Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 1, 2025
06:53
Creating Virtual-hand and Virtual-face Illusions to Investigate Self-representation
Published on: March 1, 2017
13.2K
Self- and Observer Reports of Personality.
Michael C Ashton1, Kibeom Lee2
1Department of Psychology, Brock University, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada;
Annual Review of Psychology
|January 17, 2025
Summary
Self and observer reports on personality traits show high agreement, especially for close relationships. However, cooperation-related traits like Honesty-Humility are less consistent between self and observer assessments.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Personality Science
Background:
- Personality traits are commonly assessed using self-report or observer (informant) questionnaires.
- Close relationships, such as spouses or friends, provide unique perspectives for personality assessments.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the comparability and agreement between self-reports and observer reports for personality traits.
- To investigate how agreement varies across different personality factors, including the Big Five and HEXACO models.
Main Methods:
- Utilized full-length measures of the Big Five (Five-Factor Model) and HEXACO personality factors.
- Analyzed data from self-reports and observer reports provided by closely acquainted individuals.
Main Results:
- Mean scores for self and observer reports are generally comparable, with Openness to Experience being higher in self-reports.
- Self/observer agreement (convergent correlations) is high but lower for cooperation-related traits (HEXACO Honesty-Humility, HEXACO Agreeableness, Big Five Agreeableness).
- Openness to Experience, Honesty-Humility, and Big Five Agreeableness show similarity and assumed similarity between closely acquainted persons.
Conclusions:
- Observer reports provide a reliable, though not perfect, complement to self-reports for assessing personality.
- Cooperation-related traits may require more nuanced assessment methods due to lower self/observer agreement.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:22Self-Report Tests of Personality
307
Self-report inventories are objective personality assessments that use multiple-choice items or numbered scales, typically ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). They are often called Likert scales after Rensis Likert. These inventories are widely used due to their ease of administration and cost-effectiveness. One of the most prominent examples is the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), initially developed in the 1940s to assess abnormal personality traits.
307
01:29Introduction to Personality Psychology
15.6K
Personality encompasses a set of enduring traits and behavioral patterns that define how individuals think, feel, and interact, ultimately shaping their unique identities. The concept of personality has deep historical roots, deriving from the Latin term "persona," which means "mask." This term initially referred to the roles played by actors in ancient theater, signifying the different facets individuals display in various contexts.
Early Theories of Personality
The study of...
Early Theories of Personality
The study of...
15.6K
03:00Self-Evaluation: Self-Enhancement and Self-Verification
5.2K
Social psychologists have documented that feeling good about ourselves and maintaining positive self-esteem is a powerful motivator of human behavior (Tavris & Aronson, 2008). In the United States, members of the predominant culture typically think very highly of themselves and view themselves as good people who are above average on many desirable traits (Ehrlinger, Gilovich, & Ross, 2005). Often, our behavior, attitudes, and beliefs are affected when we experience a threat to our...
5.2K
01:26Cultural Influences on Personality
119
Individualist and collectivist cultures emphasize different core values, shaping personality in distinct ways. In individualist cultures, such as those in the United States, England, and Australia, people prioritize independence, competition, and personal achievement. These societies tend to promote self-focused traits, with individuals often reporting higher levels of self-esteem. In contrast, collectivist cultures, commonly found in regions like Asia, Africa, and South America, emphasize...
119
01:29Personality Theory by Eysenck and Eysenck
355
Hans and Sybil Eysenck developed a widely recognized theory of personality, which emphasizes the role of temperament and genetically based differences in shaping individual traits. Their theory posits that biological factors primarily determine personality and can be understood through two main dimensions: extroversion/introversion and neuroticism/stability.
In the extroversion/introversion dimension, highly extroverted people are sociable, outgoing, and easily connect with others. In contrast,...
In the extroversion/introversion dimension, highly extroverted people are sociable, outgoing, and easily connect with others. In contrast,...
355
00:56Attribution Theory
12.9K
Behavior is a product of both the situation (e.g., cultural influences, social roles, and the presence of bystanders) and of the person (e.g., personality characteristics). Subfields of psychology tend to focus on one influence or behavior over others. Situationism is the view that our behavior and actions are determined by our immediate environment and surroundings. In contrast, dispositionism holds that our behavior is determined by internal factors (Heider, 1958).
12.9K