This dissertation consists of two essays. The first essay draws on psychology theories to propose a framework for incorporating personality variables into the study of performance control systems. The second essay reports an experiment to highlight the implications of one component of this framework: the efficacy of exogenously assigned performance control systems can depend on the personality types of employees who are subject to these systems. / text

For the study the Keirsey Bates Temperament Sorter was completed by 602 pharmacy students during their study period at the University of the Western Cape. The results showed that the pharmacy students had a tendency towards the Extraversion, Sensing, Feeling and Judging Personality Type Preferences. Personality Temperaments of the pharmacy students were also compared with the general population and it was found that there were statistically significant more students with the SJ Personality Temperaments and statistically significant less students with the SP Personality Temperaments in the pharmacy population than in the general population. This study very clearly points out the value of using the Keirsey Bates Temperament Sorter as an aid, not only in guiding the student in the process of career choice, but also facilitating the placing of the newly qualified pharmacist in his or her choice of practice setting.

For the study the Keirsey Bates Temperament Sorter was completed by 602 pharmacy students during their study period at the University of the Western Cape. The results showed that the pharmacy students had a tendency towards the Extraversion, Sensing, Feeling and Judging Personality Type Preferences. Personality Temperaments of the pharmacy students were also compared with the general population and it was found that there were statistically significant more students with the SJ Personality Temperaments and statistically significant less students with the SP Personality Temperaments in the pharmacy population than in the general population. This study very clearly points out the value of using the Keirsey Bates Temperament Sorter as an aid, not only in guiding the student in the process of career choice, but also facilitating the placing of the newly qualified pharmacist in his or her choice of practice setting.

Magister Pharmaceuticae - MPharm / For the study the Keirsey Bates Temperament Sorter was completed by 602 pharmacy students during their study period at the University of the Western Cape. The results showed that the pharmacy students had a tendency towards the Extraversion, Sensing, Feeling and Judging Personality Type Preferences. Personality Temperaments of the pharmacy students were also compared with the general population and it was found that there were statistically significant more students with the SJ Personality Temperaments and statistically significant less students with the SP Personality Temperaments in the pharmacy population than in the general population. This study very clearly points out the value of using the Keirsey Bates Temperament Sorter as an aid, not only in guiding the student in the process of career choice, but also facilitating the placing of the newly qualified pharmacist in his or her choice of practice setting. / South Africa

The objectives of the study were: (1) to determine whether staff and leaders differ significantly in terms of their perceptions of leaders’ emotional intelligence and retention factors; (2) to investigate the relationship between personality types (as measured by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator), emotional intelligence (as measured by the Emotional Competency Profiler), and retention factors (as measured by the Retention Factor Scale); and (3) to determine whether demographical groups differ significantly in terms of the retention factor variables. A non-probability purposive sample of 160 working adults from an organisation within the asset management industry participated in the study. The research findings indicated that there is a difference in terms of leaders’ and staff’s perceptions of leaders’ emotional intelligence and retention factors. There is a relationship between leaders’ personality types, emotional intelligence and retention factors. Biographical groups (gender, race and age groups, and business units) differed in terms of the retention factors. The findings contributed valuable new knowledge that may be used for organisational retention practices. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology

The objectives of the study were: (1) to determine whether staff and leaders differ significantly in terms of their perceptions of leaders’ emotional intelligence and retention factors; (2) to investigate the relationship between personality types (as measured by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator), emotional intelligence (as measured by the Emotional Competency Profiler), and retention factors (as measured by the Retention Factor Scale); and (3) to determine whether demographical groups differ significantly in terms of the retention factor variables. A non-probability purposive sample of 160 working adults from an organisation within the asset management industry participated in the study. The research findings indicated that there is a difference in terms of leaders’ and staff’s perceptions of leaders’ emotional intelligence and retention factors. There is a relationship between leaders’ personality types, emotional intelligence and retention factors. Biographical groups (gender, race and age groups, and business units) differed in terms of the retention factors. The findings contributed valuable new knowledge that may be used for organisational retention practices. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology

Even though information scientists generally recognize that relevance judgments are multidimensional and dynamic, there is still discussion and debate regarding the degree to which certain internal (cognition, personality) and external (situation, social relationships) factors affect the use of criteria in reaching those judgments. Much of the debate centers on the relationship of those factors to the criteria and reliable methods for measuring those relationships. This study researched the use of relevance criteria to select an information source by undergraduate students whose task it is to create a course schedule for a semester. During registration periods, when creating their semester schedules, students filled out a two-part questionnaire. After completion of the questionnaire the students completed a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator instrument in order to determine their personality type. Data was analyzed using one-way ANOVAS and Chi-Square. A positive correlation exists between personality type as expressed by the MBTI and the information source selected as most important by the subject. A correlation also exists between personality type and relevance criteria use. The correlation is stronger for some criteria than for others. Therefore, one can expect personality type to have an effect on the use of relevance criteria while selecting information sources.

The study is an attempt to measure psychopathic tendencies in the girl who becomes pregnant out of wedlock compared with the average non-pregnant college co-ed. This characteristic, when evidenced in a subject's personality, may be reflected in a High T score on the Pd scale of the 1MPI.

The extensive use of leadership training in industry suggests a need for validated information concerning the role of interpersonal behavior in the study of leadership styles. Early leadership research focused primarily on the traits of a leader. Subsequent research has attempted to f a correlation between leader behavior and personality type. Findings indicate that personality typologies, which include attitude and value constructs, are too broad to explain leader behavior. In order to move toward specificity in the study of leadership, it is necessary to determine if interpersonal behavior styles are related to leader behavior. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of variables from data gathered on leadership styles from the Leader Behavior Analysis and variables related to interpersonal behavior reported from the Social Style of Behavior Profile. The dimensions of leadership style flexibility and social style of behavior versatility were also examined. A random sample of 100 corporate employees were used in this study. The research instruments that were tested for independence were the Leader Behavior Analysis and the Social Style of Behavior Profile. The results of this study indicate that the constructs of leadership style and social style are independent dimensions. Additionally, the results of the study indicate that the constructs of leader flexibility and social style versatility are independent dimensions.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Student retention is a problem that continues to plaque higher education institutions whose ultimate goal is to graduate students. The reported national student retention average in 2006 was between 58 and 71.6 percent, depending on to which statistics you refer. The importance for the academic community is that “the loss of students returning to campus for another year usually results in greater financial loss and a lower graduation rate for the institution, and might also affect the way that stakeholders, legislators, parents, and students view the institution” (Lau, 2003). In order to combat low student retention rates, many have initiated a variety of programs and strategic measures to increase students’ likelihood to complete their education. These initiatives can be found in the form of committees designated to conduct research and subsequently implement programs, colleges hiring outside consultants to assist with retention strategies, and the implementation of “student success” courses into the existing curriculum. Additional measures at the campus level may include: retention merit initiatives, student satisfaction and instructor surveys, and re-entry campaigns to target withdrawn students. According to Tinto (2002), “Most institutions, in my view, have not taken student retention seriously. They have done little to change the way they organize their activities, done little to alter the student experience, and therefore done little to address the deeper roots of student attrition”. The author faults the institutions that attempt to combat the issue by simply adding a course that is “marginal to the academic life of the institution”. While he does not directly address using personality or learning styles as a tool to combat student attrition, he states that, “Institutions that are successful in building settings that educate their students, all students, not just some, are institutions that are successful in retaining their students”. This research will provide an in depth look at existing personality type and retention data, an examination of communication incidents as reported by both “graduates” and “withdrawn” students, and recommendations for implementing personality-based communication techniques in the classroom in an effort to enhance overall student satisfaction. Considering the explosive growth of web-based distance education courses and program offerings, additional considerations will be made to address the online learning environment and its unique communicative needs. It is my assertion that both student retention and overall satisfaction can be enhanced with knowledge of existing personality and learning types of both students and teachers and a modification of the communication processes to fit students’ varying styles and communicative needs. By conducting a very basic level of research on personality types, one can find an abundance of information, each assessment claiming to be more effective than the others. Several textbooks, websites, and employer profiling systems guide users to various paper or web based tests which solicit descriptors of one’s own behavior, characteristics, and tendencies. First published in 1962, one widely recognized psychometric questionnaire used frequently in career counseling is the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Respondents are asked to answer 93 forced-choice questions based on their preference of two words or short statements. The results are given in the form of a four letter abbreviation, each letter representing one of their four type preferences based on four dichotomies. The four dichotomies are Extraversion vs. Introversion, Sensing vs. Intuition, Thinking vs. Feeling, and Judging vs. Perceiving. “The MBTI suggests general areas of life, or careers, in which persons are most apt to be interested, motivated, and successful” (Van, 1992, p. 20). As described by John (1990), “The five-factor model is a descriptive framework within which all the important individual differences in personality are subsumed under five global traits” (as quoted in Wolfe & Johnson, 1995, p. 178). The Five Factor Model identifies the “Big Five” personality traits of its respondents and presents them as percentile scores. Measures are comprised of either self-descriptive sentences or adjectives. The Big Five factors are as follows: Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism. “A personality taxonomy such as the “16-factor model developed by Cattell (1965), posits that there are 16 primary personality factors” (Lidy & Kahn, 2006, p. 124). Through extensive research on the subject, and self assessing with a variety of these tests, the model I have chosen to highlight here is the DiSC personality assessment. The tool measures personality types based on a word association that offers a number of descriptors and asks participants to select the one that is “most like” and “least like” them. The in-depth profile then provides a bar graph measure of each of the four dimensions and a “classical pattern” to the participants. The four dimensions of the assessment are as follows: D (Dominant), i (Influencer), S (Steadiness), C (Conscientiousness).