The ability to control one’s behaviour is a fundamental cognitive function subserved by the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Whereas the neural basis of inhibitory control is reasonably well-established, the possible influence of individual differences in personality on cortical activity associated with this ability remains largely unexplored. The present study obtained self-report ratings of Five-Factor Model personality traits from 42 healthy adults while hemodynamic oxygenation in the PFC was recorded during a Go/No-Go task. Results indicated that Neuroticism, Agreeableness and Openness to Experience were associated with attenuated activity in the lateral PFC, a region critical for emotion regulation and behavioural control, whereas Extraversion and Conscientiousness were associated with greater activation in these regions. Activity within the medial PFC, an area linked to task engagement and self-monitoring, shared a positive association with Agreeableness. These findings provide important insights into how neural systems supporting inhibitory control may be affected by individual differences in personality.

The ability to control one’s behaviour is a fundamental cognitive function subserved by the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Whereas the neural basis of inhibitory control is reasonably well-established, the possible influence of individual differences in personality on cortical activity associated with this ability remains largely unexplored. The present study obtained self-report ratings of Five-Factor Model personality traits from 42 healthy adults while hemodynamic oxygenation in the PFC was recorded during a Go/No-Go task. Results indicated that Neuroticism, Agreeableness and Openness to Experience were associated with attenuated activity in the lateral PFC, a region critical for emotion regulation and behavioural control, whereas Extraversion and Conscientiousness were associated with greater activation in these regions. Activity within the medial PFC, an area linked to task engagement and self-monitoring, shared a positive association with Agreeableness. These findings provide important insights into how neural systems supporting inhibitory control may be affected by individual differences in personality.

Very little research has examined the role of personality in important life outcomes and support needs of adults with intellectual disabilities. This exploratory study includes a sample of 102 community-dwelling adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and begins to evaluate the relative contributions of general personality and personality disorder as it they concern their adaptive functioning, Axis I psychopathology symptoms, and residential and vocational supports. Observer ratings of personality disorder and Five Factor Model and Reiss Profile general personality functioning were obtained from direct service providers who knew the participants well, and archival file data (e.g., IQ, adaptive functioning scores, medications prescribed, and diagnoses) were collected after informed consent and assent were obtained from the participants. The results suggest that both personality and personality disorder, relate the intensity of supports required, the number of psychiatric medications prescribed, maladaptive behavior, and the amount of Axis I psychopathology exhibited by the participants. Results of the study are discussed with reference to implications for service delivery and planning and future research.

The current thesis tests empirically the relationship of the dimensional trait model proposed for the fifth edition of the American Psychiatric Association’s (APA) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders with five-factor models (FFM) of personality disorder (PD). The DSM-5 Personality and Personality Disorders Work Group proposes to diagnose the disorders largely in terms of a 25 trait dimensional model organized within five broad domains (i.e., negative affectivity, detachment, antagonism, disinhibition, and psychoticism). Consistent with the authors of DSM-5, it was predicted that negative affectivity would align with FFM neuroticism, detachment with FFM introversion, antagonism with FFM antagonism, disinhibition with low FFM conscientiousness and, contrary to the authors of DSM-5, psychoticism would align with FFM openness. Suggested changes in trait placements according to FFM of PD research were also tested. Four measures of five factor models of general personality were administered to 445 undergraduates along with the Personality Inventory for DSM-5. The results of the present study provided support for the hypothesis that all five domains of the DSM-5 dimensional trait model are maladaptive variants of general personality structure, including the domain of psychoticism; however, the findings provided mixed support for suggested trait placement changes in the DSM-5 model.

Background: When a company is employing new salespeople, much is expected from these. The company is hoping that the new candidate is going to perform well and contribute to the fullest. One of the big questions that the organization has to face is how to evaluate and sift through sales candidates in order to find the best suited one. Previous studies have shown to some extent that a person's personality can be connected to how well they are performing in different occupations. One commonly used framework for assessing personality is the Five Factor Model (FFM) which is able to account for different traits without overlapping. One way to assess a person's personality traits is by the use of the big five inventory questionnaire (BFI). Purpose: To describe if there is a correlation between personality traits and sales performance in the Swedish car dealership market.Method: The research was a quantitative study of two Swedish car dealerships, where 60 out of 72 employees at Hedin Bil & Holmgrens Bil answered the BFI questionnaire. The response rate was 83%. The survey was sent out by mail to the two companies whose responsible managers divided their sales staff in three different groups (good performing, average performing and bad performing) according to the company's organizational goals.Conclusion: The conclusion of this study is that one of the hypotheses was supported and four rejected by the salespeople participating. The only hypothesis that was supported was that Neuroticism would correlate negatively with sales performance.

According to attachment theory, the establishment of an attachment bond to a caregiver not only provides the infant with protection from danger, but also many other resources presumably beneficial to the child’s general psychological development. Although there is substantial empirical support for a link between attachment security and social functioning in childhood and adolescence, less is known about whether childhood attachment contributes to social functioning beyond adolescence. Similarly, attachment has been found predictive of broad aspects of a person’s functioning, but few attempts have been made to link attachment to the currently dominating perspective on personality, the Five Factor Model (FFM). Results in Study I partially supported our expectations, by showing prospective links from middle childhood security to various aspects of social functioning in young adulthood. Further, security contributed to developmental change in social functioning from middle childhood to young adulthood. In Study II, middle childhood security was found to predict some of the FFM personality traits (primarily extraversion and openness) concurrently and prospectively, partially supporting our expectations. The third aim of this thesis was to address whether attachment disorganization, which has usually been found predictive of maladaptive phenomena, may predict also other, non-pathological outcomes. In Study II, we found that higher levels of disorganization in young adulthood were concurrently associated with more openness and lower conscientiousness. Furthermore, in Study III disorganization was shown to be concurrently associated with more New Age spirituality and more absorption in adulthood. In addition, absorption was, in accordance with our expectations, found to statistically mediate the link between disorganization and New Age spirituality. Hence, these findings supported our assumption that disorganization might be expressed in other life domains besides specifically maladaptive ones. Taken together, we suggest that attachment spreads its influence to a broad set of life domains through its continuous influence on general psychological components such as cognitive representations and self-regulation abilities. However, the modest strength of our results indicates that attachment is only one among several factors involved in the development of social functioning, personality traits, and spirituality.

Abstract The aim of this study was to understand the relationships among the personality traits, risk attitudes, risk management practices, and decision making processes of dairy farmers in SE Queensland. Risk management and decision making processes are two of many components of managerial ability. The hypothesis was proposed that dairy farmers’ personalities influence their risk attitudes, decision making processes, and risk management abilities. Case studies of 46 dairy farmers in SE Queensland involving the completion of personality inventories (NEO-PI-R) based on the Five-Factor Model of personality; questionnaires and informal interviews were used to test the hypotheses. The thesis contains three parts. The first part, Chapter 1, is the introduction to the thesis. The second part of the thesis, Chapter 2 through Chapter 6, consists of an extensive review of the literature on the major topics pertinent to the project. In Chapter 2, a definition of “competence” in the context of this study is given, and an explanation of the evidence for a connection between personality and competence and thus job performance is detailed. In Chapter 3, the literature on personality is reviewed with particular emphasis on trait theory and the development of the Five-Factor Model of personality (FFM). In Chapter 4, the literature review on personality assessment using testing instruments designed for use in the context of the FFM is presented, and the rationale for the personality test instrument is expounded. It is the task of the manager to manage risk, so that considering risk attitude when making decisions is also an integral part of the study of the role of managers. Chapter 5 reviews the contemporary literature on risk and risk management with an emphasis on the application of risk management principles to dairy farms. In Chapter 6, the literature on decision theory is reviewed. Decision-making and risk management are intertwined. The behaviour resulting from the process of making a decision reflects the personality and risk attitude of the decision-maker. In this chapter, the distinction is made between formal and informal models of decision making, and examples are given. The third part of the project comprises Chapters 7 through Chapter 11. Chapter 7 outlines the research approach used – case studies - and paves the way for the following two chapters, which present a qualitative and a quantitative analysis of the data from the case studies. Chapter 8 presents part 1 of the investigation - the qualitative analysis of the case studies. This chapter introduces and explains the terminology used in the questionnaire and examines the trends and feeling in the farmers’ answers. Chapter 9 presents part 2 of the analysis – quantitative results of the personality assessments and interviews from the case studies with SE Queensland dairy farmers which were conducted to assess their risk management and decision making abilities. Chapter 10 provides a summary of the research findings, and then discusses the results with respect to the diverse responses of farmers to common external pressures. The chapter discusses the relevance of personality to the formation of management strategy and concludes with a short introduction to systems thinking as a way of thinking about the complex systems inherent in dairy farming. Chapter 11 reviews the subjects covered in the thesis and draws conclusions from the research. It outlines implications for policy makers and managers and proposes directions for further research in this area of investigation. Key Words: Five-Factor Model of Personality, risk, decision making processes, dairy farmers, management

Esse projeto visou a construção, validação e normatização de escalas para a avaliação dos Fatores Extroversão e Socialização no modelo dos Cinco Grandes Fatores de Personalidade. A partir deste Modelo, Socialização é uma dimensão da personalidade que agrupa traços como altruísmo, franqueza, confiança nas pessoas, bem como frieza, falta de empatia, comportamentos antisociais, etc. Extroversão engloba traços que descrevem nível de comunicação, assertividade, gregariedade, busca por diversão, etc. A validade de construto da Escala Fatorial de Socialização (EFS) e Escala Fatorial de Extroversão (EFE) foi realizada a partir de amostras independentes compostas por aproximadamente 1.100 pessoas de cinco estados brasileiros, de ambos os sexos, com nível de escolarização médio ou superior. Foram realizadas análises fatoriais para a verificação da dimensionalidade da EFS, sendo que a solução de três fatores foi considerada a mais adequada. Os fatores extraídos foram denominados Amabilidade, Pró-sociabilidade e Confiança nas pessoas, com Alpha’s de 0,91; 0,84 e 0,80 respectivamente. A escala geral apresentou uma consistência interna de 0,92. Foram realizadas análises fatoriais para a verificação da dimensionalidade da EFE, sendo que a solução de quatro fatores foi considerada a mais adequada. Os fatores extraídos foram denominados Comunicação, Altivez, Assertividade, Interação Social, com Alpha’s de 0,90; 0,78; 0,78 e 0,83 respectivamente. A escala geral apresentou uma consistência interna de 0,91. / The present project aimed the development, validation and standardization of scales to measure Extraversion and Agreeableness in the Five Factor Model of Personality. In this model, Agreeableness is comprised by traits that describe altruism, straightforwardness, trust in people, as well as coldness, antisocial behavior, among others. Extraversion includes traits that describe level of communication, assertivity, gregariousness, search for pleasure, among others. The participants in the construct validity study of the Agreeableness Factorial Scale (EFS) and Extraversion Factorial Scale (EFE) were approximately 1.100 individuals, from five States in Brazil, of both sexes, with high school or university level of education. Factor analyses were conducted to determine the EFS dimensions. A 3-factor solution was found to be more adequate. The factors found were named: Amiableness, Pro-social behavior, and Trust. Cronbach’s alphas were .91, .84, and .80 respectively. The general scale presented an internal consistency level of .92. Factor analyses were also conducted to verify the EFE dimensions. A 4-factor solution was found to be more adequate. The factors found were named: Communication, Pride, Assertiveness, and Social Interaction. Cronbach’s alphas were .90, .78, .78, and .83 respectively. The general scale presented internal consistency level of .91.

Personality tests are often utilized in employment selection. Their wide use may be attributed to various studies which suggest that personality is related to job performance. Although personality is widely utilized in various assessment contexts including but not limited to personnel selection settings, both researcher and practitioners continue to criticize the use of measures due to faking behavior or response distortion. Furthermore, these criticisms are warranted because laboratory studies have consistently found that when instructed, respondents are able to alter their scores in order to appear more desirable. Additionally, there is also conforming evidence from field studies which suggest that 20 - 30% of real-world applicants fake in order to gain a competitive advantage in being hired. Faking studies generally define successful faking as the obtainment of the highest scores possible. This study used a recent and alternative conceptualization of successful faking. More specifically, faking is defined as successful if an applicant is able to match his or her responses on a personality test to the perception of what subject matter experts would consider critical traits for success to that job. Psychology and Business students were assigned to an `honest' or `faking' condition and asked to complete a personality test. Students in the honest condition were instructed to describe themselves honest, while students in the faking condition were instructed to describe themselves in the context of applying for a fictional customer service representative position. Additionally, all students completed a measure of emotional intelligence and cognitive ability. Subject matter experts were then surveyed on what they thought was the ideal characteristics for the fictitious position. This study found that business students who were given instructions to fake were able to fake better (obtain a greater match) than psychology students instructed to fake. Furthermore, individual characteristics such as job familiarity, cognitive ability, and emotional intelligence were examined in relation to faking success. Results indicated that only emotional intelligence was predictive of similarity. Moreover, the subscales of use of emotions and regulation of emotions were predicative of similarity. Finally, the limitations of the study and implications of results are presented and discussed further.

Esse projeto visou a construção, validação e normatização de escalas para a avaliação dos Fatores Extroversão e Socialização no modelo dos Cinco Grandes Fatores de Personalidade. A partir deste Modelo, Socialização é uma dimensão da personalidade que agrupa traços como altruísmo, franqueza, confiança nas pessoas, bem como frieza, falta de empatia, comportamentos antisociais, etc. Extroversão engloba traços que descrevem nível de comunicação, assertividade, gregariedade, busca por diversão, etc. A validade de construto da Escala Fatorial de Socialização (EFS) e Escala Fatorial de Extroversão (EFE) foi realizada a partir de amostras independentes compostas por aproximadamente 1.100 pessoas de cinco estados brasileiros, de ambos os sexos, com nível de escolarização médio ou superior. Foram realizadas análises fatoriais para a verificação da dimensionalidade da EFS, sendo que a solução de três fatores foi considerada a mais adequada. Os fatores extraídos foram denominados Amabilidade, Pró-sociabilidade e Confiança nas pessoas, com Alpha’s de 0,91; 0,84 e 0,80 respectivamente. A escala geral apresentou uma consistência interna de 0,92. Foram realizadas análises fatoriais para a verificação da dimensionalidade da EFE, sendo que a solução de quatro fatores foi considerada a mais adequada. Os fatores extraídos foram denominados Comunicação, Altivez, Assertividade, Interação Social, com Alpha’s de 0,90; 0,78; 0,78 e 0,83 respectivamente. A escala geral apresentou uma consistência interna de 0,91. / The present project aimed the development, validation and standardization of scales to measure Extraversion and Agreeableness in the Five Factor Model of Personality. In this model, Agreeableness is comprised by traits that describe altruism, straightforwardness, trust in people, as well as coldness, antisocial behavior, among others. Extraversion includes traits that describe level of communication, assertivity, gregariousness, search for pleasure, among others. The participants in the construct validity study of the Agreeableness Factorial Scale (EFS) and Extraversion Factorial Scale (EFE) were approximately 1.100 individuals, from five States in Brazil, of both sexes, with high school or university level of education. Factor analyses were conducted to determine the EFS dimensions. A 3-factor solution was found to be more adequate. The factors found were named: Amiableness, Pro-social behavior, and Trust. Cronbach’s alphas were .91, .84, and .80 respectively. The general scale presented an internal consistency level of .92. Factor analyses were also conducted to verify the EFE dimensions. A 4-factor solution was found to be more adequate. The factors found were named: Communication, Pride, Assertiveness, and Social Interaction. Cronbach’s alphas were .90, .78, .78, and .83 respectively. The general scale presented internal consistency level of .91.