THE 5-FACTOR TAXONOMY - ROBUST DIMENSIONS OF PERSONALITY DESCRIPTION

This paper summarizes the state of empirical research on the five-fact or model (FFM). The basic assumptions of the lexical approach to perso nality psychology are presented, and the historical roots of the ,,Big Five'' are traced. The results of several taxonomies indicate that th e FFM provides a robust description of personality that - similar to O sgood's dimensions of affective meaning - proves to be highly replicab le. Relations between the five factors and the dimensions of alternati ve models of personality structure are considered, and the conceptual status of the Big Five is discussed.