title: What do cross-national comparisons of personality traits tell us? The case of conscientiousness.
abstract: Much research contrasts self-reported personality traits across cultures. We submit that this enterprise is weakened by significant methodological problems (in particular, the reference-group effect) that undermine the validity of national averages of personality scores. In this study, behavioral and demographic predictors of conscientiousness were correlated with different cross-national measures of conscientiousness based on self-reports, peer reports, and perceptions of national character. The predictors correlated strongly with perceptions of national character, but not with self-reports and peer reports. Country-level self- and peer-report measures of conscientiousness failed as markers of between-nation differences in personality.
authors.affiliation: University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada. heine@psych.ubc.ca
authors.forename: Steven J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Heine
authors.forename: Emma E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Buchtel
authors.forename: Ara
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Norenzayan
mesh_terms: D001290:Attitude; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003469:Culture; D006801:Humans; D009014:Morals; D010551:Personality; D010555:Personality Inventory