The Big Five personality traits describe five broad domains of human personality: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. Each trait represents a spectrum where individuals may fall at any point, providing a comprehensive understanding of their personality.
The foundation of the work began in the 1920s and has further been developed by numerous psychologists and researchers over time.
1. Openness
Openness is the desire for new experiences (Openness to Experience) and new ways of thinking (Intellect). Individuals who score higher on Openness value change, art, music, travel, the understanding of complex concepts and exploring new points of view. A necessity for entrepreneurs, artists, and personal healing, openness allows you to move through life and manage change.
On the flip side, too much openness can leave you overexposed to new experiences or ideas that may not particularly serve you. Lower openness can help with boundary setting, offer comfort, preserve tradition, provide stability or a sense of belonging.
In general openess in North America and other Western countries tends to be valued more, whereas in other more collectivist nations such as Japan, China, and Saudi Arabia, less.
2. Conscientiousness
Conscientiousness is the desire for task accomplishment. A person who scores high on conscientiousness is more action-oriented and focused on what they wish to accomplish. Research shows people who score high on conscientiousness are more successful in work, relationships (see our Marital Satisfaction Index), and life. The subtraits of conscientiousness are task accomplishment and structure. A person who scores high on task accomplishment will have a strong desire to complete tasks, while a person who scores high on structure will accomplish these tasks in a more linear fashion (step by step). A person who scores lower on the substrait of structure may do many things but their approach may seem more random or be only intuitive to them. Artistic and creative types tend to value less structure. However, their ability to accomplish tasks to ‘get to market’ (e.g., for entrepreneurs) could be hindered.
Conscientiousness is also a key aspect of drive (Vision, Focus + Conscientiousness). See our Human Success Index for more.
3. Extraversion
Extraverion is the trait of initiating conversations, experiences or desires on your own accord. Extraversion is a combination of enthusiasm (e.g., being talkative, excited and happy about things) and assertiveness (taking initiative on tasks, having difficult conversations and adopting leadership roles when needed). Research shows that people who score high on extraversion report being happier in life in general.
High extraversion can be seen as comfort in dealing with the outside world, while low extraversion (aka introversion), could be seen as preferring the comfort of one’s inner reality, a smaller group of friends or more quiet environments. People who score low on extroversion might still be very talkative, the difference is they won’t be the first to intiate the conversations or will do so only in smal group settings. Depending on your score, you may not have a strong preference for either.
4. Agreebleness
Agreeableness is the desire for social harmony. People who score high on agreeableness prefer that everyone just gets along. They tend to have a more universal view you can trust people. They also tend to focus on what’s best for everybody concerned (the common good) and not just themselves. Agreeableness is an extremely important aspect of what has been called emotional intelligence. It is important in teamwork, mediation, and compromise.
The subtraits of agreeableness are empathy and social etiquette. Agreeable people care about people’s feelings and how they are doing (empathy). Emotionally intelligent people understand that it’s important.
Agreeable people as value politeness, manners, and prefer not to cause a scene (social etiquette). People who score lower on agreeableness might be perceived as being overly selfish, competitive, or opinionated. Research shows people who score higher on agreeableness do better in their careers and report being happier. However, too much agreeableness can lead to a person feeling like they get ‘walked over all the time’ and never get their needs met.
5. Neuroticism
Neuroticism is the trait of being more sensitive to worry and depressed affect (e.g., depression, sadness, glum). People who score higher on neuroticism tend to be less emotionally stable (i.e., their mood is not consistent over time). They also tend to be more reactive to internal and external events. Neuroticism has also been shown as being a key trait in high sensitivity (see our HSP Index). Individuals who score lower on neuroticism have what’s called high emotional stability and report being happier in life in general.
People who score higher on neuroticism would do well to incorporate techniques such as mindfulness and self-care to build their own sense of emotional stability within themselves. Previous research showed that entrepreneurs and other success-oriented individuals score lower on neuroticism. However, new research shows a certain degree of neuroticism can also be helpful in driving both personal and professional change. In other words, if you’re always worrying or obsessing about something, you are probably going to want to fix it. And all that worrying and obsessing is probably going to help you understand how to do it (openness) while using the skills developed through conscientiousness.
To Learn More about Your Unique Personality Style
Take The Big Five Personality Test