<p>The sick building syndrome (SBS) comprises eye, nose, skin, and throat symptoms, headache and fatigue. Gender, personality aspects, and psychosocial factors at work have lately been at focus in health research. The main aim of this thesis was to investigate the relationships between SBS and personal factors, personality traits, and psychosocial work stress. Two different populations were studied: a cohort of 195 subjects working in suspected “sick buildings” followed 1988-1999, and a random sample of 695 subjects from the Swedish population, 20-65 y. Two personality scales were used; the Karolinska Scales of Personality (KSP) and the Sense of Coherence (SOC). Two stress questionnaires were used: the 3-dimensional demands-control-support model (DCS) and the Assessment of Perceived Psychosocial Work Environment (PPWE). SBS and personal factors were assessed by a postal symptoms questionnaire and a symptom score (SC) was calculated. Personality was assessed by means of two verbal personality scales, the KSP and the SOC. Females in problem buildings had more SBS than men, and females had a lower SOC and more anxiety and aggressivity in the KSP. Females and males in the general working population reported differences in psychosocial work environment. Moreover, the associations between personality traits and SBS, and between DCS and SBS, differed between males and females. Over all, the investigated occupants of suspected sick-buildings were within the normal range for both KSP and SOC norms. However, those with symptoms showed prominent personality vulnerability, especially in anxiety, aggressivity, and lower SOC, compared to those that were not reporting symptoms. Female gender, low age, asthma, and a history of atopy were related to SBS in the general working population. A combination of low social support and either passive, strained, or active work situation, as well as a combination of high social support and active work situation, were associated with SBS. In conclusion, measurements of personality and psychosocial work environment could be of value in future studies on environmental syndromes. Moreover, the demans-control-support model can predict SBS, but in a more complex way than indicated by earlier research. </p>

Public and private sectors are grappling with decreasing numbers of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) professionals as the need for them rises. State-supported STEM residential high schools may be the premier conduit to educate and socialize students in order to prepare for STEM college majors and careers. Gaining understanding of how these schools can nurture students academically and affectively so that they successfully matriculate to university STEM settings is valuable; however, minimal research exists related to the affective domain in relationship to retention at state-supported STEM residential schools. This exploratory, mixed methods case study describes factors that contribute to student persistence in a residential school setting. This study had four purposes: a) to describe students’ meaning of belonging at a STEM residential school; b) to explore potential relationships between students’ personality traits, expectations fulfillment, and belonging; c) to explore potential relationships between belonging and persistence, expectation fulfillment and persistence, and personality traits and persistence, and d) to describe characteristics of persistors and non-persistors. Participants in the study were the student population of the Tennessee Governor’s Academy for Mathematics and Science (TGA) (n = 41). Following interviews of the population, qualitative analysis of the interviews included pattern coding and creation of an explanatory effects matrix; quantitative analysis of survey data utilized ANOVA, chi-square, and correlation. Results of analyses produced a student-generated, multidimensional definition of belonging and showed that students who perceived they belonged and expressed institutional commitment via ownership of TGA had the highest persistence rate (100%). Quantitative findings showed that students whose expectations for TGA were met or exceeded had a higher sense of belonging, and belonging was associated with higher persistence. The personality traits agreeableness, conscientiousness, openness, and work drive were significantly related to belonging, suggesting that sense of belonging may function as a moderator between personality traits and expectation fulfillment. For future study, a longitudinal design is recommended as well as incorporation of the variable educational practices in relation to the variables expectation fulfillment, personality, belonging, and persistence.

The present study focuses on the relationship between personality and Life Satisfaction. I analyzed the Big Five traits, six Narrow personality traits, and levels of Life Satisfaction in a sample of 5,932 individuals. A review of existing literature on other variables that contribute to Life Satisfaction was also conducted and used to measure against personality traits. The narrow traits added variance above and beyond the Big Five personality traits. All the Big Five traits and Optimism, Assertiveness, Intrinsic Motivation, and Tough-Mindedness were significantly and positively correlated with Life Satisfaction. Image Management was significantly and negatively correlated with Life Satisfaction. Results were discussed in terms of the relation of personality traits to Life Satisfaction and the amount narrow personality traits related to Life Satisfaction after controlling for the Big Five. Explanations were offered as to how these traits might have value in relation to Life Satisfaction.

A severe burn is a trauma fraught with stress and pain and may change the entire course of life. This thesis focuses on care utilisation, care experiences and patient satisfaction after a severe burn. The patients studied were treated at the Burn Unit at Uppsala University Hospital between 1980 and 2006. Burn-related health was examined using the Burn Specific Health Scale-Brief (BSHS-B), personality traits with the Swedish universities Scales of Personality (SSP), psychological symptoms using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale (HADS), symptoms of posttraumatic stress with the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) and satisfaction with care using the Patient Satisfaction-Results and Quality (PS-RESKVA) questionnaire. Those utilising care years after injury reported poorer functioning on three of the BSHS-B subscales. Personality traits had a greater impact on care utilisation than injury severity. Social desirability was lower among care utilisers and was associated with burn-related health aspects. The participants reported a low level of negative care experiences, the most common of which was Powerlessness. Most patients were satisfied with care, more with quality of contact with the nursing staff, and less with treatment information. Multiple regressions showed that the BSHS-B Interpersonal relationships subscale was an independent variable related to all measured aspects of patient satisfaction. The highest adjusted R2 was 0.25. In a prospective assessment with multiple regression analyses, Age and Education, the personality traits of Stress susceptibility, Trait irritability, Detachment and Social desirability, in addition to the post-traumatic stress symptoms Intrusion and Hyperarousal, were predictors of satisfaction with care. The highest adjusted R2 was 0.19. The thesis has pointed out that interpersonal factors are related to care utilisation as well as satisfaction with care. However, satisfaction with care was only moderately associated with health and individual characteristics, which may imply that the care itself is of major importance.

Wilson's disease (WD), bepatolenticular degeneration, is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by mutations in the ATP7B gene, and is characterised by abnormal metabolism and deposition of copper in the liver, brain and other organs. The main aim of this thesis was to investigate the occurrence of psychopathology, as well as personality traits and neuropsychological function in Swedish patients with treated WD. The research subjects were 29 patients with confirmed WD, investigated at the Department of Internal Medicine at Uppsala University Hospital between 1996 and 2000. The treated WD patients showed prominent psychopathology as determined by the Comprehensive Psychopathological Rating Scale. The spectrum of psychopathological symptoms is not typical of classic psychiatric syndromes, and includes symptoms from Anxiety, Depression and Obsessive-Compulsive disorders as well as Negative Symptoms. In self-assessment, the WD patients tended to underestimate the presence of psychopathological symptoms. The treated WD patients differed in their sleep pattern from the control group, as measured with the Uppsala Sleep Inventory. The spectrum of self-reported symptoms suggests an altered REM sleep function. The treated WD patients had significant deviations in personality traits, especially in aggressivity-hostility related scales and Psychic anxiety, compared to healthy controls, as measured with the Karolinska Scales of Personality. The deviations were not related to age, age at onset or duration of WD. The treated WD patients displayed a specific profile of moderate neuropsychological impairment, as determined by the Automated Psychological Test battery. Finally, an attempt was made to search for, possible genotype-phenotype relationships in some ATP7B mutations.

This study was aimed to identify the personality traits and individual differences that might predict the attitude toward motor insurance in Turkey. Demographic information, personality traits, self-esteem and locus of control were explored as the predictors of attitude toward motor insurance. Results were obtained from 343 people (201 males, 142 females) who participated an online questionnaire through internet or completed the printed form. Computer administered multi scaled questionnaire and printed form were used for data collection. The questionnaire includes Basic Personality Traits Inventory, Locus of Control Inventory, Self-Esteem Inventory and Motor Insurance Attitude Inventory in addition to demographic information form. The results of the survey indicated that gender, conscientiousness and openness to experience have power of prediction on the level of attitude toward insurance. According to the results, women have more positive attitude toward motor insurance than men. Also high levels of conscientiousness and openness to experience result in higher levels of positive attitude toward motor insurance. The findings of the study were discussed in the light of the literature and in relation to the implications of insurance ownership in Turkey. Limitations of the study and suggestions for future researches were also discussed.

‘Animal personality’ refers to individual behavioural differences that are consistent over time and context. Physiological constraints are suggested to underlie this constraint in behavioural plasticity. As energy is required for physiological processes that generate behaviour, energy metabolism could be a proximate explanation for personality. Currently, the most coherent framework linking behaviour, metabolism and life history-traits is still poorly tested empirically, and studies are showing contradicting results. Therefore, I here aim to explore this relationship further by investigating the relationship between basal metabolic rate (BMR) and personality in Red Junglefowl (Gallus gallus). Birds used had known responses in personality assays, and their metabolic rates were measured by determining oxygen consumption in standardized conditions throughout the night using an open respirometry system. BMR was negatively correlated with time spent foraging, and positively correlated with time spent being vigilant. Considering foraging an ‘activity’ (due to its energy-demand), my results support the allocation model, a model that assumes that an animal has a fixed amount of energy, thus that an energetic trade-off occur between competing energy requiring processes such as BMR and activity. Hence, an animal with low BMR has more energy to spend on activity. However, I do not consider vigilance as an energy-demanding activity; hence this relationship cannot be interpreted in this framework. Taken together, my results show a relationship between personality and BMR, although their relationship still needs further investigation to understand the causality and consequences of it.

This paper is intended to serve as a supporting document for the exhibition Collective Case Studies that was held in The Gallery, at Sheridan College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning. In Collective Case Studies, the head sculptures act as blank slates for my expression of personality archetypes. They embody a longstanding interest in the psyche, character and identity that continues to influence my art-making practice. These sculptures introduce a particular personality trait or present a case study to make human idiosyncrasies manifest in visual terms, both individually and relationally. Collectively, the works are inspired by psycho-social aspects of personality, including archetypes and stereotypes, in the past and present time. The leading sources for my work are psychological, cross-cultural and empirical.

Dagens olika marknader består vanligtvis av många konkurrenter där alla konkurrerar om samma kunder vilket kräver mer av företagen att sticka ut från mängden och göra sig mer konkurrenskraftiga. En djup relation med kunden är därför av en stor betydelse som bland annat kan uppnås genom varumärket. Ett varumärke har vissa personliga egenskaper som ger konsumenter en underlig- gande betydelse. Dessa egenskaper sätter sig som undermedvetna bilder hos konsu- menterna och speglar företagets verksamhet. Denna personlighet som skapas är en av de viktiga delarna i relationen mellan företaget och konsumenten. Men även kon- sumenter har olika personlighetsdimensioner som attraheras av specifika personligheter hos varumärket. Varumärkets särskiljande personlighet är därför en viktig nyckel till varumärkets framgång Tidigare studier har påvisat att det förekommer ett signifikant samband mellan varumärkets personlighet och varumärkets lojalitet Det finns ännu ingen studie som lyckats påvisa att det förekommer ett signifikant samband mellan konsumenternas personlighet och varumärkets personlighet inom banksektorn. Därför är syftet med denna uppsats att undersöka om det förekommer ett samband mellan en banks varumärke i relation till konsumenternas personlighet. Studien är uppbyggd av primärdatan som insamlats genom den kvalitativa metoden, enkätundersökningar. Den kvalitativa metoden är bäst lämpade för att kunna göra rättvisa jämförelser med tidigare studiers resultat. Datan insamlades genom ett samarbete med Sparbanken 1826 från deras kunder. Studiens resultat kan ge en indikation på hur väl banken har lyckats med att ge kunderna rätt uppfattning om deras varumärke. / Today are various markets usually consisted of many competitors, which all compete for the same customers and requiring more of them to stand out from the crowd and make themselves more competitive. A deep relationship with the customer is therefore of great importance that among other things can be achieved by the brand. A brand has certain personal characteristics that give consumers an underlying meaning. These properties sit as subconscious images of the consumers and mirrors in accordance with the company's operations. This personality that’s created is one of the important elements in the relationship between the company and the consum- er. But consumers have different personality traits that are attracted to specific personalities of the brand. The brand's distinctive personality is an important key to the brand's success Previous studies have shown a significant relationship between brand personality and brand loyalty in different sectors. Something that hasn’t yet been proved is if there’s a significant relationship between consumers’ personality and brand personality in the banking sector. The purpose of this paper is therefore to investigate if there’s a relationship between a bank's brand and the consumer's personality. The study is based on primary data, which has been gathered through the quantita- tive method using surveys. The quantitative method is the best choice for this sort of studies, since it allows a fair comparison with the results of earlier studies. The in- formation was gathered in collaboration with Sparbanken 1826, by limiting the target group to customers at that bank. This study could provide an indication regard- ing how successful the bank has been able to provide customers with the right idea of its brand.

Abstract Purpose The purpose of this paper is to find out which personal-related factors are influencing on the task performance and the contextual performance of expatriate managers. Design/Methodology/Approach This research adopts a qualitative approach, using semi-structured interviews with key-information from the managers taking international assignments. Findings The findings indicate that there is a series of significant associations between personal-related factors (personality traits, competences/skills, self-willingness and previous experience) and the performance of expatriates’ assignments. Research limitations/implications One suggestion for further research is to explore deeper and more comprehensive on other less important factors or the important factors which we are overlooking; it also could be more comprehensive on the factors that relate to the performance of expatriates. Practical implications We present a table of the relationship between personality traits, competences/skills, self-willingness, previous experience and the job performance of expatriates’ assignments. Thus, HR departments can follow this guidance when selecting expatriates to manage overseas assignments. Furthermore, individuals can take this model as a reference when making decisions for their career lives. Keywords Expatriate assignments, personality traits, self-willingness, competences/skills, previous experience, job performance, task performance, contexture performance Paper type Master Thesis