PERCEPTIONS OF WISDOM ASSOCIATED WITH SELECTED OCCUPATIONS AND PERSONALITY-CHARACTERISTICS

Few studies have examined the factors :hat influence individuals' perc eptions of wisdom, and the types of persons who are generally perceive d to be wise. In the present study, 277 college students made ratings of the level of wisdom typically associated with 96 personality charac teristics and 96 occupations. Differences in the magnitude of the mean ratings for both sets of descriptors indicate that individuals percei ve people who exhibit certain personality characteristics or hold cert ain occupations to possess substantially more wisdom than others. Fact or analysis of the personality characteristics revealed a three-factor solution: perceptive judgment, egotism, and basic temperament dimensi ons. A separate factor analysis for occupations also revealed a three factor solution: a broad general factor, an educational attainment fac tor, and a spirituality factor.