Barrick, M. R., & Mount, M. K. (1991). The Big Five personality dimensions and job performance: A meta-analysis. Personnel Psychology, 44(1), 1-26.
The trait of Conscientiousness is concerned with organization and achievement; the way in which we control, regulate, and direct our impulses; prudence.
These facets represent sub-dimensions of the overall Conscientiousness trait.
Achievement-striving means working hard to achieve goals and striving for excellence.
Cautiousness is the tendency to think carefully and be planful; deliberately thinking through possibilities before acting.
Dutifulness is the tendency to be perceieved as reliable, adhere to their ethical principles, adhere to standards of conduct, and scrupulously fulfill their duty and moral obligations.
Orderliness refers to the tendency to be neat, tidy, and well-organized.
Self-Discipline refers to the ability to begin difficult or unpleasant tasks and persevere, persist, and carry them through to completion despite boredom or other distractions.
Self-Efficacy is the sense that one is capable, competent, sensible, prudent, effective, and confident in their ability to accomplish things.
Positive Correlation
Ethnic-culture identification (for minorities) is positively correlated with Conscientiousness
Cultural identification refers to an individuals sense of belonging to a certain cultural group (e.g., Canadian, American, or Chinese).
In a group of ~160 graduate students with Chinese ancestry, Ryder et al. (2000) found a significant positive relationship between scores in Conscientiousness and higher degree of identification with cultural heritage (p < .05).
Positive Correlation
Identity Achievement is positively correlated with Conscientiousness
According to Marcia (1980), identity achievement is the identity status aligned with people who have experienced a decision-making period and are pursuing self-chosen occupation and ideological goals (in contrast to identity status types of foreclosure, identity diffusion, and moratorium).
In a survey of ~200 undergraduate students, Clancy & Dollinger (1993) found a significant positive relationship indicating that higher scores in Conscientiousness are related to higher scores in identity achievement.
Positive Correlation
Religious beliefs and behavior is positively correlated with Conscientiousness
MacDonald (2000) defined Religious / Spiritual concerns as a five component construct, including: cognitive orientation (perceptions and attitudes toward religious experience); experiential (mystical, transcendental, and transpersonal experiences); existential well-being (a sense of meaning, purpose, and resilience regarding ones existence); and religiousness (religious practice).
In a study of 993 undergraduates, Macdonald (2000) demonstrate a significant relationship between Conscientiousness and two dimenstions of Expressions of Spirituality: Cognitive Orientation Towards Spirituality (.26; p < .001; perceptions and attitudes regarding spirituality) and Religousness (.21; p < .001; religious practices).
Negative Correlation
Risky behavior & longevity is negatively correlated with Conscientiousness
Risky behavior (e.g., substance abuse, hazardous driving, unprotected sex with multiple partners, attempted suicide) increases the likelihood of negative health outcomes. Longevity refers to the length of an individuals life.
Meta-analysis from Bogg (2004) demonstrates a strong negative correlation between higher scores in Conscientiousness and more risky behavior. In a longitudinal study of intelligent children, Friedman (1995) found that Conscientiousness predicted longevity: those who scored higher were about 30% less likely to die in any given year.
Negative Correlation
Substance abuse is negatively correlated with Conscientiousness
Substance abuse refers to use of drugs or alcohol to the extent that it interferes with normal social behavior.
Meta-analysis from Bogg (2004) demonstrates a negative correlation (p < .05) between higher scores in Conscientiousness and various types of substance abuse, including: excessive alcohol use (-.25), drug use (-.28), and tobacco use (-.14).
Negative Correlation
Appreciate intense music styles is negatively correlated with Conscientiousness
Intense musical styles are characterized by distorted, loud, and aggressive attributes, common in classic rock, punk, heavy metal, and power pop genres.
Research consistently indicates a negative association between Conscientiousness and preferences for Intense musical styles. A study involving 71,714 participants across 36 countries found a correlation of r=−.09 (p<.00001) between Conscientiousness and Intense music (Greenberg et al., 2022). This large-scale cross-cultural study is notable for its use of unfamiliar musical stimuli to minimize confounding effects from prior associations, thereby enhancing the ecological validity of the findings. Further supporting this, research using Spotify streaming data from 5,808 users found Conscientiousness negatively correlated with Rock (r=−.079, p<.001) and Alternative (r=−.080, p<.001) genres, which are associated with Intense styles (Anderson et al., 2021).
Positive Correlation
Appreciate unpretentious music styles is positively correlated with Conscientiousness
Unpretentious musical styles are defined by uncomplicated, relaxing, and unaggressive attributes, often heard in country genres.
Research on musical preferences across cultures, utilizing an audio-based measure of preferential reactions to music, indicates a positive association between Conscientiousness and preferences for Unpretentious music. A study involving 71,714 participants across 36 countries found a correlation of r=.01 (p<.01) between Conscientiousness and Unpretentious music (Greenberg et al., 2022). This large-scale cross-cultural study is notable for its use of unfamiliar musical stimuli to minimize confounding effects from prior associations, thereby enhancing the ecological validity of the findings.
Positive Correlation
Family satisfaction is positively correlated with Conscientiousness
Family satisfaction in this context refers to quality of dyadic relationships between intergenerational family members (e.g., parent-child).
Belsky et al. (2003) found a significant positive relationship in the quality of parent-child relationship: relationship quality is more positive when children score higher on conscientiousness/constraint. Relationship quality measures included intergenerational contact, closeness, conflict, and assistance.
Positive Correlation
Romantic satisfaction while pursuing a romantic relationship is positively correlated with Conscientiousness
Romantic satisfaction refers to dating partners evaluations of the romantic relationship.
In a study of 136 dating couples, Watson et al. (2000) found a significant positive relationship between relationship satisfaction and Conscentiousness (p < .01).
Negative Correlation
Antisocial behavior is negatively correlated with Conscientiousness
Antisocial behavior refers to actions that are deemed delinquent, deviant, against social norms, and violate the rights of others.
In a mail survey study of hundreds of twin participants, Krueger (2001) found a significant negative correlation between lower scores in constraint / conscientiousness and antisocial behavior (-.27, p < .01).
Positive Correlation
Conservatism is positively correlated with Conscientiousness
Conservatism is generally associated with the values of freedom [over equality], security, power, achievement, conformity, and tradition.
In a summary of several related studies looking at thousands of Italian voters, Caprara & Zimbardo (2004) found a significant positive relationship between higher scores in Conscientiousness and endoresement of more right of center political platforms and views.
Negative Correlation
Criminal behavior is negatively correlated with Conscientiousness
Criminal behavior indicates that someone has participated in an unlawful act (e.g., theft, vandalism, robbery, assault, public endangerment, etc.).
In an experiment with college undergraduates who were studying criminal justice (n=230), Wiebe (2004) found a significant relationship between lower scores in Agreeableness and Criminal Acts (-.30; p < .01).
Positive Correlation
Extrinsic success is positively correlated with Conscientiousness
Extrinsic career success (e.g., salary and promotions) refer to observable rewards from the job.
In an intergenerational study, Judge et al. (1999) found signficant correlations between Conscientiousness and the following variables related to extrinsic success: Income (.34; p < .01), occupational Status (.48; p < .01), and extrinsic career success (.50; p < .01).
Positive Correlation
Intrinsic success is positively correlated with Conscientiousness
Intrinsic success is measured in terms of an individuals job satisfaction regarding multiple facets of their career (e.g., income, supervision, job security, coworkers).
In an intergenerational study, Judge et al. (1999) found a signficant positive correlation between Conscientiousness and job satisfaction (.20; p < .01) and intrinsic career success (.40; p < .01).
Positive Correlation
Occupational performance is positively correlated with Conscientiousness
Occupational performance refers to employee actions and behaviors that are relevant to an organizations goals and are measurable. Measures include proficiency such as performance ratings and productivity.
Meta-analytic results from Barrick & Mount (1991) demonstrate a robust positive relationship between scores in Conscientiousness and job performance across occupational types. This finding was reinforced by Barrick et al. (2001) in a meta-analysis of 15 meta-analytic studies, analyzing results of over 100,000 participants, including performance in independent and non-independent samples, during training, and in teams with estimated true score correlations between mid .20s to mid .30s.
Positive Correlation
Adhere to Shelter in Place Policy is positively correlated with Conscientiousness
In the context of a pandemic health crisis, sheltering in place refers to the act of adhering to publich health guidelines to stay at a primary residence, avoiding travel and other public settings as much as possible.
In a study of over 100,000 participants, controlling for socioeconomic factors, G?tz et al. (2020), found conscientiousness to be positively associated with sheltering in place during the COVID-19 pandemic (p < .001).