Behavior
People who score high on the trait of conscientiousness tend to be more organized and less cluttered in their homes and offices. For example, their books tend to be neatly shelved in alphabetical order, or categorized by topic, rather than scattered around the room. Their clothes tend to be folded and arranged in drawers or closets instead of lying on the floor. The presence of planners and to-do lists are also signs of conscientiousness. Their homes tend to have better lighting than the homes of people who are low on this trait. Recently, ten behaviors strongly associated with conscientiousness were scientifically categorized (the number at the end of each behavior is a correlation coefficient; a negative number means conscientious people were less likely to manifest the behavior):
- Discussed sexual matters with a male friend (−.23)
- Lounged around my house without any clothes on (−.22)
- Picked up a hitch-hiker (−.21)
- Read a tabloid paper (−.19)
- Drove or rode in a car without a seatbelt (−.19)
- Swore around other people (−.18)
- Spent an hour at a time daydreaming (−.18)
- Shopped at a second-hand thrift store (−.18)
- Told a dirty joke (−.18)
- Listened to music (+.18)
Read more about this topic: Conscientiousness
Famous quotes containing the word behavior:
“Anytime we react to behavior in our children that we dislike in ourselves, we need to proceed with extreme caution. The dynamics of everyday family life also have a way of repeating themselves.”
—Cathy Rindner Tempelsman (20th century)
“Consciousness is cerebral celebrity—nothing more and nothing less. Those contents are conscious that persevere, that monopolize resources long enough to achieve certain typical and “symptomatic” effects—on memory, on the control of behavior and so forth.”
—Daniel Clement Dennett (b. 1942)
“Our first line of defense in raising children with values is modeling good behavior ourselves. This is critical. How will our kids learn tolerance for others if our hearts are filled with hate? Learn compassion if we are indifferent? Perceive academics as important if soccer practice is a higher priority than homework?”
—Fred G. Gosman (20th century)