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Personality Dimensions: Understanding the Big Five Personality Traits for Greater Self-AwarenessFirst, once you understand your natural personality dimensions, you can accept who you are and live more authentically. Second, you can learn to harness your natural hardwiring and use your strengths to build a life drawing upon your signature talents. And third, you can learn to manage or mitigate your weakness, your shadow, and the parts of your personality that could derail you in the future. On this page, we will examine the core principles of personality and will overview the Five Factor Model of Personality, which is the standard model used by psychologists today. What is Personality? The word "personality" comes from the Ancient Greek word persona, meaning the masks that Greek actors wore to make themselves recognizable. Similarly, the word personality indicates the set of predictable behavioral responses that make us recognizable to others. Personality traits also indicate general types of behavior correlated with a trait. For example, if you say someone is "extroverted," we normally associate that trait with the behaviors of talkativeness, sociability, high energy level, being a people person, etc. Where Does Personality Come From? From research conducted on twins separated at birth, researchers now estimate that: • 60% is Inherited • 20% comes from the Environment • 20% comes from Other Sources (chance, other factors) (1) Interestingly, although research is of course still being conducted, researchers think that the following personality traits are mostly genetic (1):
Theories of Personality Many theories of personality exist. In the West, some of the most common models of personality dimensions include those of Freud and Jung. In the East, the Buddhist personality classification scheme laid down in the Abhidamma identifies healthy and unhealthy mental factors that determine personality dimensions. And, in addition, in the last 50 years over 2,000 psychometric tests have appeared on the market. Many of these, such as the DiSC, present a model for understanding personality dimensions. The Five Factor Model of Personality Dimensions One of the most helpful Western models I have found for understanding personality dimensions is the Five Factor Model of Personality. Dr. Pierce Howard and his wife, Jane Howard, of the Center for Applied Cognitive Science in Charlotte, NC introduced me to the model and trained me on its usefulness with coaching clients. Unlike other models that are based on various theories of personality, the Five Factor model of personality dimensions is derived empirically from language people use to describe normal personality. Here's how it developed: In 1936 Gordon Allport and Harold Odbert challenged the psychological research community to identify the core building blocks of personality. Researchers identified 4,500 words in the English Dictionary that described normal human behavior. Then, they grouped these words into as few groups as possible. Over the years, researchers have conducted factor analysis on these groupings and, with the advent of the personal computer in the 1980's, these tests became much more reliable and accurate. Now, researchers appear to agree that the Five Factor Model as the basis of personality is "a finding consistent enough to approach the status of law." (2) Interestingly, the model also has been validated in other languages: Spanish, Italian, German, Portugese, Dutch, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Hebrew, Turkish, Shone, Finnish, Swedish, Czech, Polish, Russian, French, Norwegian, Hungarian, Icelandic, and Taiwanese. Several psychometric tests, including the NEO PR-I by Costa and McCrae, the Workplace Big 5 Profile 4.0 by CentACS, and the Hogan Assessments all measure individuals on these traits. The Five Factor Model boils personality down to five major personality traits: N-E-O-A-C.  Now, each of these five personality dimensions - NEOAC - exist along a bell curve. Compared to the rest of the population, your personality may be in the low, middle, or high range. Here are the main personality dimensions and the traits in the low, middle, and high ranges:  Now, each of these major traits however, is made up of 5-7 subtraits. Some of these subtraits influence several of your scores as well. One question I receive frequently when facilitating Big Five Personality Dimension Workshops is, "Do personality traits change over time? What does the research say?" My first answer is always, "Everything changes." But, I also point out that the research shows that actually your scores on Need for Stability, Extroversion, and Originality go down slightly in your twenties. Also, the scores for Accommodation and Consolidation go up. And this makes sense. Basically, in your twenties you mellow out, become a little less social, and a little more practical; you also become more likely to cooperate with others and also focus on goals. But, after your thirties your personality traits remain the same, statistically. Now, the way you see the world, the meaning you make of everything, and your outlook on life may change dramatically. But your core personality traits - those that make you who you are - tend to remain the same. WHAT NEXT? Once you gain clarity about your major personality traits, the trick is to harness them. While making the most of specific personality traits will require a much lengthier discussion, here's are some general rules: If you have a natural personality fit with something and you perform highly in it, take advantage of it. For example, if you have high extroversion and you're a pretty good salesman, take it advantage of it and really try to capitalize on it. If you have a natural personality fit for something and you do NOT perform highly, then try to develop your competency in it. To use the example above, if you have high extroversion and are not having sales success, take some training. You have a natural foundation on which to build. If you do NOT have a natural personality fit for something and you do perform highly in it, watch out. You are at risk for burn out. For example, if you are not naturally organized and your job requires meticulous organization, this will drain you. And finally, if you do NOT have a natural personality fit for something and you do NOT perform highly in it, figure out a way around. Hire someone. Outsource it. Minimize it. Mitigate. Instead of banging your head against the wall to develop yourself in something you do not have a natural foundation, try to figure out a way around it, and spend your time developing your strengths. The payoff will be much greater. I hope you've found the discussion above helpful for understanding your personality dimensions. If you are interested in learning more about the Five Factor Model of Personality Dimensions, please visit the Center for Applied Cognitive Science - CentACS. References: (1) Howard, Pierce and Howard, Jane (2001). The Owner's Manual for Personality at Work. Charlotte: CentACS (2) Digman, J.M. and Inouye, J. (1986) "Further Speculation of the Five Robust Factors of Personality." Journal of Personal and Social Psychology, 50, p.116) Leave Personality Dimensions and Return to About Personal Growth Main Page Leave Personality Dimensions and Return to BPGR HomeRelated Articles:
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