The five-factor model—II. Relations of the NEO-PI with other personality variables

Trait psychology is entering into a newly flourishing time. The five-factor model has become a robust alternative in the search for the ‘basic’ personality structure. The present paper is intended to explore the nomological network of the dimensions contained in Costa and McCraeʹs NEO-PI, which has become the most widely used operationalization of the five-factor model in the questionnaire domain. The Spanish version of the NEO-PI was related, in three different broad samples, to socially desirable responding measures, to the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ), to several commonly-used clinical scales, and to indexes of risk-related behaviors and unhealthy attitudes. Results support the convergent and discriminant validity of the NEO-PI traits and of most of its facets, and offer implications for defenders of three-factor vs five-factor models of personality. The role of ‘response sets’ in the NEO-PI is also discussed.