Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 12, 2026

Protocol for Studying Extinction of Conditioned Fear in Naturally Cycling Female Rats
Published on: February 23, 2015
Do Men Vary More than Women in Personality? A Study in 51 Cultures
Peter Borkenau1, Robert R McCrae, Antonio Terracciano
1Department of Psychology, Martin-Luther Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany.
Abstract:
Do men vary more than women in personality? Evolutionary, genetic, and cultural arguments suggest that hypothesis. In this study we tested it using 12,156 college student raters from 51 cultures who described a person they knew well on the 3rd-person version of the Revised NEO Personality Inventory. In most cultures, male targets varied more than female targets, and ratings by female informants varied more than ratings by male informants, which may explain why higher variances for men are not found in self-reports. Variances were higher in more developed, and effects of target sex were stronger in more individualistic societies. It seems that individualistic cultures enable a less restricted expression of personality, resulting in larger variances and particularly so among men.
Related Concept Videos
Cultural Influences on Personality
Close Relationships and Culture
Socioemotional Experience and Gender Development
The Role of Culture
Desirable Characteristics in Others
Introduction to Personality Psychology
Early Theories of Personality
The study of personality dates...

