five factors of personality

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About the author

This course was developed by Dr. Cris Wildermuth. An experienced leader, OD consultant, and

social networker, Dr. Wildermuth is passionate about developing leaders, building communities

and connecting people.

As an OD consultant, Dr. Wildermuth has designed and facilitated leadership, team, and diversity

interventions to major international organizations in the U.S., Europe, and in various LatinAmerican countries. She is frequently invited to speak at professional conferences and has had

articles published by the American Society for Training and Development's (ASTD) T&D

Magazine and the Journal for Commercial and Industrial Training. Dr. Wildermuth is the author of

"Diversity Training," published by ASTD.

As faculty at the Organizational Leadership program at Wright State University, Dr. Wildermuth

brings to university classes the excitement and entrepreneurial spirit of "real world" OD

consulting: Her students design their own "consulting firms," develop practical projects for real

clients, and engage in lively leadership simulations.

As Chief Evangelist for Linked:HR, the # 1 Group on Linkedin, Dr. Wildermuth has focused onstrengthening the experience of Group Members and enhancing the brand and quality of the

Group.

Dr. Wildermuth has a doctorate on Leadership Studies from Bowling Green State University.

Strongly committed to community leadership, Dr. Wildermuth has occupied various board

positions for the Dayton, OH ASTD chapter and the Lima Society for Human Resources

Management (LSHRM) chapter. She was the chapter president in 2009. Currently, Dr. Wildermuth

is conducting research on the relationships between engagement and the personalities of training

and development professionals.

For additional information on Dr. Wildermuth's workor to book a speaking engagementplease contact her at [email protected] or visit her academic and consulting

webpages.

Why do you need to know about personality?

Hello and welcome! This brief introductory program was designed to help you get acquainted with

human personalities. The course discusses relationships between personality and culture, the five

factor model of personality, and the impact of personality on leadership.

Leaders are in the people business. It is virtually impossible to be a good leader if you don't take

the time to understand people. You must understand how people react, what motivates them, and

how they behave either in the workplace or anywhere else!

Understanding personality matters in leadership because...

1. People tend to be more influenced by those perceived as similar to themselves. Sometimes

influencing others requires stretching our behaviors to match their own preferences. You

can't do that if you don't understand what these preferences are.

1. Human personalities vary greatly. In the book "The Owner's Guide to Personality atWork," Pierce and Jane Howard explain that in any giving mating, a male and a female

could produce 52 trillion different genetic combinations in their offspring.


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1. Your own personality is like a set of glasses. You see the world through your own lenses,

and these lenses are as unique as you are. It is vital that you become aware of your own

personality preferences before you can understand others.

Leadership and influence walk hand in hand. After all, leaders direct others towards a

path that they may not choose independently. Position authority (your official rank, ability to hire

and fire, etc.) is one source of influence. Position authority, however, will only take you so far. Inorder to really be perceived as a leader, you must be willing and able to exercise influence in other

ways.

The word "personality" comes from "persona" - a type of mask worn by actors in Ancient Greece.

These masks were meant to represent the actor's mood: Happy, sad, angry, etc. Pierce and Jane

Howard explain that the word "personality" means "the pattern of behavior by which we are

recognized" (1). Another definition of personality is "a set of non physical and non intellectualpsychological qualities which make a person distinct from other people" (2). Let us understand

these two definitions better:

1. "A pattern of behaviors" means that our personality is categorized according to the

behaviors most often exhibited. Usually personality is described in terms of "observable

behaviors" (3). We're talking about behaviors that others can witness such as sociability,

friendliness, conscientiousness, etc.

1. "Non physical qualities" means that personality does not correlate with physical

characteristics. Generally you cannot guess someone's personality by observing "physical"

traits such as height, weight, etc. There could be, however, correlations between someone'spersonality and the way this person chooses to present herself to others (dress, general

appearance, concern with health, etc.).

1. "Non intellectual qualities" means that there isn't a strong correlation between personality

and cognitive intelligence.


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(1) Howard, P, & Howard, J. (2001). The Owner's Manual for Personality at Work. Bard Press. (2)

Blackwell (1995). The Blackwell Encyclopedic Dictionary of Organizational Behavior. Blackwell

Publishing Books. (3) Millon, T., & Lerner, M. (Eds). (2003). Personality and Social Psychology.

Handbook of Psychology. John Wiley.

Nature or Nurture - Understanding the Debate

One important debate amongst personality psychologists has to do with the "origins" of

personality. Are we "born" with a specific personality? Does our personality change as we get

older? What is the impact of our social environment on personality?

1. A number of studies have been conducted with identical twins who were separated at birth.

Twin studies can, if well designed, help clarify the "nature" vs. "nurture" debate in

personality development.

1. Given that two identical twins have the same genetic code, any personality

differences observed betwen them must result from environmental differences.

1. These studies analyzed identical twins who were separated at birth and raised by

different families, often in different states and under different economic conditions.

1. Some surprising personality similarities were found, and these findings are used as

evidence of the genetic components of personality.(1)

1. Researchers such as Paul Costa and Bob McCrae, from the National Institute of

Aging in Baltimore, believe that genetics account for a significant percentage of thepersonality variations among humans. Our social environment (especially the

environment in which we grow up) and personal experiences account for the rest.


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(1) Millon, T., & Lerner, M. (2003). Personality & Social Psychology. John Wiley.

Paul Costa's Research

Bob McCrae's Research

The Minnesota Twin Studies

Nature or Nurture? Stability of Personality

Researchers have attempted to determine whether personality changes as we age:

1. One theory (1) suggests that human personality has two components:

1. Basic: The personality characteristics that you are born with, the genetic piece of

your personality.

2. Adaptive: A person's adaptation to her environment.

2. There is some evidence that while the "basic" part of our personality doesn't change, our

"adaptive" part does change - somewhat.

3. These "adaptive" changes are typically not major. In general we do tend to becomesomewhat less anxious, extroverted, and original, and somewhat more agreeable and

focused as we move closer to age 40.

(1) Costa & McCrae, 1980. Still stable after all these years. In Baltes, P. B., & Brim, O. G., (Eds.).

Life-Span Development and Behavior. San Diego: Academic Press.

Why does this matter?

If personality is stable, it's probably not reasonable to expect that either your personality or that ofother adults at work will change!
http://www.grc.nia.nih.gov/branches/irp/pcosta.htmhttp://www.grc.nia.nih.gov/branches/lpc/rmccrae.htmhttp://www.psych.umn.edu/psylabs/mtfs/default.htmhttp://www.grc.nia.nih.gov/branches/lpc/rmccrae.htmhttp://www.psych.umn.edu/psylabs/mtfs/default.htmhttp://www.grc.nia.nih.gov/branches/irp/pcosta.htm


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Nature or Nurture? Culture and Personality

The word "culture" has various meanings. People often refer to "organizational cultures," "ethnic

cultures," and "national cultures."

1. We define "culture" as a logical and coherent system of beliefs, values, ideals, practices,rules, etc., that surrounds us from birth onwards. Culture is " the total way of life of any

group of people ." (1)

1. From the moment we are born, we are exposed to various cultures: The culture of

our family, our neighborhood, our school, our ethnic group, our social class, our

church, our country, and so on.

1. Culture matters in personality. The social environment we grow up in determines the

teachings we receive. Some behaviors are reinforced while others are frowned upon. Two

identical twins growing up in different countries would likely end up with different

personalities.

(1) Kohls, L. Robert. 1979. Survival Kit for Overseas Living. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press.

Why does this matter?

A person's culture is likely to greatly influence his behavior at work. A wise leader seeks to learn

more about human cultures. Check out the books suggested under "Additional Resources" or the

web pages listed in this page.

Click on the TELL ME MORE icon below for tips on Additional Resources!

Business etiquette on various countries

Dr. Geert Hofstede's page

Dr. Cris Wildermuth's blog

Nature or Nurture - Importance for Leaders

The Nature vs. Nurture debate has important consequences for leaders:

1. First, if it is true that personalities are fairly stable, it is unrealistic to expect that you can

"change" your employees significantly. Personalities change only slightly after age 30. No

amount of training, for instance, will transform an extrovert into an introvert, or vice versa.

1. Second, your own personality is also unlikely to change significantly.
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1. Third, since it is unrealistic to expect significant personality changes in adults, sometimes it

makes more sense to modify a person's work environment (i.e. suggest a job transfer,

reengineer the job, etc.).

Fred Fiedler, a well-known researcher and leadership professor, suggested that leaders

should select environments for which their personalities were best suited. "If you avoid jobs inwhich you are likely to fail," he said, "you are bound to be a success." Fiedler advanced a theory of

management called "The Contingency Theory," based on the idea that different styles of leadership

may lead to success under different circumstances.

Coming up...The next section will introduce you to the Five Factor Model of personality. You will:

1. Learn about the Five Factor Model of personality, a robust personality model that will help

you understand yourself and others better.

1. Learn about the applications of the Five Factor Model to your communications with others.

Introduction

Until the early 80's psychologists had problems consolidating all the personality research available.

The problem? Different researchers were using different terms and models, and it was impossible

to combine them all into an understandable body of findings.

The key to the solution of this problem was the agreement on a central model of personality. In the

early 80's the Western Psychological Association met in Honolulu and agreed that five majorfactors combined most of the human personality traits. These factors were:(1)
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1. Need for Stability (N): A person's tolerance to stress.

1. Extraversion (E):A person's tolerance for sensory stimulation.

1. Originality (O):A person's interest in the "new" and the "untested."

1. Accomodation (A): A person's tolerance for disagreement and conflict.

1. Consolidation (C): A person's focus on a specific set of goals.

Each of these factors is subdivided in a variety of correlated personality behaviors.

(1) Researchers may use different labels for each of the five factors. The nomenclature above and

all the subtrait labels included in the following pages come from the work of Dr. Pierce and Jane

Howard from the Center for Applied Cognitive Studies. The author uses the Howards' instrument

(the WorkPlace Big Five Profile) extensively in research and consulting projects.

Do you remember the definition of personality given in the first chapter? Personality

means "a pattern of behaviors." Some of these behaviors "correlate," meaning that they tend to

appear in the same person. For instance, people who enjoy making friends at work may also be

likely to demonstrate positive emotions to others. People who are "idea machines" and have lots of

new ideas, typically are seen more as "inventors" than as "implementors."

Additional information on the Workplace Big Five Profile(tm)

Read the article "Why can't we all get along?" by Dr. Cris Wilde

Need for Stability

Need for Stability (N) has to do with a person's reactions to stress. Some people are highly

reactive and emotional, others are very calm and resilient - still others are somewhere in between.

Basically your N score indicates the extent of a problem before it is perceived by you as a

considerable stressor.

1. People who are Resilient (low N) are calm and rational, able to move into problem solving

mode rapidly. This helps them stabilize a group under stressful situations. Resilients,

however, may be perceived as cold and uncaring by others who are higher in that trait.

1. People who are Reactive (high N) are emotional and prone to higher levels of stress. One

of their strengths is the willingness to take responsibility to solve all sorts of problems -

even others' problems. On the other hand, they may be perceived as unreliable under crisis

situations. can easily empathize with others

1. Responsive (middle N) people are somewhere in the middle Reactivity and Resilience.

Their response to stress may be more situational, or they may exhibit moderate signs of

emotional distress under stressful circumstances.
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A stressor is something that comes between someone and her goals. Because people's

goals and the challenges they perceive to these goals vary, stressors differ from person to person.


Great Place to Work Institute

Stress Resources on the BBC page

Additional Resources

Extraversion

Extraversion (E)has to do with tolerance to sensory stimulation. Some people have a high

tolerance and even a desire for as much sensory stimulation as possible. This includes not only

people but also noise, music, colors, etc. Others may be uncomfortable with too much stimulation

for longer periods of time.

1. Extraverts (high E) welcome sensory stimulation. These are the people who are likely to

go out for dinner after a long day at a busy conference. They relax by meeting others and

may prefer lively and energetic environments.

1. Introverts (low E) welcome calm and quiet. They may be comfortable around other peoplefor briefer periods of time, and then need to recharge their batteries. Introverts do better in

peaceful surroundings and can comfortably handle tasks that require long hours doing

lonely work.

1. Ambiverts (middle E) are somewhere in between Extraverts and Introverts. They may

enjoy some sensory stimulation, after which they'll need to rest and refill their "peace and

quiet" batteries again. Those are the colleagues who can handle a busy conference day

well, but will later prefer to rest in their hotel rooms on their own.
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Estimating Extraversion

Who are some famous or not so famous Extroverts? Try estimating the E scores of people whom

you know.

Goofy & Daisy - Extroverts

President Bartlett (The West Wing) - Extrovert

Albert Einstein - Introvert

Jacqueline Kennedy - Introvert



Originality

Originality is the factor that relates to your interest in the new, the "untried" and the "untrue."

Some people have the natural tendency to constantly be on the look for innovative or revolutionary

ideas. Others prefer the efficiency that comes with practice and reinforcement. Still others are

somewhere in between.

1. Those who are Original (high O) are imaginative and visionary "idea machines." They

typically accept change with gusto and are probably on the forefront of innovation.

1.Those who are Preservers (low O)prefer to be known as experts in a particular field. Theyare the doers in the organization, the ones who implement plans with efficiency and often a

keen eye for detail.

1. Finally, those who are Moderates (middle O) are somewhere in between those two

extremes, accepting innovation when they feel innovation is warranted, or perhaps inviting

moderate amounts of change.
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A successful work team might profit from the balance between those who do and those

who plan, those who preserve, and those who innovate.



Accommodation

Accomodation has to do with someone's willingness to let go of control. Challenging people are

reluctant to accept others' directions or suggestions when those go against their own. Adapters, on

the other hand, prioritize harmony and are typically quite willing to adapt their wishes to the needs

of others. Negotiators are somewhere in between.

1. Adapters (high A) can be cordial, agreeable, and modest, willing to adjust to the needs

and requirements of others.

1. Challengers (low A) are, on the other hand, more likely to challenge the status quo and

attempt to impose their will.

1.Finally, Negotiators (middle A) are normally in a good place to reach a middle groundbetween those two groups.
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Consolidation

The last factor - Consolidation - has to do with a person's focus on specific, pre-determined goals.

Some people clearly know what their goals are and move towards them in a methodical and

determined fashion. Others are more spontaneous and flexible.

1. Focused individuals (high C) are often disciplined, organized, and methodical. They may

also be quite ambitious and determined to be "number one."

1. Flexiblepeople (low C) may be more spontaneous and easy going, able to quickly switch

gears and move from one direction to the other.

1. Finally, Balanced (middle C) individuals are somewhere in between. They may find it

easier to balance work and family life and may naturally be able to concentrate on specific

goals when appropriate.



For Further Development

This program was designed to give you a quick overview and introduction to personality. There's a

lot more to learn! Here are some suggestions for your continuing improvement. You may find

these by contacting Dr. Wildermuth (contact information below).

1. Complete the WorkPlace Big Five Profile(tm) by Pierce and Jane Howard and have itsresults interpreted by a certified consultant (for information on how to get this

accomplished, contact Dr. Cris Wildermuth at [email protected]).
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1. Read and complete the Workplace Big Five Profile Workbook , published by the Center for

Applied Cognitive Studies. This is a nice resource with additional information on

developmental activities and action plans. The last page contains a great basic bibliography

on the Five Factor Model that you may find very helpful.

1. Take the time to check out the various books suggested in the various "Additional

Resources" sections in this chapter. Some of those are real gems, especially the workpublished by William Ury.

1. Become a Big Five certified consultant (contact Dr. Wildermuth for information!)

1. On behalf of The Effectiveness Group, we wish you much success in your leadership

career.

The Effectiveness Group

Dr. Wildermuth's Academic Page and Blog
http://theeffectivenessgroup.com/Personality/fiv03/www.TheEffectivenessGroup.comhttp://theeffectivenessgroup.com/Personality/fiv03/www.CrisWildermuth.comhttp://theeffectivenessgroup.com/Personality/fiv03/www.TheEffectivenessGroup.comhttp://theeffectivenessgroup.com/Personality/fiv03/www.CrisWildermuth.com

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