Personality Traits

Introduction

Personality traits are distinguishing qualities or characteristics that are the embodiment of an individual’s. They are your habitual patterns of behavior, temperament and emotion. Skills, on the other hand, are the learned capacity to carry out specific tasks. They are competences or the abilities to put into practice the knowledge we have. Personality psychology is a branch of psychology that studies personality and its variation among individuals.

The Big Five Personality Traits

The Big Five personality traits, also known as the five-factor model (FFM) and the OCEAN model, is a taxonomy, or grouping, for personality traits. When factor analysis (a statistical technique) is applied to personality survey data, some words used to describe aspects of personality are often applied to the same person. For example, someone described as conscientious is more likely to be described as "always prepared" rather than "messy". This theory is based therefore on the association between words but not on neuropsychological experiments. This theory uses descriptors of common language and therefore suggests five broad dimensions commonly used to describe the human personality and psyche.

The five factors have been defined as openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism, often listed by their acronyms: OCEAN, NEOAC, or CANOE. Beneath each proposed global factor, there are a number of correlated and more specific primary factors. For example, extraversion is said to include such related qualities as gregariousness, assertiveness, excitement seeking, warmth, activity, and positive emotions.

Openness to Experience

Openness to experience is one of the domains which are used to describe human personality in the Five Factor Model. Openness involves six facets, or dimensions, including active imagination (fantasy), aesthetic sensitivity, attentiveness to inner feelings, preference for variety, and intellectual curiosity. A great deal of psychometric research has demonstrated that these facets or qualities are significantly correlated. Thus, openness can be viewed as a global personality trait consisting of a set of specific traits, habits, and tendencies that cluster together.

Conscientiousness

Conscientiousness is the personality trait of being careful, or diligent. Conscientiousness implies a desire to do a task well. Conscientious people are efficient and organized as opposed to easy-going and disorderly. They exhibit a tendency to show self-discipline, act dutifully, and aim for achievement; they display planned rather than spontaneous behavior; and they are generally organized and dependable. It is manifested in characteristic behaviors such as being neat, and systematic; also including such elements as carefulness, thoroughness, and deliberation (the tendency to think carefully before acting.)

Extraversion

Extraversion is characterized by breadth of activities (as opposed to depth), surgency from external activity/situations, and energy creation from external means. The trait is marked by pronounced engagement with the external world. Extraverts enjoy interacting with people, are often enthusiastic, action-oriented individuals. They are likely to take pleasure in social gatherings, such as parties and community activities. They tend to be assertive and are typically characterized as talkative.

Agreeableness

The agreeableness trait reflects individual differences in general concern for social harmony. Agreeable individuals value getting along with others. They are generally considerate, kind, generous, trusting and trustworthy, helpful, and willing to compromise their interests with others. Agreeable people also have an optimistic view of human nature. They believe people are basically honest, decent, and trustworthy.

Neuroticism

Neuroticism is the tendency to experience negative emotions, such as anger, anxiety, or depression. It is sometimes called emotional instability. Those who score high in neuroticism are emotionally reactive and vulnerable to stress. They are more likely to interpret ordinary situations as threatening, and minor frustrations as hopelessly difficult. Their negative emotional reactions tend to persist for unusually long periods of time, which means they are often in a bad mood.

Other Personality Trait Theories

While the Big Five model is widely accepted in psychology, alternative theories have been proposed. These include the three-factor model, the Eysenck's theory, and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI).

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