Work experiences and personality development in young adulthood.
Abstract
This longitudinal study provides an analysis of the relationship between personality traits and work experiences with a special focus on the relationship between changes in personality and work experiences in young adulthood. Longitudinal analyses uncovered 3 findings. First, measures of personality taken at age 18 predicted both objective and subjective work experiences at age 26. Second, work experiences were related to changes in personality traits from age 18 to 26. Third, the predictive and change relations between personality traits and work experiences were corresponsive: Traits that "selected" people into specific work experiences were the same traits that changed in response to those same work experiences. The relevance of the findings to theories of personality development is discussed.
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One robust finding from the work-experience literature is that work experiences correlate with personality trait changes and these associations are particularly strong for conscientiousness.
“One robust finding to emerge from this literature is that work experiences correlate with personality trait changes and-as might be expectedthese associations are particularly strong for conscientiousness.”
From Life Events and Personality Trait Change. (2018) · cites this paper as Roberts, Caspi, & Moffitt, 2003
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“As part of the age-18 and age-26 assessments, participants completed a modified version (Form NZ) of the MPQ (Tellegen, 1982; Patrick, Curtin, & Tellegen, in press; see also Krueger, Caspi, & Moffitt, 2000 ).”
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- Authors
- Roberts, B. W., Caspi, A., & Moffitt, T. E.
- Affiliations
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (US)
- King's College London (GB)
- Venue
- Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
- Published
- 2003
- Volume
- 84
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 582-593
- ISSN
- 0022-3514 (ISSN-L)
- 1939-1315
- OpenAlex
- W2128508989
- Cited by
- 753
- References
- 7
- Citations by year
- 2026: 18 · 2025: 14 · 2024: 16 · 2023: 27 · 2022: 34 · 2021: 46 · 2020: 78 · 2019: 35 · 2018: 42 · 2017: 47 · 2016: 44 · 2015: 43 · 2014: 46 · 2013: 34 · 2012: 55
- FWCI
- 17.51
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Research Portal (King's College London) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute on Aging (AG19414, R03AG019414)
- National Institute of Mental Health (MH-49414, MH 45070, R01MH045070)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Personality Traits and Psychology
- Social Sciences › Demography › Education and Work Dynamics
- Social Sciences › Safety Research › Career Development and Diversity
- Keywords
- personality development, work experience, early adulthood, personality change, personality traits
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Emotions, Employment, Female, Humans, Life Change Events, Longitudinal Studies, Male, Models, Psychological, New Zealand, Personality Development, Regression Analysis, Multivariate Analysis
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