The Big-Five Dimensions in Daily Language Use: Classification of Personality Trait Terms and Their Evaluative and Descriptive Values

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the Big-Five dimensions in daily language use. In Study 1, open-ended personality descriptions were generated by 125 undergraduate women, and were classified into Big-Five dimensions. In Study 2, evaluative and descriptive values of the descriptions were examined. Results showed that 96.5% of trait terms were successfully classified into Big-Five dimensions. The dimensions differed in their frequency of use, and the least frequently used dimension was Playfulness or Openness. In addition, it was shown that people used the personality trait terms that had high descriptive value in daily language more often than those low, while evaluative value did not show a similar pattern.