Controversy exists over the validity of child Openness to Experience (OE), which is typically considered a major trait in adult personality models. In an effort to establish construct validity for child OE, data were collected for 346 children (51% girls) approximately 9–10 years of age (M = 9.92, SD = 0.83). Parents completed questionnaires about their children’s personality, temperament, and behavioral problems and competencies. Factor analyses of relevant personality and temperament facets revealed a robust and measurable OE factor made up of three facets: Intellect, Imagination, and Sensitivity. Evidence for convergent and discriminant validity was established via associations with other higher-order personality traits, behavioral problems, and behavioral competencies. The results underscore the importance of drawing from both temperament and personality literatures in attempts to establish construct validity for child trait domains as well as of moving beyond the higher-order domain and examining facet-level associations between OE and child behavior.

Controversy exists over the validity of child Openness to Experience (OE), which is typically considered a major trait in adult personality models. In an effort to establish construct validity for child OE, data were collected for 346 children (51% girls) approximately 9–10 years of age (M = 9.92, SD = 0.83). Parents completed questionnaires about their children’s personality, temperament, and behavioral problems and competencies. Factor analyses of relevant personality and temperament facets revealed a robust and measurable OE factor made up of three facets: Intellect, Imagination, and Sensitivity. Evidence for convergent and discriminant validity was established via associations with other higher-order personality traits, behavioral problems, and behavioral competencies. The results underscore the importance of drawing from both temperament and personality literatures in attempts to establish construct validity for child trait domains as well as of moving beyond the higher-order domain and examining facet-level associations between OE and child behavior.