What Constitutes Successful Goal Pursuit? Exploring the Relation Between Subjective and Objective Measures of Goal Progress

Aidan Smyth — 2023-08-15

Despite a rich literature on goals, the notion of successful goal pursuit remains somewhat unclear. Most research on personal goal pursuit relies on subjective measures of goal progress and research that uses objective measures (e.g., grade point average) often ignores individuals’ idiosyncratic goals. The present research investigated the relation between diverse measures of goal progress in the context of academic and weight loss goals using four datasets (total sample = 351). Overall, subjective measures were positively related to objective measures. The magnitudes of these associations varied across studies and were generally smaller than would be expected if the measures assessed the same construct (R² = .05–.39). These findings suggest that subjective and objective measures may reflect related but distinct constructs. The present research draws attention to an important topic in the goals literature and highlights the need for additional research on the conceptualization and operationalization of successful goal pursuit.</p> </article> <article> <h1>What Happens When You Add a ‘Not Relevant’ Response Option to the Unipolar Response Scales of Personality State Items?</h1> <p>Sarah Kritzler — 2023-10-18</p> <p>What happens when you add a “not relevant” response option to the unipolar response scales of personality state items? In an experimental experience sampling study with a between-person design (total N = 248; n = 3,253 observations), we compared personality states measured with a unipolar response scale including or not including a “not relevant” response option. Overall, “not relevant” responses were quite prevalent but varied between items. Certain characteristics of the situation (particularly sociality) but not of the person predicted the use of the “not relevant” response option. Additionally, means and distributions of personality states significantly differed between the different response scales, but their associations with other relevant constructs did not. Overall, this study emphasizes the importance of systematically addressing how personality states should be measured and provides first evidence that a “not relevant” response option might be an important aspect to consider for the measurement of personality states.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Differing Levels of Gratitude Between Romantic Partners: Concurrent and Longitudinal Links With Satisfaction and Commitment in Six Dyadic Datasets</h1> <p>Yoobin Park — 2023-01-26</p> <p><title/>Gratitude promotes high quality relationships, but what happens when partners differ in their levels of gratitude? We examined the dyadic nature of gratitude in relationships using six longitudinal datasets (562 couples). Approaching the dyadic effect from the perspective of a “weak-link” hypothesis, we tested if the link between one partner’s gratitude and relationship quality is reduced if the other partner is low in gratitude. Our results overall did not support this hypothesis as they indicated that grateful individuals were more satisfied and committed at baseline, and more grateful and committed over time, regardless of their partner’s level of gratitude. As an alternative way to conceptualize the dyadic effect of gratitude, we explored a potential similarity effect using Dyadic Response Surface Analysis. Our results revealed no unique effect of having two partners reciprocating the same levels of gratitude above and beyond the effect of each partner’s gratitude.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Body Mass in US Adolescents: Stronger Ties to Socioeconomic Status Than Personality</h1> <p>Sara Weston — 2023-03-08</p> <p><title/>It is unclear whether socio- and individual-factors are uniquely related to adolescent BMI or capture the same underlying process or whether environment amplifies relationships between traits and BMI. We estimated the independent contributions of SES and individual factors to BMI percentile in a sample of 9,481 US adolescents. Across all models, SES was significantly associated with lower BMI percentile scores. Controlling for SES, cognitive functioning was associated with lower BMI percentile (Girls: b = -1.32 [-2.10, -0.54], p = .001; Boys: b = -1.84 [-3.10, -0.53], p = .005). Among adolescent girls, Neuroticism (b = 1.75 [0.94, 2.52], p < .001) and related narrow traits, among others, were associated with BMI percentile. There were no consistent interactions between SES and personality. In holdout samples, the best performing models included SES, cognitive functioning, and narrow traits. While individual differences may contribute independently to BMI, their contribution is much smaller than that of SES.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Perceived Weirdness: A Multitrait-Multisource Study of Self and Other Normality Evaluations</h1> <p>Jun-Yeob Kim — 2023-03-08</p> <p><title/>Research in personality and organizational psychology has begun to investigate a novel evaluative trait known as perceived normality, defined as an overall perception that one is normal (vs. strange or weird). The current work evaluates a brief measure of this trait (i.e., a “weirdness scale”), extending past work by assessing both self-reports and peer reports of these normality evaluations. Results confirm the measurement equivalence of self- and peer-reports of perceived weirdness, and discriminant validity of self- and peer-reports of perceived weirdness from Big Five traits. A multitrait-multisource analysis further reveals that trait loadings are larger than self-report and peer-report method loadings for the measure of perceived weirdness. Implications for measurement of self-perceptions and social perceptions of weirdness/normality are discussed.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Is (Actual or Perceptual) Personality Similarity Associated With Attraction in Initial Romantic Encounters? A Dyadic Response Surface Analysis</h1> <p>Sarah Humberg — 2023-04-06</p> <p><title/>A central assumption in lay and psychological theories is that people are attracted to potential mates who are similar to themselves in personality traits. However, the empirical findings on this idea have been inconclusive. Only a few studies have considered real-life dating contexts, and the statistical approaches they applied have sometimes spuriously identified similarity effects. In our study, 397 heterosexual singles (aged 18–28) participated in real speed-dates (N_dates = 940). Using dyadic response surface analysis, we investigated effects of actual similarity (similarity between self-reported personality trait levels) and perceptual similarity (similarity between an actor’s personality and his/her perception of the partner’s personality) concerning the Big Five traits. Neither type of similarity was related to initial romantic attraction. That is, the empirical evidence contradicted the idea that attraction occurs when people’s personalities match. We conclude that understanding initial attraction requires a deeper understanding of interpersonal dynamics in first encounters.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Who Comments, Commends, and Complains in Online Scientific Studies?</h1> <p>Lau Lilleholt — 2023-10-18</p> <p>Whereas research has investigated links between personality and commenting behavior on various online platforms, research testing who comments positively, neutrally, or negatively in online scientific studies is missing. Herein, we tackle this gap, considering the HEXACO personality dimensions. Relying on a COVID-19 survey (N = 8,809), we find that, as compared to their counterparts, people high in Openness to Experience comment more; that people high in Extraversion and Openness to Experience commend more; and that those high in Emotionality write both more neutral comments and fewer complaints. Notably, these relations all appear to be modest. Combined, our findings provide novel insights into the relations between personality and commenting behavior in online scientific studies, suggesting that—while people with certain personality characteristics comment more in specific ways than others—researchers need not to worry too much that the comments they receive are overly biased.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Sexual Satisfaction Predicts Future Changes in Relationship Satisfaction and Sexual Frequency: New Insights From Within-Person Associations Over Time</h1> <p>Haeyoung Gideon Park — 2023-10-27</p> <p>Considerable research demonstrates a positive association between sexual satisfaction and relationship satisfaction, but longitudinal evidence on the direction of this link remains inconclusive. To address this research gap, the present research provided a stringent test of the within-person associations between sexual and relationship satisfaction over time by analyzing 4-year longitudinal data from a nationally representative sample of newlywed couples in the United States (N = 2,104). The results indicated that within-person changes in sexual satisfaction predicted future changes in relationship satisfaction, whereas changes in relationship satisfaction did not predict future changes in sexual satisfaction. These results remained consistent when accounting for changes in couples’ sexual frequency, which showed significant associations with sexual satisfaction but non-significant associations with relationship satisfaction over time. All associations were consistent across gender. Overall, the current findings inform theory and practice on the roles of sexual dynamics in shaping overall perceptions of intimate relationships.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Communal Narcissism and Sadism as Predictors of Everyday Vigilantism</h1> <p>Fan Xuan Chen — 2023-10-27</p> <p>Vigilantes monitor their social environment for signs of wrongdoing and administer unauthorized punishment on those who they perceive to be violating laws, social norms, or moral standards. We investigated whether the willingness to become a vigilante can be predicted by grandiose self-perceptions about one’s communality (communal narcissism) and enjoyment of cruelty (sadism). As hypothesized, findings demonstrated both variables to be positively related to becoming a vigilante as measured by reports of past and anticipated vigilante behavior (Study 1) and by dispositional tendencies toward vigilantism (Studies 1 and 2). We also found communal narcissism and sadism predicted the perceived effectiveness of vigilante actions exhibited by others (Study 2) and the intention to engage in vigilantism after witnessing a norm violation (Study 3). Finally, Study 3 also demonstrated that the tendency for communal narcissists and sadists to become a vigilante might vary based on the expected consequences of the observed norm violation.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Motive Perception at First Impressions: On the Relevance of Targets’ Explicit and Implicit Motive Dispositions</h1> <p>Pauline Bassler — 2023-11-10</p> <p>When people judge the motive dispositions of unacquainted others, are their judgments accurate representations of the targets’ explicit motives, their implicit motives, or both? To address this question, we assessed target persons’ explicit motives via self-report and their implicit motives via a Picture Story Exercise as well as two recently developed affective contingency-based measures. Targets were then filmed during a short, casual conversation. The recordings were shown to thirty unacquainted observers who judged targets’ affiliation, power and achievement motives. For all three motives, observer ratings were linked to explicit motives. For the affiliation and achievement domains, ratings were also linked to implicit motives. We further investigated whether the extent of congruence between observer ratings and motive ratings would depend on information modality, this was not the case. The findings thus indicate that both explicit and implicit motives are relevant for observer judgments, but that these effects are not modality-specific.</p> </article> <article> <h1>How Reliable Are Personality Judgments by Political Experts? The Curious Case of Donald Trump</h1> <p>Jeroen Joly — 2023-03-08</p> <p><title/>Recent studies have highlighted the importance of personality in electoral politics. With the rise of populist and atypical personalities across stable and established democracies, pundits, journalists and other political experts often rely on their assessments of politicians’ personalities to explain their behavior. Additionally, numerous citizens depend on their expertise and assessments to form their own opinion. Given that most political experts have never personally met these politicians, how reliable are their assessments of high-profile politicians’ personality? We address this question by analyzing inter-rater reliability of ratings of US President Trumps’ personality by seven Belgian political experts. Using the NEO-FFI, our analyses indicate low inter-rater agreement on most of the Big Five personality traits and the facets of Trumps’ personality. Therefore, the excessive use of analyses based on third party assessments and interpretations of politicians’ personality should be regarded with caution given their potential impact on the wider public.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Personality and Social Relationships: What Do We Know and Where Do We Go</h1> <p>Mitja D. Back — 2023-01-13</p> <p><title/>Personality and social relationships influence each other in multiple and consequential ways. To understand how people differ from each other in their personality and social behavior, how these differences develop, and how this affects further life outcomes, we need to better understand the interplay of personality and social relationships. Here, we provide an integrative overview on personality-relationship research across relationship types (everyday encounters, friendships, romantic, and family relationships), and personality characteristics. We summarize the state of research on (a) how much relationship aspects vary across actors, partners, and actor-partner relations, (b) which personality characteristics predict these variance components (i.e. actor, partner, and relationship effects), and (c) how social relationships work as contexts for personality development. Following an integrative process framework, key open questions are discussed concerning the processes that underlie personality-relationship and relationship-personality effects. We conclude with a call for conceptual integration, methodological expansion, and collaborative action.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Personality at Work</h1> <p>Joanna Ritz — 2023-06-07</p> <p><title/>Studies of personality at work have made significant contributions to theory and applied practice in work and organizational settings. This review article proposes that there are also reciprocal influences between core personality science and research on personality in work and organizations, each drawing on insights from the other. Following this tradition, the objective of this article is to review key foundations of research in a way that informs and critically reflects on state-of-the-art evidence in four main themes: (1) conceptualization and structure of personality at work, (2) personality assessment in work settings, (3) personality processes and dynamics at work, and (4) impact of situations on personaliy at work. Critically reflections on key implications, and directions for future research are presented, anticipating how the field may adapt to the changing nature of work and society.</p> </article> <article> <h1>The Longitudinal and Multimodal Age Groups Study of Personality Architecture and Dynamics (SPeADy)</h1> <p>Yannik Wiechers — 2023-04-06</p> <p><title/>The “Study of Personality Architecture and Dynamics” (SPeADy) aims at testing theory-based differences between core dispositions and surface characteristics of personality and examining their associations across time and in the context of major life experiences. For this purpose, SPeADy encompasses several constructs, such as Big Five domains and facets, motives, values, religiosity, self-concepts, and life events. SPeADy contains an age groups and an extended twin family study, with the former being this paper’s focus. The longitudinal and multi-rater design of the age groups study allows the empirical examinations of core dispositions of personality on the basis of six criteria. Cutting-edge findings are described. First (2016–2018) and second wave (2018–2020) data are available as a scientific use file. Self-reports were provided by 3,026 participants (60% female; age: 14–89 years). The third data-collection wave ends in 2022. This paper provides an overview of SPeADy’s scientific issues and use for the research community.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Personality and Emotions in Social Interactions – The PESI Project</h1> <p>Katrin Rentzsch — 2023-06-07</p> <p><title/>In this paper, we introduce the PESI project for investigating the interpersonal dynamics of Personality and Emotions in Social Interactions. The final sample in this preregistered study consisted of 436 participants (218 dyads) who were on average 31.2 years old (SD = 14.0, Range: 16–75). The study consisted of three parts and used a multimethod assessment: In Part 1, participants filled out online self-reports of personality. In Part 2, participants interacted in dyads at zero acquaintance in the laboratory and filled out self- and partner-reports of various states. During the interactions, video and audio tracks were recorded simultaneously, allowing later video analyses of every participant. In Part 3, participants provided self-reports via a follow-up online questionnaire. Our aim is to encourage researchers to use the present ideas, open materials, and data to be inspired to conduct future research.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Combining Sensors and Surveys to Study Social Interactions: A Case of Four Science Conferences</h1> <p>Mathieu Génois — 2023-06-07</p> <p><title/>We present a unique collection of four data sets to study social behaviour, collected during international scientific conferences. Interactions between participants were tracked using the SocioPatterns platform, which allows collecting face-to-face physical proximity events every 20 seconds. Through accompanying surveys, we gathered extensive information about the participants: sociodemographic characteristics, Big Five personality traits, DIAMONDS situation perceptions, measure of scientific attractiveness, motivations for attending the conferences, and perceptions of the crowd. Linking the sensor and survey data provides a rich window into social behaviour. At the individual level, the data sets allow personality scientists to investigate individual differences in social behaviour and pinpoint which individual characteristics (e.g., social roles, personality traits, situation perceptions) drive these individual differences. At the group level, the data allow to study the mechanisms responsible for interacting patterns within a scientific crowd during a social, networking and idea-sharing event.</p> </article> <article> <h1>The Big Five Personality Dimensions in Large-Scale Surveys: An Overview of 25 German Data Sets for Personality Research</h1> <p>Beatrice Rammstedt — 2023-11-14</p> <p>In recent decades, the number of large-scale surveys that have included measures of the Big Five personality traits in their standard questionnaires has grown sharply both in Germany and internationally. Consequently, a vast, heterogeneous, high-quality data base is now readily available to personality psychologists for secondary analyses. In this paper, we provide an overview of 25 public large-scale surveys assessing the Big Five. Our aim is to increase researchers’ awareness of the availability and analytical potential of these data, and ultimately to increase their reuse. We restricted our selection to surveys of the adult population, conducted in Germany, based on probabilistic samples with a minimum sample size of 1,500 respondents, and assessing all Big Five dimensions with a validated Big Five instrument. We describe the study designs, the measures used to assess the Big Five, and the research potential of these valuable data.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Unchartered Territories: Introduction to the Theme Bundle on Intranational Variation in Personality</h1> <p>Friedrich M. Götz — 2023-01-20</p> </article> <article> <h1>Correction of Smyth et al. (2023). What Constitutes Successful Goal Pursuit? Exploring the Relation Between Subjective and Objective Measures of Goal Progress</h1> <p>The Journal Editor — 2023-11-21</p> <p>Correction of Smyth et al. (2023). What Constitutes Successful Goal Pursuit? Exploring the Relation Between Subjective and Objective Measures of Goal Progress. <em>Personality Science</em>, <em>4</em>, Article e12017. https://doi.org/10.5964/ps.12017</p> </article> </main></body></html>