scholarly journals A Different Perspective on Personality: An Evolutionary Theory of Universal Values

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil Griffiths
Keyword(s):  
Big Five ◽  
Physical Science ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Universal System ◽  
Only Children ◽  
Personality Differences ◽  
Personality Research ◽  
Conservation Values ◽  
Universal Values ◽  
Independent Thought

Traits and personal values are important components of personality. The Schwartz (1992) system provides a comprehensive means of measuring the latter, but neither the Big Five or its HEXACO update provides a comprehensive and systematic means of measuring the former. Despite this, there is a tendency in academia for personality research to focus on traits. Previous research shows that values, like traits, are heritable and can be read reliably by others. Also, unlike traits, differences in values have been shown to support popular perceptions regarding the personality differences of siblings and only-children. Building from foundations in physical science and drawing from research in evolutionary biology and complexity theory, we present a theory that suggests Schwartz’s system of values represents and evolved from universal schema. According to this, equivalents of all values are present in the universal system and internalised hierarchically as local systems become increasingly complex and adaptive. It states that equivalents of benevolence and the conservation values are present in all stable systems, that organisms increasingly internalise equivalents to the self-enhancing values, until, with the evolution of intelligence, equivalents to the pro-change values of hedonism, stimulation and self-direction are internalised. While the independent thought and action associated with self-direction, and an ability to recognise one’s place in a wider system (universalism) are not unique to humanity, they are uniquely developed in humanity, and only in humanity does reciprocal altruism (benevolence) operate rationally and universally. We conclude by providing testable hypotheses and examples of sympathetic cultural developments.

scholarly journals A Different Perspective on Personality: An Evolutionary Theory of Universal Values

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil Griffiths ◽  
Kevin Thomas ◽  
Bryce Dyer
Keyword(s):  
Big Five ◽  
Physical Science ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Universal System ◽  
Only Children ◽  
Personality Differences ◽  
Personality Research ◽  
Conservation Values ◽  
Universal Values ◽  
Independent Thought

Traits and personal values are important components of personality. The Schwartz (1992) system provides a comprehensive means of measuring the latter, but neither the Big Five or its HEXACO update provides a comprehensive and systematic means of measuring the former. Despite this, there is a tendency in academia for personality research to focus on traits. Previous research shows that values, like traits, are heritable and can be read reliably by others. Also, unlike traits, differences in values have been shown to support popular perceptions regarding the personality differences of siblings and only-children. Building from foundations in physical science and drawing from research in evolutionary biology and complexity theory, we present a theory that suggests Schwartz’s system of values represents and evolved from universal schema. According to this, equivalents of all values are present in the universal system and internalised hierarchically as local systems become increasingly complex and adaptive. It states that equivalents of benevolence and the conservation values are present in all stable systems, that organisms increasingly internalise equivalents to the self-enhancing values, until, with the evolution of intelligence, equivalents to the pro-change values of hedonism, stimulation and self-direction are internalised. While the independent thought and action associated with self-direction, and an ability to recognise one’s place in a wider system (universalism) are not unique to humanity, they are uniquely developed in humanity, and only in humanity does reciprocal altruism (benevolence) operate rationally and universally. We conclude by providing testable hypotheses and examples of sympathetic cultural developments.

Temporal Personality Variations among Participants from a University Subject Pool

1987 ◽  
Vol 60 (3_part_2) ◽  
pp. 1247-1254
Author(s):  
Ronald R. Holden ◽  
John R. Reddon
Keyword(s):  
Psychology Students ◽  
Temporal Variations ◽  
Introductory Psychology ◽  
Personality Variables ◽  
Personality Differences ◽  
Personality Research ◽  
Subject Pool

This study examined personality differences in participants from a university subject pool as a function of the time of participation during the academic term and year. For 150 introductory psychology students with required participation in a subject pool, significant associations were found between time of participation and specific personality variables as measured by Jackson's Personality Research Form. Significant temporal associations with more general personality modal profiles were also obtained. Investigators using university subject pools are warned that these temporal variations in personality may represent possible confounds in research.

scholarly journals H. G. WELLS, GEOLOGY, AND THE RUINS OF TIME

2017 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. 839-855
Author(s):  
David Shackleton
Keyword(s):  
Physical Science ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Narrative Structure ◽  
Time Machine ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Discourses ◽  
Classical Thermodynamics

H. G. Wells's The Time Machine (1895) has hitherto been read in two principal scientific contexts: those of evolutionary biology and thermodynamic physics. Numerous critics have situated the romance in the context of evolutionary biology and contemporary discourses of degeneration (McLean 11–40; Greenslade 32–41). Others have discussed it in the context of thermodynamic physics. For instance, Bruce Clarke has read The Time Machine as “a virtual allegory of classical thermodynamics,” and shows that its combination of physical and social entropy reflects a wider transfer within the period of concepts and metaphors from physical science to social discourses of degeneration (121–26). Neatly linking these scientific contexts with issues of form, Michael Sayeau has argued that the social and physical entropy that are themes of the romance are reflected in its narrative structure, which manifests a type of narrative entropy, and thereby raises the spectre of the end of fiction (109–46).

scholarly journals Coffee or Tea? Examining Cross-Cultural Differences in Personality Nuances Across Former Colonies of the British Empire

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Priscilla Achaa-Amankwaa ◽  
Gabriel Olaru ◽  
Ulrich Schroeders
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Studies ◽  
British Empire ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Personality Factors ◽  
Personality Differences ◽  
Cross Cultural Differences ◽  
Personality Research ◽  
Item Functioning ◽  
High Degree ◽  
Cross Cultural Studies

Cross-cultural comparisons often focus on differences in broad personality traits across countries. However, many cross-cultural studies report differential item functioning which suggests that considerable group differences are not accounted for by the overarching personality factors. We argue that this may reflect cross-cultural personality differences at a lower level of personality, namely personality nuances. To investigate the degree of cultural similarities and differences between participants of ten countries that formerly belonged to the British Empire, we scrutinized participants’ personality scores on domain, facet, and nuance level of the personality hierarchy. More specifically, we used the responses of 9,110 participants on the IPIP-NEO 300-item personality inventory in cross-validated and regularized logistic regressions. Based on the trait domain and facet scores, we were able to identify the country of residence for 60% and 73% of the participants, respectively. By using the nuance level of personality, we correctly identified the nationality of 89% of the participants. This pattern of results explains the lack of measurement invariance in cross-cultural studies. We discuss implications for cross-cultural personality research and whether the high degree of cross-cultural item-level differences compromises the universality of the personality structure.

scholarly journals Personality neuroscience and psychopathology: should we start with biology and look for neural-level factors?

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil McNaughton
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Causal Explanation ◽  
Personality Factors ◽  
Personality Factor ◽  
System Sensitivity ◽  
Taxonomic Description ◽  
Personality Research ◽  
Time Sensitivity ◽  
Anxiolytic Drugs ◽  
Serotonergic Drugs

Abstract “Personality is an abstraction used to explain consistency and coherency in an individual’s pattern of affects, cognitions, desires and behaviors [ABCDs]” (Revelle, 2007, p. 37). But personality research currently provides more a taxonomy of patterns than theories of fundamental causes. Psychiatric disorders can be viewed as involving extremes of personality but are diagnosed via symptom patterns not biological causes. Such surface-level taxonomic description is necessary for science, but consistent predictive explanation requires causal theory. Personality constructs, and especially their clinical extremes, should predict variation in ABCD patterns, with parsimony requiring the lowest effective causal level of explanation. But, even biologically inspired personality theories currently use an intuitive language-based approach for scale development that lacks biological anchors. I argue that teleonomic “purpose” explains the organisation and outputs of conserved brain emotion systems, where high activation is adaptive in specific situations but is otherwise maladaptive. Simple modulators of whole-system sensitivity evolved because the requisite adaptive level can vary across people and time. Sensitivity to a modulator is an abstract predictive personality factor that operates at the neural level but provides a causal explanation of both coherence and occasional apparent incoherence in ABCD variation. Neuromodulators impact all levels of the “personality hierarchy” from metatraits to aspects: stability appears altered by serotonergic drugs, neuroticism by ketamine and trait anxiety by simple anxiolytic drugs. Here, the tools of psychiatry transfer to personality research and imply both interaction between levels and oblique factor mappings to ABCD. On this view, much psychopathology reflects extremes of neural-level personality factors, and we can view much pharmacotherapy as temporarily altering personality. So, particularly for personality factors linked to basic emotions and their disorders, I think we should start with evolutionary biology and look directly at conserved neural-level modulators for our explanatory personality constructs and only invoke higher order, emergent, explanations when neural-level explanation fails.

Mapping Big Five Personality Traits Within and Across Domains of Interpersonal Functioning

Assessment ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 107319112091395
Author(s):  
Tianwei V. Du ◽  
Alison E. Yardley ◽  
Katherine M. Thomas
Keyword(s):  
Big Five ◽  
Personality Characteristics ◽  
Interpersonal Behavior ◽  
Interpersonal Functioning ◽  
Interpersonal Circumplex ◽  
Big Five Personality ◽  
Personality Research ◽  
Big Five Traits ◽  
Five Factors ◽  
Structural Summary

The Big Five and the interpersonal circumplex are among the most extensively used structural frameworks in personality research. Of the five factors, extraversion and agreeableness are theorized to carry the most interpersonal context, however, all five factors are likely to have important interpersonal implications. In the present study, we evaluated the associations between domains of interpersonal functioning and the Big Five domains and facets using the bootstrapped structural summary method. Results suggested that all Big Five traits showed prototypical and specific interpersonal profiles, with variability observed across lower order facets and domains of interpersonal functioning. Several Big Five traits and facets not overtly related to interpersonal behavior nonetheless showed specific, prototypical associations to interpersonal profiles. Findings suggest that Big Five traits and facets are saturated with interpersonal content and even personality characteristics that are not explicitly interpersonal may still have specific interpersonal implications.

Only children in the 21st century: Personality differences between adults with and without siblings are very, very small

2019 ◽  
Vol 83 ◽  
pp. 103868
Author(s):  
Samantha Stronge ◽  
John H. Shaver ◽  
Joseph Bulbulia ◽  
Chris G. Sibley
Keyword(s):  
21St Century ◽  
Only Children ◽  
Personality Differences

Sexual Self-Labels and Personality Differences Among Chinese Lesbians

2011 ◽  
Vol 39 (7) ◽  
pp. 955-961 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yong Zheng ◽  
Lijun Zheng
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Behavior ◽  
Big Five ◽  
Active Role ◽  
The Self ◽  
Strong Preference ◽  
Behavior Patterns ◽  
Personality Differences ◽  
Sexual Roles ◽  
Big Five Traits ◽  
Lesbian Community

Distinctions are commonly made regarding preferences for active or receptive sexual roles within the Chinese lesbian community. Three sexual self-labels are typically specified among Chinese lesbians: “T”, meaning a lesbian who prefers the active role, “P”, meaning a lesbian who prefers the receptive role, and “H”, meaning a lesbian without a strong preference for either role. The aim in this study was to examine personality differences within Chinese lesbian sexual self-labeled groups. Among the participants, comprising 217 Chinese lesbians, significant differences were found between sexual self-labeled groups in gender-related and Big Five traits. Ts scored higher than Ps in masculinity and self-ascribed masculinity/femininity; Ps scored higher than Ts in femininity; Hs gained intermediate scores in a gender-related traits compared to those of Ts and Ps. There were significant differences in the Big Five traits of extraversion, conscientiousness, and emotional stability among the self-labeled groups. Sexual self-labels appear not only to distinguish sexual behavior patterns but may also suggest personality differences among Chinese lesbians.

Returning from the Wilderness

1993 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 13-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert G.L. Pryor
Keyword(s):  
Career Development ◽  
Big Five ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Practical Application ◽  
Theoretical Frameworks ◽  
Peer Ratings ◽  
Personality Research ◽  
Gender And Age ◽  
Human Trait ◽  
Trait Ratings

The study of personality has been plagued by a series of major disputes which has led many career development practitioners to conclude that it has little to offer them. However, more recently a striking consensus has emerged about the underlying dimensions of human trait ratings. This consensus has been designated ‘the Big Five’ and comprises Extroversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Neuroticism, and Openness. An impressive range of data has been marshalled in support of these dimensions including that derived from self ratings, peer ratings, existing questionnaires, research across languages, culture, gender, and age, and reanalysis of other theoretical frameworks. Some limitations of ‘the Big Five’ are outlined along with their practical application to education and work. Some further ways in which these dimensions may be usefully applied to the career development field are also adumbrated. It is concluded that it is now appropriate to incorporate personality research and assessment into both the theory and practice of career development.

scholarly journals DIDYSIS PENKETAS: UŽ IR PRIEŠ

Psichologija ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 37 ◽  
pp. 71-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antanas Kairys
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Big Five ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Personality Theory ◽  
Alternative Models ◽  
Personality Research ◽  
Big Five Model ◽  
Cultural Research ◽  
Five Factors ◽  
Cross Cultural Research

Straipsnyje nagrinėjama vienos iš klasikinių paradigmų – bruožų teorijos (o konkrečiau, Didžiojo penketo modelio) – ieškojimai šiuolaikinėje asmenybės psichologijoje. Šiandien nemažai tyrimų, apimančių ir asmenybės kintamuosius, atliekama remiantis Didžiojo penketo modeliu. Nepaisant to, šis modelis vertinamas kontroversiškai. Vieni autoriai pabrėžia Didžiojo penketo modelio pranašumus (empirinis pagrįstumas, patvirtinimas tarpkultūriniais tyrimais, individualių skirtumų stabilumas ir modelio praktinė vertė), kiti vardija jo trūkumus (teorinio pagrįstumo nepakankamumas, išskirtų faktorių ortogonalumo klausimas, tarpkultūrinių tyrimų problemos, abejonės dėl prognostinės modelio vertės). Aktyviai ieškoma alternatyvių, tobulesnių už Didįjį penketą modelių. Vis dėlto argumentų už Didįjį penketą kur kas daugiau negu prieš: nepaisant kritikos ir bandymų ieškoti naujo, tinkamesnio modelio, Didysis penketas šiuo metu yra vienas realiausių pretendentų tapti vieningai pripažįstama asmenybės teorija. Pagrindiniai žodžiai: asmenybės bruožai, Didysis penketas, Penketo faktorių modelis.THE BIG FIVE: PRO ET CONTRAAntanas Kairys SummaryThe field of the personality research is very active these days; probably more research is being conducted than ever. Most of the research studies are conducted referring to the Big Five model. Nevertheless, this model is controversial. Some researchers emphasize the merits of the Big Five model and the others name the shortcomings of the model. The main merits of the Big Five model are: empirical validity, cross-cultural validity, stability of individual differences and practical model value. Still the Big Five model receives criticism. The main critiques are: discussions about lexical hypothesis, orthogonality of factors, problems in cross – cultural research and prognostic value of the Big Five model. Despite the debates, nonetheless, the strongest arguments are for Big Five model. There is more empirical evidence still difficulties arise because of the research procedure or method inaccuracy. Most of the researchers confirmed that it is complicated to extract less than five factors in many research data. Five factors is the optimal number. There also have been determined many associations between Big Five traits and other mental / psychological phenomena. For a long time Big Five was only the research model, but presently initial theoretical interpretations were offered – R. R. McCrae and P. T. Costa Five Factor Theory also D. P. McAdams and J. L. Pals New Big Five. This was a substantial sally – Big Five has a potential to become the real personality theory, but there are still some problems left unsolved – extracted factor relevance to the individual in large samples is unclear, newly posed statements about personality structure lack empirical evidence. Alternative models to the Big Five model are offered: Biggest One, Big Two, Giant Three, HEXACO and Big Seven. Presently alternative models are not in competition with Big Five. Perhaps more promising is a HEXACO model with its theoretical interpretations. Alternative models to Big Five model play another important role – they encourage cross-cultural research, the search of the neurological correlates. Thus Big Five is very dynamic field of personality research, pretending to become very important and influential personality theory. Herewith it is obvious: there is an essential challenge against Big Five model– whether it will become one or not? Establishing Big Five or other close models’ theoretical interpretations give hope, but the final result is still to be expected.Key words: personality traits, Five Factor Model, Big Five.

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