Essay on Neuroticism and The Five Factor Model

the five personality factor theory, as well as the theories on which it is based.

The five-factor model (FFM) is a contemporary construct describing personality. It incorporates five traits – openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness and neuroticism also referred to as OCEAN. Within each dimension, there are specific personality attributes, for example, openness includes subcategories of feelings and actions. The FFM was influenced by Cattell’s 16-factor model (1957) and shares traits with many other personality theories such as Eysenck’s PEN model. There has been an ongoing debate discussing how many factors appropriately represent the brain structure of personality, suggestions have varied from 2-7, recently Almagor et al. (1995) advocated that a 7-factor model unfolds when evaluative traits are involved. Costa & Mcrae (1992) claim that the FFM is the best theory of personality, however, the model has received much criticism. Through examining different aspects of the model its credibility can be explored.

They will often have strong reactions to even minor negative events and have a hard time handling stressful situations. Conversely, someone who is low on neuroticism will rarely experience strong negative states and will be much more stable emotionally. They will generally stay calm and handle stressful situations well. Choosing neuroticism as our second independent variable allows us to fill gaps in the previous research by examining the possibility of implicit egotism caused by negative self-associations and learning more about how personality traits affect implicit egotism.

The single trait approach is a way of analyzing personality by taking one trait a person exhibits and using that to predict many behaviors from it (Funder, 2016). For Charles Evans Whittaker, the most pronounced trait in his later years was his neuroticism, which ultimately led to his breakdown and retirement from the Supreme Court. Neuroticism is one of the Big Five Personality Traits and is marked by emotional instability and negative emotions (Funder, 2016). Neuroticism is also characterized by indecisiveness and stress, as well as negative reactions to stress (Funder, 2016). A study done by Schneider, Rench, Lyons, and Riffle, found that neuroticism indirectly made performance worse (Schneider, Rench, Lyons, & Riffle, 2011). They investigated several Big Five traits to see how they affected stress responses. What was found in this study concurs with the textbook that neuroticism has a high impact on stress, and in highly stressful situations neuroticism is linked to poorer outcomes (Schneider, et all 2011). IT was also found that people higher in neuroticism were more likely to have higher threat appraisals for stressful tasks (Schneider, et all 2011). This means that participants viewed what was expected of them was more demanding than the resources they had to cope with that demand (Schneider, et all 2011). One factor that can affect high or low neuroticism is the gene 5 HTT. If a person has the short allele for 5 HTT, which affects serotonin levels, and is presented with a stressful environment they are more likely to experience depression after a stressful event (Funder, 2016). The gene also regulates serotonin found in the amygdala. Although the single trait is being used here to discuss aspects of Whittaker’s personality, the behavioral genetics behind serotonin

inspection can be analyzed and broken down. Personality, when broken down, is really just a

The tendency to be emotionally reactive, anxious, susceptible to stress, hostile, and insecure would describe the traits of a person with neuroticism or neurotic tendencies, neuroticism is rated low on effectiveness according to the Factor Five Model. Goodall’s attempts to gain access to chimpanzee’s habit required hours of quiet reflection and meditation, she sat for weeks before the first chimp approached her. This kind of diligence and perseverance is not expected from a person with neurotic tendency. Nor do I see neurotic qualities in myself.

Neuroticism is characterized by emotional instability, impulsivity, hostility, self-consciousness, and proneness towards stress (Costa & McCrae, 1992). Individuals who are high in hostility are more inclined to interpret ambiguous behaviour as provocative and react in a defensive, aggressive, or distrustful manner. This leads these individuals to experience

Finally, neuroticism has more of a group of specific traits, which is easier to narrow and link together; N co-occurs among people (Larsen & Buss, 2013, p.70). A major trait in P tends to be that of a worrier and that they also have tendencies to suffer from anxiety/depression.

Neuroticism has seemed to be an influential trait in my personality from a young age. Though I have been told that I was not a fussy baby, I do know that as I got older I seemed to become more easily emotionally affected. The emotions I typically would express are those of sadness, worry, or anxiety instead of anger or aggressiveness. These feelings have increased with age due to deeper introspection in addition to more difficult life circumstances and greater daily

Neuroticism is how easily the person will experience unpleasant emotions, such as depression, anger, and anxiety (sevencounties.org). This will measure how the person will be able to handle uncomfortable situations involved with these emotions. In the workplace we don’t only have to deal with consumers, we also have to deal with our fellow coworkers. This will help prepare someone for the workplace.

Analyses shows that personality changes throughout life as different personality traits are used and forgotten. The results are generalized and don’t always apply to people but typically the results are correct.

I would classify my most advantageous trait to be scoring very low on the neuroticism scale. I have the ability to remain calm in the most stressful situations. Most would believe the neuroticism would be a negative trait. The word neuroticism, taken from the word neurotic has a negative connotation. Neuroticism is defined as being characterized as full of anxiety, fear, moodiness, worry, envy, frustration, loneliness and jealousy. I personally scored very low on this personality trait. The low score would categorize me as very calm, secure, hardy, relaxed and stable. The spectrum of these traits all lend to handling tense situations with a calm, collected even temperament. Performing managerial duties on a daily basis requires one to be all of these traits and more.

To understand personality there are three main aspects that must be looked at: LArsen and Buss Definition of personality, The Six Domains of knowledge of personality, and Costa and McCrae's Five Factor Theory. In this essay I will first break down larsen and Buss definition and connect it to the domains, then connect the domains to the five factor thoery (FFT).

Personality has been inherently defined as possession of a particular set of characteristics possessed by people which influences their behaviour and reactions in different situation along with their motivation level to react to difficulties at the workplace. However, understanding personality traits and their development has been a contentious matter. Nonetheless, various theories have been forwarded to rather contribute to this contentious debate. For example employers set goals and encourage involvement with the company to have a better employee performance, which would result in higher motivation level subsequently leading to increased efficiency. Studies regarding the relationship between personality traits of a particular employee

Personality is a large part of being human, as each person has a unique set of characteristics and traits. One person can be kind and patient and another can be rude and ill tempered. This variability is both what makes the study of personality fascinating and incredibly difficult. Although there are a myriad of different personality traits that can be used to describe a person, psychologists have narrowed it down to five overarching ideas. These are commonly referred to as the “Big Five” personality traits and they consist of, neuroticism, extraversion, agreeableness, openness, and conscientiousness. In particular, this study will focus on neuroticism, the trait that is characterized by high emotionality and instability, anxiety, and irritability (Soto, John, Gosling, & Potter 2011). Of the five, neuroticism is the only one with a negative connotation, which separates it from the others. Nonetheless, despite its poor reputation, neuroticism is an incredibly important trait to study as it is often linked with anxiety and depression (Soto et al., 2011). For example, one study found that participants who were clinically depressed and those who were not but scored highly on the neuroticism scale both had significantly greater negative self-perceptions (Thomson, 2016). Although currently there is only a correlation between these mental disorders and neuroticism, further experimentation could lead to more conclusive result. Recently, mental health has