Measuring personality: all scientific details
01 – the scientific foundation
Working and behavioural style
HEXACO
Lee and Ashton’s HEXACO model is a lexically and factor-analytically developed taxonomy of basic personality traits, not a type test. Broad dimensions summarise stable patterns of experience and behaviour and are differentiated by four facets each. Traitwise follows five of these dimensions: Emotionality, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness and Openness to Experience. The hierarchy matters: two people can look similar on a dimension and, through different facets, arrive at clearly different behavioural profiles.
Lee, K. & Ashton, M. C. (2018): Psychometric properties of the HEXACO-100. Assessment, 25(5), 543–556.
Foundational publicationTest design
| Framework | Follows HEXACO: five dimensions, 20 facetsDimensions and facets in the report: Emotionality, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Openness to Experience, four facets each. With locus of control, six personality dimensions. |
|---|---|
| Statements | 83 |
| Duration | about 10 minutes |
| Time limit | No |
| Response format | Likert scale (1–5) |
Measurement quality
| Scoring | Percentile, per dimension and facet |
|---|---|
| Reference group (norm sample) | 9,460 peopleWorking population and participants in real selection processes, Germany and internationally; the reference group is growing. A shared norm for the German and English versions. |
| Criterion validity | r = .19 (conscientiousness)Sackett et al. (2022). |
| Reliability | Cronbach’s alpha = 0.80 to 0.85 |
| Model fit | RMSEA = 0.04 · CFI = 0.94The factor structure fits the data well. |
Locus of control
Locus of Control
Julian Rotter’s locus of control describes generalised expectations about how results come about: more through one’s own behaviour and decisions, or more through external circumstances, chance and other people. The construct is neither a type label nor the same as self-confidence. It adds to the personality picture the question of how strongly a person experiences themselves as an effective influence. Traitwise captures it following the Spheres of Control scales by Paulhus and Van Selst and scores it, like the other personality dimensions, as a percentile.
Rotter, J. B. (1966): Generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement. Psychological Monographs, 80(1), 1–28.
Foundational publicationPaulhus, D. L. & Van Selst, M. (1990): The Spheres of Control Scale: 10 years of research. Personality and Individual Differences, 11(10), 1029–1036.
Scale publicationTest design
| Framework | Locus of Control |
|---|---|
| Statements | 10 |
| Duration | about 1 minute |
| Time limit | No |
| Response format | Likert scale (1–5) |
Measurement quality
| Scoring | PercentileLike the other personality dimensions: placement relative to the reference group. |
|---|---|
| Criterion validity | r = .22Judge & Bono (2001), meta-analysis. |
| Reliability | Cronbach’s alpha = 0.80 |
| Construct validity | r = .36 to .44 (convergent) |
Sources: Traitwise Assessment Framework; Judge & Bono (2001).
02 – Practical example
Excerpts from the live assessment
For Openness, Agreeableness, Extraversion and Emotionality there is no “higher is better”. What fits the role is decided by the role profile.
Statement 12 of 93AssessmentHow well does this statement apply to you?
“On tasks without a fixed deadline I still work to a clear plan.”
Statement 57 of 93AssessmentHow well does this statement apply to you?
“In a new group I observe first before I join in actively.”
