Preferences for Facially Communicated Big Five Personality Traits and Their Relation to Self-Reported Big Five Personality

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

11-1-2018

Department

Psychology

Abstract

A growing body of research has begun to document that core personality traits are associated with specific facial structures, and that individuals are sensitive to these facial cues, as indexed by preferences for faces communicating higher or lower levels of specific traits. We explored how self-reported Big Five personality traits influence preferences for facially-communicated Big Five personality in targets. Participants selected among pairs of faces manipulated to have structures associated with high or low levels of personality traits (e.g., high extraversion versus low extraversion) and completed a Big Five Inventory. Participants demonstrated the strongest preferences for faces communicating high levels of agreeableness and extraversion. Greater self-reported openness was associated with preferences for higher levels of all facially-communicated Big Five Traits. Interestingly, higher neuroticism in women predicted a stronger preference for agreeable male faces, but disagreeable female faces. Higher neuroticism in men was associated with a stronger preference for facially-communicated openness in male targets, but a reduced preference for facially-communicated openness in female targets. Implications of these findings as they relate to personality and social perception are discussed.

Publication Title

Personality and Individual Differences

Volume

134

First Page

195

Last Page

200

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