; Low scorers tend to be critical, rude, harsh, callous. N describes Neuroticism. High scorers tend to be nervous, high-strung, insecure, worrying; Low scorers tend to be calm, relaxed, secure, hardy.
ReplyDeleteMcCrae and Costa arrived at the 5-higher personality by asking plenty of questions to a massive amount of people. The personality catergories were derived from the data that they got. Advantages of self-report inventories is that they help an individual know what their strenghts and qualities are and helps them find a suitable position for them. The disadvantage, however, is that people are not always honest in the way they represent themselves in tests such as this.
My scores on the Big-Five Test were
Opennes to Experience/Intellect-47
Conscientiousness-69
Extraversion-48
Agreeableness-93
Neuroticism-14
To be honest I wouldn't say that I completely agree with what I scored on the test. For example to of my scores conflict with each other. My opennes to experience/intellect score and also my extraversion score.
Hi John! I would have to agree that your Big-Five Personality test was not completely accurate. You are one of the nicest and most outgoing people that I have ever met. You are involved in many things and always have a smile on your face--truly an inspiration. "If only there were more Johns in the world. Everything would be a lot brighter."
DeleteOpenness to Experience/Intellect
ReplyDelete- How adventurous and creative your spirit is
Conscientiousness
- How organized you are with your life
Extraversion
- How outgoing and sociable you can be
Agreeableness
- How considerate you are of others, and how well you get along with others
Neuroticism
- How relax/tense you are on an average basis
In the 1970’s, Costa and McCrae conducted a study of over ten thousand people and analyzed the data they received using factor analysis. Factorial analysis is a statistical method that describes the variability between correlated variables in terms of a number of unobserved variables (called factors). In other words, it may be possible that variations between a few observed variables may be due to a number of unobserved/latent/hidden variables. Through these tests, the five broad dimensions were found (not created).
There was a lot of room for error on this test; some questions were vague or could have multiple meanings, some of the questions were hard to answer, and of course there was (probably) a little bias from me. The test foresees that last source of error, and recommends testing someone close to you concurrently as you take it. I rated my best friend and roommate, and it did help keep me down to earth on several questions by allowing me to compare my behavior with his. I tried to answer as honestly as possible, because I wanted an honest as possible result. However, I would bet that if I were to take this test again my results would be slightly different because it is based upon opinion (my own), which can vary day to day or even minute to minute. However, I thought my results were fairly accurate:
O: This is the only one I truly had troubles with because I scored in the 30th percentile. This describes me as someone convential, uncreative, and with narrow interests. I love to: play and listen to music, practice photography, experience the outdoors in many ways, and I consider myself an above-average problem solver. Not only that, but I still haven’t settled on a career because I am interested in so many different options. None of these traits would support that I am uncreative or have narrow interests.
C: I scored in the 10th percentile here, and I completely agree. I tend to be lazy and make promises I can’t keep. I am not completely disorganized, but organization is most definitely not a strength of mine.
E: Scored in the 86th percentile and I agree with this one as well. The website describes a high percentile person in this dimension to be: sociable, friendly, fun-loving, and talkative. I think I fit all of those descriptions.
A: 74th percentile, which I agree with because I am a positive and good natured guy. That’s the type of person I strive to be; accepting.
N: 5th percentile, the test says that this means that I can remain calm in tense situations. I don’t know whether or not that’s true, but I think I could keep a level head in most situations. I am definitely calm and relaxed, almost to a fault, which is probably why I scored so low.
The Big 5 are 5 general dimensions of personality. The big 5 include neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. The characteristics of neuroticism are people who tend to be anxious and hostile. This is known as negative emotionality. These kind of people tend to be more impulsive and emotionally unstable. The next factor in the big 5 is extraversion. Someone who possesses this factor is outgoing and sociable. They are very friendly and tend to be happier than others which is known as positive emotionality. The third factor is openness to experience. This factor represents people who are flexible and curious and who are very tolerant of new issues. The fourth factor is agreeableness. This factor is true of those who are sympathetic and trusting. They are very straightforward and usually approach conflict with the idea of resolution. The fifth factor in the big 5 is conscientiousness. The factor describes people who are disciplined and well organized and like to be very disciplined in the work place. Robert McCrae and Paul Costa were the creators of the big 5. They arrived at these traits by asking thousands of people hundreds of questions and then analyzing the data that they gathered. The dimensions that they found were not pre planned but just happened to emerge from the data. The two asked questions that revolved around people's personalities, lifestyles, values, and attitudes. One thing that they found was that personality does change and is not set in stone. The self reporting inventories while assessing one's personality has some advantages and disadvantages. The good thing is that nobody knows you better than you so who better to evaluate how you are than yourself. These self surveys are also more thorough and precise than the casual observations. The downside is that the information obtained is only as accurate as how the person answers the test. A lot of times people tend to answer questions based on what is socially acceptable and what will make them look good instead of what is really accurate.
ReplyDeleteI took the personality test and was not surprised at all by my results. The test told me that I tend to consider the feelings of others, that i am anxious and worry about things, and that I am neither organized nor disorganized. I found that to be extremely true of my personality. I could definitely see how the results could be biased based on social acceptance but I tried to always answer as honest as I could or as close to what I thought represented me the best.
The Big 5 model of personality includes extraversion, neuroticism, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. People who score high in extraversion are sociable, outgoing, friendly, and also tend to have a more positive outlook on life. If somebody scores high in neuroticism, they are usually anxious, hostile, and may overreact when faced with large amounts of stress. If a person is open to experience, they may be curious, have a vivid imagination, and tend to exhibit less prejudice against minorities than other people might. People who score high in agreeableness are usually sympathetic, trusting, cooperative, and empathetic. If a person is conscientious, they tend to be disciplined, dependable, and well organized. Robert McCrae and Paul Costa used factor analysis to determine that the vast majority of personality traits come from these five traits.
ReplyDeleteThe Big 5 Personality test that I took online is an example of a self report inventory. These inventories ask people to answer a series of questions about their behavior. An advantage of a self report inventory is that it asks you about your usual behavior and compares your response to the responses of others, making this inventory more accurate than an observation would be. A disadvantage of self report inventories is that the information given is a result of the person answering the questions. If the person answering the questions isn't truthful, then the results will be inaccurate. I believe that my results were pretty accurate. I scored the highest in the areas of agreeableness as well as conscientiousness. I usually think of myself as a sympathetic and trusting, as well as dependable and well organized person, so I do think that the test is pretty accurate!
The Big 5 model of personality includes extraversion, neuroticism, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. People who score high in extraversion are sociable, outgoing, friendly, and also tend to have a more positive outlook on life. If somebody scores high in neuroticism, they are usually anxious, hostile, and may overreact when faced with large amounts of stress. If a person is open to experience, they may be curious, have a vivid imagination, and tend to exhibit less prejudice against minorities than other people might. People who score high in agreeableness are usually sympathetic, trusting, cooperative, and empathetic. If a person is conscientious, they tend to be disciplined, dependable, and well organized. Robert McCrae and Paul Costa used factor analysis to determine that the vast majority of personality traits come from these five traits.
ReplyDeleteThe Big 5 Personality test that I took online is an example of a self report inventory. These inventories ask people to answer a series of questions about their behavior. An advantage of a self report inventory is that it asks you about your usual behavior and compares your response to the responses of others, making this inventory more accurate than an observation would be. A disadvantage of self report inventories is that the information given is a result of the person answering the questions. If the person answering the questions isn't truthful, then the results will be inaccurate. I believe that my results were pretty accurate. I scored the highest in the areas of agreeableness as well as conscientiousness. I usually think of myself as a sympathetic and trusting, as well as dependable and well organized person, so I do think that the test is pretty accurate!
Openness to Experience and Intellect is the first of the five traits. This is a trait which can tell an artistic person from someone who is more reserved and down to earth and seem to just go with the flow of things. The next of the five traits is contentiousness. This is a trait of organization and neatness, showing self discipline and dependability. The third is extraversion. This trait is one that sets apart those who are outgoing and talkative in any environment from those who stand on the sidelines and lead a silent army. It separates the go getters from people who enjoy having their quiet time and being on their own for the majority of the time. Fourth is agreeableness. Agreeableness is being able to sympathize with others and listen to them in a forgiving and courteous manner rather than being rude and making snarky comments and criticizing them. Last but not least is neuroticism. This can make the difference between someone who is always worrying, insecure and nervous, or someone who is very calm and relaxed. McCrae and Costa arrived at these five traits by asking a large multitude of questions to various crowds and receiving different correlational answers. They used factor analysis to help with these conclusions. The advantages of this type of questionnaire is that it can really help a person see themselves from a different view. A disadvantage though would be that it is possible for people to lie or be unsure of their own answers. I was not surprised at all by my answers because I spend a lot of time thinking and self evaluating as I grow up and continue trying to figure out what I'd like to make of myself.
ReplyDeleteThe big 5 include neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. Neuroticism is anxiety, moodiness, worry, envy and jealousy. Extraversion is the act, state, or habit of being predominantly concerned with and obtaining gratification from what is outside the self. Openness to experience is active imagination, aesthetic sensitivity, attentiveness to inner feelings, preference for variety, and intellectual curiosity. Conscientious is being thorough, careful, or vigilant; it implies a desire to do a task well. Agreeableness is a personality trait manifesting itself in individual behavioral characteristics that are perceived as kind, sympathetic, cooperative, warm and considerate.Robert McCrae and Paul Costa were the creators of the big 5 personality traits. Costa and McCrae conducted a study of over ten thousand people and analyzed the data they received using factoral analysis. The personality catergories were inferred from the data. Advantages of self report would be that its anonymous which helps prevent bias. Disadvantes of self report include that people can be dishonest and its hard to get a large, accurately representive sample size.
ReplyDeleteMy scores on the personality test
Openness to Experience/Intellect- 2%
Conscientiousness-74%
Extraversion- 4%
Agreeableness- 27%
Neuroticism-14%
This tells me I'm very introverted, prefer familiar situations, am well organized and reliable, find it easy to express irritation with others, and remain calm, even in tense situations. This sounds about right, except I only tell if I'm upset with people I'm close with.