Historical trends in teacher personality from human language
Liang Xu1,2
1Department of Psychology, College of Education, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou 310014, China.
Summary
This study tracked teacher personality traits in books from 1800-2019. Conscientiousness was most discussed, with teachers often seen as stable, though openness perceptions have recently declined.
Area of Science:
- Educational Psychology
- Linguistic Analysis
- Sociology of Education
Background:
- Teacher personality significantly influences educational outcomes and societal perceptions.
- Historical analysis of teacher traits provides insight into evolving educational priorities.
- The Big Five personality traits offer a framework for understanding these perceptions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the historical evolution of the Big Five personality traits ascribed to teachers from 1800 to 2019.
- To identify shifts in societal expectations and values related to teacher personalities over time.
- To compare the personality descriptors of teachers with the general population.
Main Methods:
- Large-scale analysis of millions of English-language books.
- Word frequency analysis to determine the prominence of personality traits.
- Polarity analysis to assess the valence (positive/negative) of descriptors.
Main Results:
- Conscientiousness was the most frequently discussed trait, followed by agreeableness, openness, extraversion, and neuroticism.
- Teachers were more frequently described with low neuroticism (stable, dependable) than the general population.
- Since the mid-20th century, negative descriptors for openness (traditional) have increased, while positive ones have declined.
Conclusions:
- Societal focus on teacher responsibility (conscientiousness) and stability (low neuroticism) is historically consistent.
- Recent trends suggest a societal shift towards viewing teachers as less open to new ideas.
- Understanding these historical portrayals is crucial for contemporary educational discourse and policy.
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