Abstract
In light of consistently observed correlations among Big Five ratings, the authors developed and tested a model that combined E. L. Thorndikeââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s (1920) general evaluative bias (halo) model and J. M. Digmanââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s (1997) higher order personality factors (alpha and beta) model. With 4 multitraitââ"šÂ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å“multimethod analyses, Study 1 revealed moderate convergent validity for alpha and beta across raters, whereas halo was mainly a unique factor for each rater. In Study 2, the authors showed that the halo factor was highly correlated with a validated measure of evaluative biases in self-ratings. Study 3 showed that halo is more strongly correlated with self-ratings of self-esteem than self-ratings of the Big Five, which suggests that halo is not a mere rating bias but actually reflects overly positive self-evaluations. Finally, Study 4 demonstrated that the halo bias in Big Five ratings is stable over short retest intervals. Taken together, the results suggest that the halo-alpa-beta model integrates the main findings in structural analyses of Big Five correlations. Accordingly, halo bias in self-ratings is a reliable and stable bias in individualsââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢ perceptions of their own attributes. Implications of the present findings for the assessment of Big Five personality traits in monomethod studies are discussed.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1142-1156 |
Number of pages | 15 |
Journal | Journal of Personality and Social Psychology |
Volume | 97 |
Issue number | 6 |
Publication status | Published - 2009 |
Keywords
- Big Five model
- personality assessment