McCrae & Costa, Murray's Five-Factor Trait Theory .pdf

McCrae & Costa, Murray's Five-Factor Trait Theory

1. McCrae & Costa, Murray's Five-Factor
Trait
Theory

2. How many traits or personal
dispositions does a single
person possess?
Two or three?
Half a dozen?
A couple of hundred?
More than a thousand?
Presently, most researchers who study
personality traits agree that five, no
fewer than five dominant traits continue
to emerge from factor analytic techniques
Raymond B. Cattell found many more
personality traits (16)
Hans J. Eysenck insisted that only three major
factors can be discerned by a factor analytic
approach.
Is FIVE really the magic number?

3. KEY PROPONENTS
GOLDON ALLPORT
Commonsense approach yielded 5–10 traits
that are central to each person’s life.
Major contribution to Trait Theory, His
identification of nearly 18,000 trait names in
an unabridged English language dictionary
These trait names were the basis for Cattell’s
original work, and they continue to provide the
foundation for recent factor analytic studies.

4. KEY PROPONENTS
RAYMOND B. CATTEL
An important figure in the early years of
psychometrics (1905-1998).
Born in England but spent most of his career in
the US.
From the 18,000 trait names, he reduced the
number down to 171 by removing all the
synonym traits.
Cattell had only an indirect influence on McCrae
and Costa.

5. Raymond
Cattel
used an inductive method of
gathering data
used three different media of
observation to examine people
divided traits into common traits
(shared by many) and unique traits
(peculiar to one individual).
Classified traits; temperament,
motivation, and ability
McCrae and
Costa
Trait Theory of Personality
used an inductive method of
gathering data
limited to responses on
questionnaires
NEO-PI yielded score on only 5
personality factors
Multifaceted approach yielded 35 primary, or
first- order, traits, which measure mostly the
temperament dimension of personality. But 16 PF
is the most frequently studied of the normal
traits.

6. L DATA Q DATA T DATA
DATA COLLECTION
Person’s life record
Derived from observations
made by other people
Self-reports
Obtained from questionnaires
and other techniques designed
to allow people to make
subjective descriptions of
themselves
Objective tests
Measure performance such
as intelligence, speed of
responding, including
activities designed to
challenge people’s maximum
performance
Used Factor Analysis to shape his to 16 PF

7. Factor Analysis
the practice of condensing many variables into just a few, so that your
research data is easier to work with.
Performing a factor analysis involves a series of steps, often facilitated by
statistical software packages like SPSS

8. KEY PROPONENTS
ROBERT R. MCCRAE
Born on April 28, 1949 in Maryville, Missouri
Entered Michigan State University, to study
philosophy.
He entered graduate school at Boston
University with a major in psychology.
McCrae’s major professor was Henry
Weinberg, a clinical psychologist with only a
peripheral interest in personality traits which
nourishes McCrae’s interest in traits.
Found himself intrigued by the psychometric
work of Raymond Cattell.

9. KEY PROPONENTS
ROBERT R. MCCRAE
4 years into his PhD, his advisor sent him with
James Fozard, to work as a research assistant
Normative Aging Study at the Veterans
Administration Outpatient Clinic in Boston.
Fozard who referred McCrae to another
Boston-based personality psychologist, Paul
T. Costa Jr., A faculty at that time.
After PhD, Costa hired him as project director
and co-principal investigator for his Smoking
and Personality Grant which they worked on
for 2 years

10. KEY PROPONENTS
ROBERT R. MCCRAE
Hired by the National Institute on Aging’s
Gerontology Research Center, a division of the
National Institutes of Health (NIH) housed in
Baltimore.Took the position as senior staff
fellow.
Because the Gerontology Research Center
already had large, well-established datasets of
adults, it was an ideal place for Costa and
McCrae to investigate the question of how
personality is structured.

11. KEY PROPONENTS
ROBERT R. MCCRAE
During the 1970s, with the shadow of Mischel’s
influence still hanging heavily over the study of
personality and with the concept of traits
being nearly a taboo subject, Costa and
McCrae conducted work on traits that ensured
them a prominent role in the 40-year history of
analyzing the structure of personality.

12. KEY PROPONENTS
PAUL T. COSTA
Born on September 16, 1942 in Franklin,
New Hampshire
Undergraduate degree in psychology at
Clark University in 1964
Earned both his master’s (1968) and PhD
(1970) in human development from the
University of Chicago.
While at Chicago, he worked with Salvatore
R. Maddi, with whom he published a book on
humanistic personality theory
Taught for 2 years at Harvard and then from
1973 to 1978 at University of
Massachusetts–Boston.

13. KEY PROPONENTS
PAUL T. COSTA
Began working at the National Institute of
Aging’s Gerontology Research Center,
becoming the chief for the Section on Stress
and Coping and then in 1985 chief for the
Laboratory of Personality & Cognition.
He became president of Division 20 (Adult
Development and Aging) of the American
Psychological Association (APA).
Fellow of the American Psychological
Association in 1977 and president of the
International Society for the Study of
Individual Differences in 1995.

14. The collaboration between Costa and
McCrae has been unusually fruitful, with well
over 200 co-authored research articles and
chapters, and several books, including
Emerging Lives, Enduring Dispositions
(McCrae & Costa, 1984), Personality in
Adulthood: A Five-Factor Theory
Perspective, 2nd ed. (McCrae & Costa,
2003), and Revised NEO Personality
Inventory (Costa & McCrae, 1992).

15. Summary of their Working
Relationship
ROBERT R. MCCRAE
James Fozard, an adult developmental
psychologist at the Normative Aging
Study at the Veterans Administration
Outpatient Clinic in Boston.
Paul T. Costa Jr., who was on the
faculty at University of
Massachusetts at Boston.
Paul T. Costa Jr.,hired him as project
director and co-principal investigator
for his Smoking and Personality Grant
McCrae & Costa, worked at National
Institute on Aging’s Gerontology Research
Center, a division of the National Institutes
of Health (NIH) housed in Baltimore
McCrae & Costa, conducted work on traits
that ensured them a prominent role in the
40-year history of analyzing the structure of
personality.

16. Search for the Big FiveBegun by Allport and Odbert in the
1930s and continued by Cattell in the
1940s and by Tupes, Christal, and
Norman in the 1960s
Henry S. Odbert was a colleague of Gordon
AllportIn the late 1970s and early 1980s, Costa
and McCrae, were building elaborate
taxonomies of personality traits
Costa and McCrae focused initially on
Two Dimensions: Neuroticism and
Extraversion.
Costa and McCrae found a
third factor, which they called
openness to experience.
Costa and McCrae’s early
work remained focused on
these three dimensions
Lewis Goldberg had first
used the term “Big Five” in
1981

17. Big Five Found
1983, McCrae and Costa were arguing
for a three-factor model of personality.
1985 They begin to report work on the
five factors of personality using their
new five-factor personality inventory:
the NEO-PI
Costa and McCrae (1992) did not fully
develop the A and C scales until the
Revised NEO-PI appeared in 1992.
McCrae and Costa (1985,
1989) continued their work of
factor analyzing almost every
other major personality
inventory, including:
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
Eysenck Personality
Inventory

18. Your McCrae & Costa turned the
Big Five taxonomy into a full
theory;
McCrae & Costa, Murray's
Theory: Five Core Concepts
THE BIG FIVE
Openness
Conscientiousness
Extraversion
Agreeableness
Neuroticism

19. Factor High Score Low Score
OPENNESS - imagination,
curiosity, preference for variety
and novelty.
imaginative
creative
original
prefers variety
curious
liberal
inventive
down-to-earth
uncreative
conventional
prefers routine
cautious
conservative
consistent
BIG FIVE (OCEAN)
Most people score near the middle of
each trait, with only a few people
scoring at the extremes. How can
people at the extremes be described?

20. High-O (extreme): intensely curious, creative, seeks
novelty and abstract ideas.
Vignette: Liza changes careers to follow an artistic
impulse, delights in philosophy discussions, and collects
obscure art.
Low-O (extreme): conventional, prefers routines, skeptical
about novelty.
Vignette: Dante prefers tried-and-true methods, follows
traditions closely, and dislikes ambiguous or abstract
tasks.
OPENNESS

21. Factor High Score Low Score
CONSCIENTIOUSNESS -
responsibility, orderliness, self-
discipline, reliability.
conscientious
hardworking
well-organized
punctual
ambitious
persevering
efficient
negligent
lazy
disorganized
late
aimless
quitting
easy-going
Most people score near the middle of
each trait, with only a few people
scoring at the extremes. How can
people at the extremes be described?
BIG FIVE (OCEAN)

22. High-C (extreme): hyper-organized, perfectionistic, highly
achievement oriented.
Vignette: Nora structures every minute, rechecks work
repeatedly, and sets rigid standards that sometimes strain
relationships.
Low-C (extreme): careless, spontaneous, disorganized.
Vignette: Ben misses deadlines, improvises work methods,
and prefers loose schedules.
CONSCIENTIOUSNESS

23. Factor High Score Low Score
EXTRAVERSION - sociability,
assertiveness, positive-affect,
gregariousness.
affectionate
joiner
talkative
fun loving
active
passionate
outgoing
reserved
loner
quiet
sober
passive
unfeeling
solitary
Most people score near the middle of
each trait, with only a few people
scoring at the extremes. How can
people at the extremes be described?
BIG FIVE (OCEAN)

24. High-E (extreme): seeks constant social stimulation,
thrives on group attention and public roles.
Vignette: Ana loves hosting events, volunteers for
leadership, and feels energized after long social evenings.
Low-E / Introversion (extreme): prefers solitude or small,
predictable interactions; drains quickly from large social
gatherings.
Vignette: Joel avoids office parties, prefers deep one-on-
one conversations, and needs long quiet evenings to
recharge.
EXTRAVERSION

25. Factor High Score Low Score
AGRREABLENESS - trust,
altruism, cooperativeness,
warmth.
softhearted
trusting
generous
acquiescent
lenient
good-natured
friendly
compassionate
ruthless
suspicious
stingy
antagonistic
critical
irritable
challenging
detached
Most people score near the middle of
each trait, with only a few people
scoring at the extremes. How can
people at the extremes be described?
BIG FIVE (OCEAN)

26. High-A (extreme): extremely trusting, conflict-avoidant,
highly cooperative—even to a fault.
Vignette: Mae always mediates fights, gives away her time
even when burned out, and rarely says “no.”
Low-A (extreme): blunt, competitive, skeptical of others’
motives.
Vignette: Ruel speaks frankly, defends his turf in team
meetings, and often clashes with colleagues.
AGREEABLENESS

27. Factor High Score Low Score
NEUROTICISM - tendency to
experience negative emotion
anxious
temperamental
self-pitying
self-conscious
emotional
vulnerable
sensitive
nervous
calm
even-tempered
self-satisfied
comfortable
unemotional
hardy
secure
confident
Most people score near the middle of
each trait, with only a few people
scoring at the extremes. How can
people at the extremes be described?
BIG FIVE (OCEAN)

28. High-N (extreme): chronically anxious, easily overwhelmed,
frequent worry about health and relationships; may avoid new
experiences for fear of negative outcomes.
Vignette: Marisol checks her phone repeatedly, catastrophizes
minor setbacks at work into life-ruining disasters, and often
reports frequent panic-like episodes.
Low-N (extreme): unusually calm and emotionally steady, even
in crises; may appear unshakable or emotionally detached.
Vignette: Ramon stays cool when deadlines collapse, reframes
setbacks as “data,” and rarely shows visible distress.
NEUROTICISM

29. Six Units of
Personality in
Five Factor
Theory (FFT)
(Factor-analytic taxonomy)
converged into an agreed model
(Five-Factor Model, FFM)
To form a theory (Five-Factor
Theory, FFT)
to form a theory (Five-Factor Theory, FFT) that aims to
explain and predict how traits arise and act. Feist
summarizes this historical movement and the authors’
own switch from model to theory.

31. DEFINITION
Basic tendencies are the biologically-based, enduring
dispositions and capacities that provide the raw material for
personality; they are relatively stable across time and
situations.
EXAMPLE
A lifelong tendency toward high Conscientiousness that
predisposes someone to be punctual and reliable across
jobs and relationships.
Basic Tendencies

32. DEFINITION
Characteristic adaptations are the situation- and culture-
sensitive, acquired expressions of basic tendencies, the
concrete habits, roles, goals, values, skills, and coping
strategies that show how traits are manifested in everyday
life. They are more plastic than basic tendencies.
EXAMPLE
Two highly conscientious people may adapt differently —
one organizes with a digital planner, another with strict
morning routines.
Characteristic Adaptations

33. DEFINITION
Self-concept is the organized set of self-schemas, personal
narratives and meanings that a person uses to interpret
experience and guide choices; in FFT it’s treated as a
central kind of characteristic adaptation.
EXAMPLE
someone high in Agreeableness constructing a self-view of
“I am a helper,” which shapes career choice (e.g., nursing).
Self-Concept
treated as part of characteristic adaptations)

34. DEFINITION
Biological bases are the genetic architecture,
neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, hormones, and other
biological processes that underpin and causally influence
basic tendencies FFT treats them as the primary causal
engine for traits.
EXAMPLE
Twin/adoption research and neuroanatomical correlates
that link heritability and trait variability.
Biological BasesPeripheral units (mediate or follow
from core units):

35. DEFINITION
the sequential, objective record of life events, roles,
behaviours, and outcomes (education, jobs, relationships,
diagnoses) that arise from the interaction of characteristic
adaptations with external influences.
EXAMPLE
An extravert’s repeated leadership roles become the
objective biography of social engagement.
Objective BiographyPeripheral units (mediate or follow
from core units):

36. DEFINITION
External influences are the social, cultural, situational and
contextual forces that shape which characteristic
adaptations develop and how traits are expressed in
behavior they moderate expression but (per FFT) do not
create basic tendencies.
EXAMPLE
Cultural values (e.g., group harmony) can shape how
Agreeableness is expressed in behavior. Feist uses the
opera example (Joan) to show external influence interacting
with adaptations.
External InfluencesPeripheral units (mediate or follow
from core units):

37. Strong empirical support &
measurement tools — FFT/Big Five are
backed by decades of factor-analytic
and replication work; NEO inventories
are central measurement tools.
Cross-cultural replication — many
studies show the Big Five replicates
across many nations.
Stability & predictiveness — traits are
relatively stable (especially after ~age
30) and predict life outcomes (work
performance, health, relationships).

38. Descriptive orientation (taxonomy >
mechanism) — criticized for limited
causal explanation of how traits
originate and change in mechanistic
detail.
Strong biological emphasis / “origin”
claim contested — gives endogenous
(biological/genetic) causes a central
role (origin postulate), which raises
debates about environmental
influence and developmental
complexity (epigenetics, nonshared
environments).

39. Cultural gaps — Feist notes
exceptions and
measurement/translation
problems (e.g., low
Agreeableness reliability in some
Asian samples). This suggests
possible additional culturally
salient dimensions (e.g.,
interpersonal relatedness).

40. Modern Applications
of Five-Factor Trait
Theory
The Big Five is useful in application
towards these fields in example;
Clinical Psychology and Therapy
Education
Human Resources
Coaching and Personal Development
Team Building
Scientific Research

41. Modern Applications
of Five-Factor Trait
Theory
The Big Five is useful in application
towards these fields in example;
Clinical Psychology and Therapy
Education
Human Resources
Coaching and Personal Development
Team Building
Scientific Research

42. Research shows that the Five-Factor Model (FFM) is broadly
applicable in the Philippines, but local cultural values shape
how traits are expressed and measured.
Studies have shown that trait constructs measured by the two
earlier Filipino personality inventories and a lexically based
Filipino personality research instrument are well represented
by the Five-Factor Model Filipino psychologist aims to aims to
comprehensively measure personality trait constructs of
theoretical and practical significance in Filipino culture which
led to the creation of Masaklaw na Panukat ng Loob (MaPa ng
Loob), a 188-item personality inventory, that measures
twenty-eight trait constructs based on the Five-Factor Model.
Relevance Filipino
Psychology

43. Filipino Culture and The
Big 5 Theory
Openness to Experience:
A Filipino trait like "hiyang" could be seen as a
manifestation of openness, though it can also tie into
a need to fit in socially.
In MaPa: The “O” facets identified by Mapa were:
kakaibang pag-iisip (original thinking), hilig sa
bagong kaalaman (intellectual curiosity),
pagkamasining (aesthetic sensitivity) and
pagkamaharaya (imaginativeness).

44. Filipino Culture and The
Big 5 Theory
Conscientiousness:
While the Filipino culture values hard work, a lack of
discipline in certain areas might contrast with the strict
interpretation of the trait. Such as “Filipino Time”
In MaPa: Traits in “C” are pagkamasikap (goalstriving),
pagkamapagplano (planfulness), pagkaresponsable
(responsibility) and pagkamaingat (carefulness).

45. Filipino Culture and The
Big 5 Theory
Agreeableness and Extraversion
For Filipino work with teams, schools, or families,
interpret Agreeableness and Extraversion through
local norms of deference, pakikisama, and
kapwa/pakikipagkapwa rather than through Western
individualistic templates

46. Filipino Culture and The
Big 5 Theory
In MaPa: “E” is interest in engaging one’s social and
physical environment, with traits pagkamasayahin
(cheerfulness), pagkapalakaibigan (friendliness),
pagkamasigla (energy), and pagkamadaldal
(loquaciousness).
“A” is characterized by empathy, altruism and
concern for others. The “A” traits are
pagkadimayabang (modesty), p a g k a – m a p a g t i
w a l a (trust), pagka-maunawain (capacity for
understanding), and pagkamapagparaya
(obligingness).

47. Filipino Culture and The
Big 5 Theory
Neuroticism
While resilience and optimism are strengths Filipino’s
have, the tendency to be affected by shame or strong
emotional connections to family could
.
In MaPa: “N” is distinguished by general emotional
instability. “N” traits are hina ng loob (vulnerability to
stress), pagkamaramdamin (oversensitiveness),
pagkamapagalala (apprehensiveness) and
pagkamasumpungin (temperamentalness).

48. Weisenham
Tech Solutions Thank
You!

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