HEXACO model of personality structure
The HEXACO model of personality structure is a six-dimensional model of human personality that was created by Michael C. Ashton and Kibeom Lee and explained in their book The H Factor of Personality, based on findings from a series of lexical studies involving several European and Asian languages. The six factors, or dimensions, include honesty-humility, emotionality, extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness to experience. Each factor is composed of traits with characteristics indicating high and low levels of the factor. The HEXACO model was developed through similar methods as other trait taxonomies and builds on the work of Costa and McCrae and Goldberg. The model, therefore, shares several common elements with other trait models. However, the HEXACO model is unique mainly due to the addition of the honesty-humility dimension.
Concept
The HEXACO model of personality conceptualizes human personality in terms of six dimensions.The HEXACO model was developed from several previous independent lexical studies. Language-based taxonomies for personality traits have been widely used as a method for developing personality models. This method, based on the logic of the lexical hypothesis, uses adjectives found in language that describe behaviours and tendencies among individuals. Factor analysis is used on the adjectives to identify a minimal set of independent groups of personality traits.
Research studies based on the lexical hypothesis described above were first undertaken in the English language. Subsequent lexical studies were conducted in other languages and, by comparing the results, six emergent factors were revealed in similar form across all languages tested, including English.
Personality is often assessed using a self-report inventory or observer report inventory. The six factors are measured through a series of questions designed to rate an individual on levels of each factor. Ashton and Lee have developed self- and observer report forms of the HEXACO Personality Inventory-Revised. The HEXACO-PI-R assesses the six broad HEXACO personality factors, each of which contains four "facets", or narrower personality characteristics.
The six factors, their facets, and the personality-descriptive adjectives that typically belong to these six groups are as follows:
Scale Descriptions
Source:- Honesty-Humility: Individuals who score highly on the Honesty-Humility dimension tend to avoid exploiting others for their own benefit, rarely feel inclined to break rules, show minimal interest in opulence or luxury, and do not view themselves as deserving special privileges. In contrast, those with very low scores are more likely to use flattery to manipulate, disregard rules for self-gain, chase after wealth and status, and view themselves as superior to others.
- Emotionality: People who rank high on the Emotionality scale are more prone to fearing physical harm, experience anxiety under pressure, often seek reassurance or support from others, and form deep emotional bonds and empathetic connections. On the other hand, low scorers tend to be unshaken by potential danger, remain calm even during high-stress times, feel little need to confide in others, and show a general detachment from emotional experiences.
- Extraversion: Those who attain high scores in Extraversion typically have a strong sense of self-worth, feel comfortable in leadership roles or public speaking, enjoy being around others, and often feel upbeat and energized. In contrast, individuals with low scores may view themselves as socially undesirable, feel uneasy when in the spotlight, prefer to avoid social events, and generally exhibit less enthusiasm and sociability.
- Agreeableness: Highly agreeable individuals tend to be forgiving when wronged, judge others with understanding, are cooperative and willing to find common ground, and manage their anger well. Conversely, people with low levels of agreeableness often harbor resentment, are more critical of others' behavior, resist compromise, and become easily irritated when treated unfairly.
- Conscientiousness: Those who score high in Conscientiousness keep their environments and schedules well-organized, persist diligently toward their goals, aim for precision in their work, and take time to consider their decisions. In contrast, low scorers tend to neglect order and planning, shy away from difficult tasks, are comfortable with imperfect results, and make choices quickly or without much thought.
- Openness to Experience: Individuals who score high on Openness to Experience are appreciative of artistic expression and natural beauty, are curious to have knowledge of a wide-range of topics, express themselves creatively, and are intrigued by novel or unconventional ideas. Those with lower scores, by comparison, show little appreciation for art or nature, have limited interest in learning new things, avoid imaginative activities, and are less receptive to unusual perspectives or lifestyles.
History
Recently, Lee and Ashton have added two more facet scales to the HEXACO-PI Unlike the original 24 facets, each of which was clearly aligned with one of the six main personality dimensions, these new scales were considered "interstitial"—designed to measure traits that show moderate associations with more than one of the six factors.
The first of these interstitial facets was Altruism versus Antagonism, created to capture characteristics related to compassion and kindness. In lexical research on personality traits, such qualities often appear to overlap with the Honesty-Humility, Agreeableness, and Emotionality factors—a pattern that supports our theoretical framework. Adding this facet allowed us to account more precisely for the unique contribution of this trait, improving our ability to predict altruistic behaviors that play a key role in social relationships.
The second interstitial scale, Negative Self-Evaluation, was developed to assess a tendency toward extremely low self-worth. This trait showed a negative correlation with Extraversion and a positive one with Emotionality. It was included not only because self-evaluation is a core component of personality but also due to its relevance in understanding depression and certain personality disorders.