The influence of students' personality traits on their perception of a good teacher within the five-factor model of personality

Abstract

This paper investigates the extent to which it is possible to predict the influence of personality traits of students of computer sciences (i.e. natural and technical sciences, n = 188) and of humanities (i.e. social and humanistic sciences, n = 250) on their perception of a good teacher. The five-factor model of personality provided the theoretical framework of the research, in which personality traits are classified into five domains: neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness and conscientiousness. Statistical analysis on the total sample (n = 443) at the domain level showed that about 20% of the criteria variance (assessment of personality characteristics ascribed to a good teacher using the Big Five Inventory questionnaire) was attributable to the predictors (self-assessment of personality dimensions using the same questionnaire). For the analysis of individual questionnaire items, the common variance was 15%. Self-reports of openness, agreeableness and neuroticism were better predictors of evaluations of a good teacher than self-reports of extraversion and conscientiousness. The basic expectation of a good teacher was openness to experience, and the aspects of agreeableness and neuroticism that provide good interpersonal relations. Students of social and humanistic sciences favoured more extravert, open and conscientious teachers than natural and technical sciences students. The prediction of good teacher expectations (on the basis of personality characteristics) was more successful with the students of natural and technical sciences than with social and humanistic sciences students.