Working Paper: NBER ID: w16917
Authors: Lex Borghans; Bart H.H. Golsteyn; James J. Heckman; John Eric Humphries
Abstract: This paper discusses and illustrates identification problems in personality psychology. The measures used by psychologists to infer traits are based on behaviors, broadly defined. These behaviors are produced from multiple traits interacting with incentives in situations. In general, measures are determined by these multiple traits and do not identify any particular trait unless incentives and other traits are controlled for. Using two data sets, we show, as an example, that substantial portions of the variance in achievement test scores and grades, which are often used as measures of cognition, are explained by personality variables.
Keywords: No keywords provided
JEL Codes: D01; D03; D89
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| personality traits (D91) | IQ test scores (C12) |
| incentives (M52) | IQ test scores (C12) |
| personality traits (D91) | achievement test scores (C12) |
| personality traits (D91) | grades (Y40) |
| incentives (M52) | achievement test scores (C12) |
| incentives (M52) | grades (Y40) |