of work: National character stereotypes are widely shared, but do not reflect assessed levels of personality traits. In a study using national character stereotype data from the Personality Profiles of Cultures Project, we investigated culture-level features that might be related to stereotypes. Data from Northern and Southern Italians rating the stereotypes of Northern and Southern Italians showed that (1) in-group and out-group assessments agreed that Southern Italians were more emotional and warmer but less hard-working than Northern Italians; (2) stereotypes of Italians in general resembled Southern Italians, not Northern Italians; and (3) neither stereotype matched the assessed personality profile of Italians. Across 49 cultures, climatic warmth was related to perceptions of interpersonal warmth, whereas national wealth (Gross Domestic Product per capita) was related to perceived conscientiousness. National character stereotypes were not systematically related to aggregated levels of beliefs and values.? ? At the suggestion of colleagues in Belgium, a new Adolescent Personality Profiles of Cultures Project (APPOCP) has been begun. In this study, younger (12-16) and older (15-17) adolescents were rated by college students in 30 cultures using a new, more readable version of the NEO-PI-R, the NEO-PI-3. This will allow a cross-sectional examination of age differences in this portion of the lifespan, as well as a replication of cultural differences in aggregate personality scores. In addition, other college students will be asked to use the National Character Survey to rate the typical adolescent, adult, and older man or woman in their culture. These data speak to the universality of or cultural variation in gender and age stereotypes. Correlations of these NCS data with known patterns of gender and age differences in personality will allow us to assess their accuracy.? ? The study of aggregate personality traits is important for an understanding of health and aging because through them the many associations between personality and health may be writ large. For example, with colleagues in Russia, we recently found that at the individual level within cultures, HIV stigmatization was negatively related to Openness, especially O6: Values. This effect appears to be magnified at the aggregate level: Cultures with very low levels of O6 include South Africa and Zimbabwe, where official reluctance to deal with HIV infection has led to devastating epidemics. The full range of aggregate personality traits might be relevant to a host of social, economic, and health outcomes. However, subsequent analyses also showed that factors like national wealth are important confounders, and need to be carefully controlled
| Terracciano, Antonio; McCrae, Robert R (2007) Perceptions of Americans and the Iraq Invasion: Implications for Understanding National Character Stereotypes. J Cross Cult Psychol 38:695-710 |
| Terracciano, Antonio; McCrae, Robert R; Costa Jr, Paul T (2006) Longitudinal trajectories in Guilford-Zimmerman temperament survey data: results from the Baltimore longitudinal study of aging. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 61:P108-16 |
| Terracciano, Antonio; Costa Jr, Paul T; McCrae, Robert R (2006) Personality plasticity after age 30. Pers Soc Psychol Bull 32:999-1009 |
| Costa Jr, Paul T; McCrae, Robert R (2006) Age changes in personality and their origins: comment on Roberts, Walton, and Viechtbauer (2006). Psychol Bull 132:26-8 |
| McCrae, Robert R; Terracciano, Antonio; Personality Profiles of Cultures Project (2005) Universal features of personality traits from the observer's perspective: data from 50 cultures. J Pers Soc Psychol 88:547-61 |
| Terracciano, Antonio; McCrae, Robert R; Brant, Larry J et al. (2005) Hierarchical linear modeling analyses of the NEO-PI-R scales in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging. Psychol Aging 20:493-506 |
| McCrae, Robert R; Terracciano, Antonio (2005) Personality profiles of cultures: aggregate personality traits. J Pers Soc Psychol 89:407-25 |
| Costa Jr, Paul T; Bagby, R Michael; Herbst, Jeffrey H et al. (2005) Personality self-reports are concurrently reliable and valid during acute depressive episodes. J Affect Disord 89:45-55 |
| Terracciano, A; Abdel-Khalek, A M; Adam, N et al. (2005) National character does not reflect mean personality trait levels in 49 cultures. Science 310:96-100 |
| Weiss, Alexander; Costa Jr, Paul T; Karuza, Jurgis et al. (2005) Cross-sectional age differences in personality among medicare patients aged 65 to 100. Psychol Aging 20:182-5 |
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