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There are five major personality traits. There are test that you can take to evaluate
where you stand with these traits. These tests can tell you which traits that you favor and
which traits that you dont really acquire. I took an assessment that tested my personality
traits. If you score high on a trait you are likely to have the characteristics of that specific
trait, whereas if you score low you are more likely to have opposite characteristics of that
trait. If you are neutral in a trait you have some characteristics of both. For example, you
could be open-minded about somethings, but very close-minded on others.
Personality is ones characteristics of feeling, behaving, and thinking. Personality
is a difficult thing to measure. These test are very helpful because they ask specific
questions and use your answers as a guide to reveal your characteristics. They test your
behavior to see what your traits are. The big five personality traits that are tested on
include openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and
neuroticism.
Openness to experience describes your level of creativity. It is the trait that shows
how open-minded and original an individual is. When taking the test, people who score
high in this particular trait usually have many traits and are very open to trying new
things. On the other hand, if someone was to score low in this category, they are very
close-minded and are opposed to trying new things. People who score low are very
down-to-earth people and simply go with the flow. When I took the personality test, I
scored 6, which is fairly high in the openness to experience. This seems to very accurate
because I do enjoy being very creative and I like adventure and new experiences.
Conscientiousness is basically the trait that describes how a person plans. This is
something that shows your priorities, if youre organized, and how your goals are set up.

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Lauren Shropshire
Big 5 Personality Traits
Psych 1113
Someone who scores high in this category tends to have everything planned out and
every detail is perfect. The organization of people who score high is very precise and set
out exactly how they think it should be. Because they are such perfectionists, people
whom score high are very sensitive when it comes to critiquing their work. If someone is
to score low in this category, they tend to be very scatter-brained and disorganize. It is
said that people that score higher in this category will be more successful in school than
someone who scores a low number in this specific category. People who score high in
this category want to be successful at everything they do. When I took the test I got a 6.5.
I scored very high in this category. I feel like I am someone you critiques things until they
are perfect. I also want to be a successful person and want to see myself succeed.
The next personality trait that is measured is extraversion. This is the trait that will
determine if you are social or if you keep to yourself. Extraverted people are more likely
to be the ones who start up a conversation. They are comfortable in groups and they have
a positive outlook on most things. If you score low in this category, you are more likely
to sit in a quiet area with minimal people rather include yourself in the middle of a group.
In this specific category I scored a 5.5. I feel the need to be around other rather than be
alone all the time. I enjoy being around others and I enjoy trying new things.
Agreeableness is the next trait that is measured. Agreeableness is your
characteristics toward others. This includes trust, kindness, and other emotions toward
people. Someone who scores higher in this category will more likely work in a group and
trust fellow worker while someone who scores lower would prefer to work alone and
self-succeed. Those who score lower are more competitive and more independent. I

Lauren Shropshire
Big 5 Personality Traits
Psych 1113
scored a 5.5 in this category. I am compassionate and willing to work with others. I enjoy
working with others or in groups, rather than working alone.
The last trait is Neuroticism. In the test that I took, emotional stability was
measures rather than Neuroticism. Im not sure the reasoning behind this, except, maybe
if we are tested on emotional stability it easier and better to understand rather than if we
are tested on anxiety and moody characteristics. When tested on emotional stability, it
determines if you are easily upset or if you are more laid back. People who test high in
this category are more relaxed and calm, and those who test low are more stressed out. In
this category, scored a 4.5. This result is fair enough. Sometimes I do to get stressed
about things, and with somethings I am very laid back. It really just depends on the
situation.
The Big Five Model is useful because it helps you determine traits of people just
by answering some questions. The scoring of the test make it easier to identify different
characteristics if individuals. However, the Big Five model doesnt identify all traits of
individuals, and to some people, thats a problem.

Lauren Shropshire
Big 5 Personality Traits
Psych 1113

Works Cited
Srivastava, S. ([2014]). Measuring the Big Five Personality Factors. Retrieved [April 3,
2014] from http://psdlab.uoregon.edu/bigfive.html.

Personality. Retrieved [April 3, 2014] from http://apa.org/topics/personality/

Psychological Testing. Retrieved [April 3, 2014] from

http://www.gulfbend.org/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=8948&cn=18