400 Part IV Dispositional Theories
Michael Zyphur and colleagues (2007) conducted a study to see whether those
high on neuroticism were indeed more likely to retake the SAT. To test this prediction,
the researchers administered a self-report measure of neuroticism to 207 undergradu-
ate students and then examined the students’ transcripts for information on how many
times each student took the SAT prior to coming to college and what their scores
were. The results supported the researchers’ hypothesis in that those who scored high
on neuroticism were more likely to take the SAT multiple times. Interestingly, the
researchers also found that scores on the SAT tended to increase over time so par-
ticipants in the study tended to score higher the second time than the first and higher
still the third time they took the test.
When it comes to predicting academic performance from traits, the traits that
are most important depend on the outcome of interest because there are multiple
ways to do well. Conscientiousness is good for GPA but not that important for the
SAT. Openness is great for verbal ability but doesn’t matter much for mathemati-
cal ability. And neuroticism, although generally related to greater feelings of anx-
iety and self-consciousness, is associated with taking tests over and over again and
doing a little better each time.Traits, Internet Use, and Well-Being
There has been much public debate about the impact of Internet use on adolescents’
well-being, but early research on this question has provided contradictory results.
Some studies find, as many parents and educators fear, that daily Internet use is
associated with higher levels of depression and poorer well-being in teens (e.g.,
Van den Eijnden et al., 2008), while others have found no correlation between
these variables (e.g., Gross et al., 2002). In one recent study of Dutch youth, van
der Aa and colleagues (2009) reasoned that the Internet is not used the same way
by all teens, nor does that usage affect all teens in the same way. They sought to
examine the contribution of the personality traits of teens to Internet usage and the
impact that usage has on their well-being. Do more introverted teens turn to the
Internet more for social interaction, for example? And does Internet usage differ-
entially impact youth with different trait profiles?
The researchers surveyed an enormous number of adolescents in the Netherlands
via an online questionnaire. The total sample was 7,888 teens ranging in age from
11 to 21 years. In addition to completing the “Big Five” to assess levels of extra-
version, conscientiousness, agreeableness, neuroticism, and openness, they were
queried about their Internet use, loneliness, self-esteem, and depressive moods. The
results showed that daily Internet use in itself is not directly associated with low
well-being (a finding providing relief to many readers of this textbook). Rather,
any risks of Internet use in terms of well-being are more related to individuals’
tendencies to use the Internet compulsively—to feel unable to stop surfing, be
preoccupied with the Internet, or to have Internet use interfering with other duties.
This compulsive use of the Internet was predicted in the study by personality traits.
More introverted, less agreeable, and more neurotic adolescents and young adults
were more likely to score high on compulsive use, and this compulsive use was,
in turn, more strongly predictive of feelings of loneliness and having depressive
symptoms.