On the relationship between explicit and implicit self-concept of extraversion and neuroticism

Abstract

Indirect methods such as the implicit association test (IAT) could complement traditional self-report questionnaires of personality traits. However, it is unclear whether IAT scores and self-report scores of nominally the same personality trait measure the same construct or overlapping but distinct constructs. To investigate how IAT and self-report personality scores relate to each other, we conducted a web-based data collection where participants completed self-report personality questionnaires (n = 432) and IATs for extraversion (n = 393) and neuroticism (n = 385). We found that extraversion self-report and IAT scores were more strongly correlated with each other than corresponding neuroticism scores. Overall, our findings suggest that although extraversion and neuroticism self-report and implicit measures are related, they do measure distinct constructs.