Date
1-4-2016 12:00 AM
Major
Psychology
Department
Psychology
College
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Project Advisor
Marcus Credé
Project Advisor's Department
Psychology
Description
This research investigates how personality and interests affect the reasons (self-reported interests and values) that people have for choosing a major. Past research has acknowledged the influence of personality, interests, and values on the choice of a career path. Personality has been shown to be enough to differentiate between major families (Larson, Wu, Bailey, Borgen & Gasser, 2010), and several studies have shown that within a major, reasons may differ between males and females. The current research hopes to explore how self-reported reasons for choosing a major are related to personality traits. Participants were recruited using the testing pool of a large Midwestern university, and a survey including inventories of the Big Five personality traits (Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, Emotional Stability, Extraversion, and Openness to Experience), Machiavellian and Narcissistic tendencies, and reasons for major choice was given to all participants. We will analyze data first by utilizing an exploratory factor analysis of the survey items addressing participants’ reasons for major choice to explore the structure of the 20 items. We then will use correlations and multiple regression to examine the relationships between the reasons for major choice and select personality variables, including the Big Five and the Dark Triad.
File Format
application/pdf
Included in
Individual Differences and Reasons for Major Choice
This research investigates how personality and interests affect the reasons (self-reported interests and values) that people have for choosing a major. Past research has acknowledged the influence of personality, interests, and values on the choice of a career path. Personality has been shown to be enough to differentiate between major families (Larson, Wu, Bailey, Borgen & Gasser, 2010), and several studies have shown that within a major, reasons may differ between males and females. The current research hopes to explore how self-reported reasons for choosing a major are related to personality traits. Participants were recruited using the testing pool of a large Midwestern university, and a survey including inventories of the Big Five personality traits (Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, Emotional Stability, Extraversion, and Openness to Experience), Machiavellian and Narcissistic tendencies, and reasons for major choice was given to all participants. We will analyze data first by utilizing an exploratory factor analysis of the survey items addressing participants’ reasons for major choice to explore the structure of the 20 items. We then will use correlations and multiple regression to examine the relationships between the reasons for major choice and select personality variables, including the Big Five and the Dark Triad.