THE TRAIT THEORIES
Personality traits, or characteristics that predict their behavior consistently across a wide range of situations. The predominant trait theory, the Big Five theory, finds that these traits are extraversion/introversion, neuroticism, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. The trait theorists believe that there are certain core personality characteristics that, once developed in each of us, remain relatively stable throughout our life and thus comprise our personality. A number of different trait theories have been proposed, each of which used a somewhat different set of traits, but the current predominant trait theory is called the Big Five theory.
The Big Five theory is a theory which suggests that …show more content…
a. Low openness people in this trait tend to be conventional, down-to-earth, traditional, practical, conforming and more likely to choose something familiar over something new and untried.
b. People high in openness to experience welcome change and see it as a challenge.
c. Openness to experience is related to coping strategies. A large study of people who had experienced stressful events noted that subjects high in openness to experience used humor as a coping mechanism, whereas subjects low in the trait tended to rely on faith (in God or in others) (mccrae & Costa, 1986).
4. Conscientiousness, is a personality trait characterized by dependability, efficiency, persistence, and a strong sense of order. These are the people who can be relied on no matter what.
a. Low conscientiousness people in the trait tend to be disorganized, irresponsible, indecisive, spontaneous, unreliable and careless, characteristics that bode ill in the area of human relations.
b. Conscientiousness people may account for the missing link between aptitude scores and academic performance. Meaning, conscientiousness individuals may play a role in school achievement by accounting for the “will to achieve” (Digman, 1989) considered integral to …show more content…
Collectivists, by contrast, would place the needs of the group above their own, resulting at times in behavior that is less characteristic of their self-concept and more consistent with the demands of the situation.
Across many cultures, extraversion, neuroticism, and openness tend to decline as a person grows from adolescence into adulthood; during the same period, agreeableness and conscientiousness increase. After about the age of 30, traits tend to remain relatively stable.
Understanding these traits and how they reveal themselves in others’ behavior can be very helpful to us in our relations with others. Often, when we are first getting to know a person, his behavior and speech provides indications of how agreeable or open he is, how conscientious, or how neurotic. Similarly, we often get a feel for whether a person is frequently drawn to social situations, or if she often prefers solitude or introspection. Accurate observations can help us determine if a person is similar to us or not, and also make better predictions about how an individual might react to a certain situation. In the workplace, this type of information can be invaluable in decisions regarding hiring and assignment of job
Personality traits, or characteristics that predict their behavior consistently across a wide range of situations. The predominant trait theory, the Big Five theory, finds that these traits are extraversion/introversion, neuroticism, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. The trait theorists believe that there are certain core personality characteristics that, once developed in each of us, remain relatively stable throughout our life and thus comprise our personality. A number of different trait theories have been proposed, each of which used a somewhat different set of traits, but the current predominant trait theory is called the Big Five theory.
The Big Five theory is a theory which suggests that …show more content…
a. Low openness people in this trait tend to be conventional, down-to-earth, traditional, practical, conforming and more likely to choose something familiar over something new and untried.
b. People high in openness to experience welcome change and see it as a challenge.
c. Openness to experience is related to coping strategies. A large study of people who had experienced stressful events noted that subjects high in openness to experience used humor as a coping mechanism, whereas subjects low in the trait tended to rely on faith (in God or in others) (mccrae & Costa, 1986).
4. Conscientiousness, is a personality trait characterized by dependability, efficiency, persistence, and a strong sense of order. These are the people who can be relied on no matter what.
a. Low conscientiousness people in the trait tend to be disorganized, irresponsible, indecisive, spontaneous, unreliable and careless, characteristics that bode ill in the area of human relations.
b. Conscientiousness people may account for the missing link between aptitude scores and academic performance. Meaning, conscientiousness individuals may play a role in school achievement by accounting for the “will to achieve” (Digman, 1989) considered integral to …show more content…
Collectivists, by contrast, would place the needs of the group above their own, resulting at times in behavior that is less characteristic of their self-concept and more consistent with the demands of the situation.
Across many cultures, extraversion, neuroticism, and openness tend to decline as a person grows from adolescence into adulthood; during the same period, agreeableness and conscientiousness increase. After about the age of 30, traits tend to remain relatively stable.
Understanding these traits and how they reveal themselves in others’ behavior can be very helpful to us in our relations with others. Often, when we are first getting to know a person, his behavior and speech provides indications of how agreeable or open he is, how conscientious, or how neurotic. Similarly, we often get a feel for whether a person is frequently drawn to social situations, or if she often prefers solitude or introspection. Accurate observations can help us determine if a person is similar to us or not, and also make better predictions about how an individual might react to a certain situation. In the workplace, this type of information can be invaluable in decisions regarding hiring and assignment of job