MGT1OBE

Assessment 2: Individual Assignment

Student name/ ID: Doan Hien Giang - 21063269

Tutor: Nguyen Huu Thi Thuy Duong

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 1. Introduction

Personality has been used as a vital attribute to predict one’s tendency to behave for a long

time ago, through which we can see what shapes individuals, what they can do, and what

they will do (Wood et al., 2015). To investigate further in this field, one of the most useful

and famous methods is the Big Five personality dimensions. Originally established in 1949,

the theory has become very effective in studying the relationship between an individual’s

personality and several academic behaviors (Gosling & Rentfrow, 2003) and will be critically

analyzed in the very first part of this essay. Then, based on the Big Five test result and

relevant OB literature, two areas for self-improvement including Agreeableness and

Emotional stability will also be outlined, aiming to enhance the performance at school or

work. Finally, an overall conclusion will be provided with all the key findings.

1. Critical analysis of the "Big Five" personality dimensions

According to Wood (2015), the human personality is described as the overall profile or

combination of traits that characterize the unique nature of a person. Researchers have

studied 17 953 personality traits to finally sort them to create The Big 5 factors including

Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, Emotional stability, Openness to experience, and

Extraversion.

Conscientiousness is described as high levels of thoughtfulness, good impulse control, and

goal-directed behaviors (Barrick & Mount, 1993). According to Sackett and Walmsley (2014),

this trait was by far the most highly sought that employers look for their applicants as

conscientious employees are good organizational citizens; delinquent employees, in

contrast, are nonproductive and erode the health of an organization. For example, high

conscientious people will show up for work on time, complete assignments accurately, and

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keep a balanced checkbook. On the negative side, high Conscientiousness may lead to

annoying fastidiousness, compulsive neatness, or workaholic behavior (Barrick & Mount,

1993).

Agreeableness is defined as trust, altruism, kindness, and cooperation (Rothman &

Coetzer, 2003). According to Coleman ( 1988), trust and cooperation reduce transaction

costs as well as promote a fast and effortless exchange of resources. In a work context, for

example, agreeable people tend to deal with conflict through effective communications,

strive for common understanding, and maintain social affiliations (Digman, 1990) which

finally translates into better team performance. On the contrary, the

disagreeable/antagonistic person is egocentric, skeptical of others’ intentions, and

competitive rather than cooperative (Rothman & Coetzer, 2003).

Extraversion refers to people who are talkative, assertive, and likely to express their

emotions whereas introverted people have a desire to remain in solitude (Wolff & Kim,

2011). After examining the relationship between this dimension and networking behaviors,

Ashton et al. (2002) provide that extroverts are more likely to build contacts rather than

maintain and use them. Moreover, extraversion individuals have a bigger social circle

compared to introverted ones (Azucar et al., 2018). It was also found that Extraversion is a

valid predictor of performance in jobs characterized by social interaction, such as sales

personnel and managers (Barrick & Mount, 1991; Bing & Lounsbury, 2000; Lowery &

Krilowicz, 1994; Vinchur et al., 1998).

Neuroticism, opposite to Emotional stability is related to the ability of a person to cope

with stress, mood swings, and depression (Wood et al., 2015). The more stable an individual

is, the higher job and life satisfaction one has (Barrick & Mount, 1991). For instance, it has

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been researched that individuals with high neuroticism are more prone to self-disclose

hidden aspects of themselves (Schwartz et al., 2013), and may engage in effortful

performance when they are in a worrying state (Tamir, M 2005). This dimension is

considered to be the second most important characteristic affecting the employability of

candidates as it is inversely related to job performance (Rothman &Coetzer, 2003).

The openness to Experience trait relates to imagination, curiosity, open mind, and risk

taking (Wolf & Kim, 1991). Rothman & Coetzer (2003) had pointed out that they tend to be

unconventional, willing to question authority, and prepared to entertain new ethical, social,

and political ideas. For example, compared to their less open colleagues, highly open

individuals are more likely to explore their surroundings and experiment with new ways of

doing tasks (Costa & McCrae, 1992). Hence, over the long term, their performance would

increase to a greater extent than less open ones as they acquire greater job knowledge and

respond more adaptively to their work experiences (Misbashian et al., 2012).

3, Identifying 2 areas for self-improvement

*Big Five personality test and score

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 From the Big 5 personality test, my two areas with the lowest scores that need to be

improved are Agreeableness and Emotional Stability. As it has been already analyzed, low

agreeableness and low emotional stability (high neuroticism) mean that I am prone to be

impulsive, skeptical, competitive, reactive, anxious, and even depressed (Wood et al., 2015).

Having these traits has caused me several problems in daily life such as if someone starts to

treat me nicely, I tend to doubt his motive or intention, making it difficult for me to

cooperate with anyone. At school, I can be quite competitive with other people, leading to

stress and insecurity if I am placed in undesirable situations. To minimize these negative

traits, a few feasible methods have been carefully studied.

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 In terms of Agreeableness, practicing compassion, self-disclosure and humility could

provide a conflict-free zone that would be beneficial for low Agreeableness people

(Mongrain et al., 2018). The very first step to increasing this trait is building a specific

“personality changing” goal, along with a mobile app to help me measure my progress. For

instance, PEACH is a digital coach that supports people to achieve their personality change

goals and delivers micro-interventions (specific tools and techniques) to help people modify

or change behaviors and experiences as well as to maintain the change process (Stieger et

al., 2021). Next, participating in social activities such as joining bonding day, or hanging out

after work with my colleagues weekly can help me disclose myself, understand people

better as well as build trust for co-operation. Then, PEACH will be used to check my

progression and give advice after every activity.

Regarding Neuroticism, to reduce anxiety and insecurity, according to Jacobs et al. (2010)

one of the most popular examined remedies is mediation, from which we can eliminate

negativity and find mindfulness. To be more specific, the meditative practice aims at finding

peacefulness in one’s mind and daily 10-min guided meditation also results in greater

emotion regulation and emotional stability (Brown & Ryan, 2003). To bring it into practice, I

am planning to take meditative training after studying every evening for about 7-10 weeks. I

have also chosen my online coach who is a Youtuber named Ban Tinh Than for my changing

process through. Hence, with the additional support from PEACH, I can learn to live more

positively and control my expressed emotions.

4, Conclusion

In summary, personality can be used to learn about the interplay between one’s traits and

the tendency of behaviors, based on The Big Five dimensions namely Conscientiousness,

Agreeableness, Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Openness to Experience, which have been

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carefully analyzed in the second part of this paper. Subsequently, derived from various

research and studies, plans for self-improvement in two areas have been made, including

practicing compassion, self-disclosure, meditation, and a little digital help, with the target to

achieve a higher level of trust, cooperation, and mindfulness.

References

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Barrick, M.R. & Mount, M.K. (1993). Autonomy as a moderator of the relationship between

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