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Predicting actual behavior from the explicit and implicit self-concept of personality.
Mitja D Back1, Stefan C Schmukle, Boris Egloff
1Department of Psychology, Personality Psychology and Psychological Assessment, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany. back@uni-mainz.de
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
|August 19, 2009
Summary
This study shows that both direct and indirect personality measures predict behavior. Implicit personality measures offer incremental predictive validity for actual behavior.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Personality Psychology
- Social Psychology
Background:
- Personality traits influence behavior.
- Understanding the self-concept is key to predicting behavior.
- Both explicit and implicit aspects of personality are relevant.
Purpose of the Study:
- To present a behavioral process model of personality.
- To examine explicit and implicit self-concept aspects as predictors of behavior.
- To investigate the predictive validity of direct and indirect personality measures.
Main Methods:
- Conducted an extensive behavioral study with 130 participants.
- Measured over 50 behavioral indicators across various social situations.
- Assigned behavioral indicators to the Big Five dimensions using theory and expert ratings.
- Utilized direct measures (questionnaires) and indirect measures (Implicit Association Tests).
Main Results:
- Direct personality measures predicted actual behavior across all Big Five dimensions.
- Indirect measures (IATs) predicted actual behavior for neuroticism and extraversion.
- Indirect measures demonstrated incremental predictive validity.
- Results remained significant after controlling for valence.
Conclusions:
- The behavioral process model is supported by the findings.
- Both explicit and implicit personality aspects are valuable for predicting behavior.
- Future research should continue exploring the interplay between personality and behavior.
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