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Our undergraduate thesis (SY 2010-2011)
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The Two Facets of Pride
And
The Big 5:
A Correlational Study
Alimurung, Artria Grace
Dy, Marijim
Jipos, Caren Shalou
Sarabia, Angel Grace
Villar, Jae Marie
1
ABSTRACT
According to the study of Tracy and Robins (2007), pride was found to have two facets:
authentic pride and hubristic pride. Each facet of pride was found to have a corresponding
significant correlation between the Big 5 personality traits. Using 331 college students from
different universities in Cebu City, this study examined the correlation between the two facets of
pride, using the Two Facet Pride scale, and the Big 5 personality traits, using the Big 5
Inventory. Results show that authentic pride is positively correlated with Extraversion (r = .147,
p < .05), Openness (r = .122, p < .05) and Conscientiousness (r = .334, p < .05) and is negatively
correlated with Neuroticism (r = .009, p > .05). However, results for hubristic pride were not
enough for a conclusion. Findings regarding authentic and hubristic pride supports the
conclusion developed by Tracy and Robins. However, only results regarding authentic pride met
the hypotheses of the present researchers.
2
INTRODUCTION
"A proud man exhibits a sense of superiority over others by holding his head and body
erect, he makes himself appear as large as possible..." – Charles Darwin
Darwin’s statement can be deemed as positive or negative, depending on one’s view on
pride. That a proud man may be seen as someone who is feeling a sense of self-worth,
confidence and achievement; or may be viewed as a person looking down on others and making
them inferior to him. In this case, the person experiencing pride can be seen as good or bad.
Even emotion researcher Richard Lazarus said that pride is a positive emotion that
confirms or enhances social worth, which is to say how others perceive themselves. Michael
Lewis (2000) also perceived pride as a positive experience which comes when there is joy over
an accomplishment. Incongruently, pride was viewed negatively by Lewis (2000) who defined it
as “exaggerated pride or self-confidence”. When one asks about pride to different individuals,
one can expect to find a big difference with its definition and implications.
For a long time, the word pride has been commonly brought up in daily life whether in
the positive or negative way. In defining pride, present researchers then postulated that pride has
a reputation of both good and bad. Thus, upon getting in depth with the meaning of pride, they
came across researchers Jessica Tracy and Richard Robins on their study: The Psychological
Structure of Pride: A Tale of Two Facets. In this paper, Tracy and Robins stated that there are 2
facets of pride: the authentic pride and the hubristic pride. And so, this is where the definite
meaning of pride comes in which will be elaborated in tis paper.
3
Authentic pride is said to be the prosocial, achievement-oriented form of pride and is
closely related to genuine self-esteem. In other words, it is the “good” pride. While, hubristic
pride is said to be the negative facet, gearing towards self-aggrandizement.
Tracy and Robins (2007), in addition to investigating the 2 facets of pride, also correlated
authentic and hubristic pride with narcissism, self-esteem and each of the Big 5 personality traits.
However, the present researchers decided to focus only on the relationship between the 2 facets
of pride and each of the Big 5 personality traits. This is because of the diversity of the Big 5
personality traits. It is easy to observe that there is a positive relationship between authentic pride
and self-esteem, or hubristic pride with narcissism, but it is complicated to categorize which of
the Big 5 personality traits is positively or negatively correlated with authentic or hubristic pride.
This is why the present researchers decided to delve on the relationship between the 2 facets of
pride and the Big 5 personality traits.
Pride is indeed one of the topics in psychology that do not have much information or
studies done. Since Tracy and Robins' study (2007) was only conducted within the Western
setting, it lacked empirical data and universality. It is then one of the goals of the current
researchers, on correlating the 2 facets of pride with the Big 5 Personality Traits, to achieve the
same results. Also, this paper supplies additional literature, results, and reference to future
investigators on pride and the Big 5 personality traits. Moreover, it is the hope of the current
researchers to establish a significant relationship between the two facets of pride and the Big 5
by correlating the scores on the two facets of pride scale with a standardized scale, the Big Five
Inventory, which measures the Big Five personality traits.
With the lead researchers Tracy and Robins contributing their instrument on the Two-
Facet Measure of Pride to the current researchers, the latter can say that this paper is part of the
4
current studies on the 2 facets of pride. The conclusions of this research would then support the
presence of authentic and hubristic pride in everyday life, and to clarify the inconsistency on the
concept of pride. Also, the relationship of the 2 facets of pride with the Big 5 would add
empirical support to the reliabilty of the constructs of authentic and hubristic pride.
5
Review of Related Literature
Pride is a mystery (Sullivan, 2007). It has perplexed philosophers, theologians and even
scientists for centuries. It is so unlike primary emotions like fear and disgust. Those emotions
clearly had survival value for early humans, serving as an alert for predators and poisons. With
regard to psychology, the literature on pride is relatively limited in comparison to accounts of
other specific emotions. However, in the past decade, a growing body of research has emerged;
new theories and findings suggest that pride is psychologically important and evolutionarily
adaptive emotion.
According to Sullivan (2007), pride is a personally and culturally significant feeling that
has received little attention in psychology and has largely been examined as a positive emotional
product of self evaluative cognitions. The central idea behind cognitive appraisal theory, as
mentioned by Lewis (1999), is that pride is experienced when a person evaluate themselves on a
pride eliciting event. This type of theory focuses on what might be called selfish emotions or
emotions that characterize an individual self.
From this, psychologist Jessica Tracy (2004) defined pride as a self-conscious emotion
that fuels many of our most meaningful achievements both common and life-changing. Being a
self-conscious emotion, the experience of pride requires self-evaluation, and thus the capacity for
self-awareness and self-representations. Tracy (2004) was also one of the first to provide an in-
depth study about pride. Together with colleagues, Tracy (2008) has been exploring the origins
and purpose of pride, both in the laboratory and in the field. Everyone knows disgust and
happiness when they see it, almost instantaneously, and the scientists wanted to see if the same
were true for pride. Jessica Tracy and Richard Robins (2008) ran a series of experiments using
photographs of models with varying facial expressions and body language, asking subjects to
6
identify the nonverbal signs of pride. And they did indeed found a prototypical prideful look: it
includes a small smile, a slight head tilt, and puffed up chest and posture. The arms are either
akimbo or held overhead. Findings suggest that pride is reliably recognized and distinguished
from related emotions, including happiness, by children as young as four years old and by non-
literate, culturally isolated, non-Western individuals. However this does not really give us a
meaning of pride, only the fact that pride is present and can be determined nonverbally.
Several researchers have argued that pride is too broad a concept to be considered a
single, unified construct and is better viewed as two or more distinct emotions (Ekman, 2003; M.
Lewis, 2000). Both Lewis (2000) and Tangney (2002) independently developed theories
describing two facets of pride - one productive and positive and the other linked to narcissism
and the difficulties associated with it. They argue that people who experience the first type credit
their behavior for a success while people who experience the second type credit themselves. The
productive study of pride then hinges on distinguishing the two facets.
The study of Tracy and Robins (2007) provided empirical evidence to this claim. In their
study, they first asked people to come up with words that they associated with pride, and
interestingly they found two distinct clusters of word associations. On one hand, people link
pride to such achievement-oriented ideas as accomplishment and confidence. On the other hand,
people also connect pride to self-aggrandizement, arrogance and conceit—not appealing traits at
all. Several researchers have addressed the apparently dual-faceted nature of pride by postulating
distinct “authentic” and “hubristic” components of the emotion.
Authentic pride was named such to emphasize that it is typically based on specific
accomplishments and is likely accompanied by genuine feelings of self-worth. The label also
connotes a full range of academic, social and moral and interpersonal accomplishments that
7
might be important elicitors. It is said to be the pro-social, achievement-oriented form of pride
and is closely related to genuine self-esteem. Authentic pride has a distinct causal attribution.
People report greater authentic pride when they attribute success to internal, unstable and
controllable causes than when they attribute the same success to internal, stable, uncontrollable
causes. This implies that people who feel authentic pride have actual skills that they achieved.
The people who feel authentic pride more are the people who accomplished something socially
desirable like honor students, volunteers for charity, athletes winning for their nation.
Hubristic pride is the second facet of pride and is deemed to be negative. The term hubris
is defined as exaggerated pride or self-confidence often resulting in retaliation. It is an example
of pridefulness, something dislikeable and to be avoided (Morrison, 1989). Hubristic is defined
as insolent or contemptuous. Hubristic pride is the facet of pride that is more related to
narcisissm and self-aggrandizement. In fact, hubristic pride might be a part of a dynamic
regulatory pattern through which narcisissts suppress feelings of shame, in part, by expressing
and experiencing exaggerated feelings of hubristic pride (Tracy & Robins, 2003). Although
Tracy and Robins did not mean that the feeling of hubristic pride is not authentic or genuine,
their intention was to differentiate the self-evaluative process that reflects a less authentic sense
of self (Tracy & Robins, 2007). This implies that people who feel hubristic pride are the people
who base their feelings of self-worth on exaggerations of their accomplishments. These people
are the kind of people who gloat about their achievement, no matter how infinitesimal it may be,
as long as they feel that they did better that other people.
M. Lewis (2000) said that there is difficulty of distinguishing between different kinds of
pride. We can think of two uses of the term pride. On one hand, we can think of pride in one’s
accomplishment – the pride that one feels in being successful in fulfilling a particular goal and
8
activity. On the other hand, we can also use the term “pride” to indicate a negative emotional
state. One speaks of the proud man or the proud woman with some disdain. This, then, provides
us with a conclusion that there is no definite meaning of the word pride.
Big 5 Personality
Popularly known as the five basic dimensions of personality, the Big Five has been
studied by personality researchers a long time ago, and evidence of this theory has been growing
for the past 50 years. Beginning with its proponents, research of D. W. Fiske (1949) and later
expanded upon by other researchers including Norman (1967), Smith (1967), Goldberg (1981),
Cattell (1998) and McCrae & Costa (1987).The term "Big Five" was coined by Lew Goldberg
(1981) and was originally associated with studies of personality traits used in natural language.
When Tracy and Robins (2007) studied people with tendencies toward one or the other
form of pride, they found that they had very different personalities. People exhibiting authentic
pride were more likely to score high on extraversion, agreeableness, genuine self-esteem and
conscientiousness—all adaptive, appealing traits. This is because by definition, authentic pride is
the facet of pride related to pro-social, achievement-oriented and is closely related to genuine
self-esteem. But those exhibiting hubristic pride were narcissistic and prone to shame. Other than
Tracy and Robins, the relationship of the two facets of pride and the Big 5 personality traits have
been studied and correlated methodically by previous researches that expanded results about the
two variables being linked together.
These traits are broad categories of an individual’s personality and there is a wide range
of significant literature that supports the validity of the Big 5 in explaining personality. Big five
personality traits include Openness, being inventive and curious, this trait features characteristics
such as imagination and insight, and those high in this trait also tend to have a broad range of
9
interests. Openness describes the extent, depth, originality and complexity of an individual’s
mental and experiential life. People who are high in openness take time to learn something
simply for the joy of learning. These people are adventurous and like to explore new things.
They like to try things at least once and twice would be better.
The two facets of pride, authentic and hubristic, had significantly different correlations
with each of the Big Five personality traits except for the openness to experience trait. Tracy and
Robins (2007) results show that there is no significant correlation between openness to
experience and authentic pride. This means that a high level of openness does not indicate a high
level of authentic pride. John & Srivastava (1999) results also showed that authentic pride was
positively correlated with all of the adaptive personality factors, except for Openness (for which
the correlation was in the positive direction but was not significant). The reason for this is that
although authentic pride is said to be positively correlated with the more adaptive and prosocial
traits, openness to experience is not as strongly regarded as an adaptive trait unlike agreeableness
and conscientiousness, the two personality traits most closely related to prosocial behaviors and
achievement (Digman, 1997; Graziano & Tobin, 2002; Roberts et al., 2005 as cited by Tracy and
Robins, 2007).
There is also no significant relationship between openness to experience and hubristic
pride (Tracy & Robins, 2007). This implies that a high level of openness does not indicate a low
level of hubristic pride, nor does a low level of openness indicate a high level of hubristic pride.
A low level in openness to experience is not a good predictor for hubristic pride. It also assumed
that since hubristic pride is said to be negatively correlated with the more prosocial traits of the
Big 5, there is no significant relationship between hubristic pride and openness because this trait
is not as closely related to the prosocial behaviors.
10
Conscientiousness is described as efficient and disciplined, high levels of thoughtfulness,
with good impulse control and goal-directed behaviors. Conscientiousness describes socially
prescribed impulse control that facilitates task- and goal- directed behavior such as thinking
before acting, delaying gratification, following norms and rules, and planning, organizing, and
prioritizing tasks. Those high in conscientiousness tend to be organized and mindful of details,
arrive early or on time for appointments; study hard in order to get a high grade on exams and/or
double check term paper for typing and spelling errors. These people are often termed as
obsessive-compulsive by others because of their mindfulness to details. Most people are annoyed
with conscientious people because if they see an error, then they feel uncomfortable with it and
have to correct it.
According to the study by Shiota, M., Keltner, D., & John, O. (2006), Conscientiousness
is positively correlated with authentic pride which implies that this Big 5 trait can be a good
predictor for levels of authentic pride. Tracy and Robins (2007), too, showed the same results:
authentic pride was positively related to the more adaptive and socially desirable traits, including
conscientiousness. Cheng, J. & colleagues (2007), in their study on routes to attaining social
status in human societies, hypothesize that authentic pride should be positively related to
agreeableness, conscientiousness, and emotional stability. All of these traits should show positive
relations with prestige (based on the possession of skills) and null or negative relations with
dominance (based on intimidation). There is a strong relationship between authentic pride and
conscientiousness because it is one of the two traits that are most closely related to prosocial
behaviors and achievement (Digman, 1997; Graziano & Tobin, 2002; Roberts et al., 2005 as
cited by Tracy and Robins, 2007).
11
A low level on conscientiousness is also a good indicator of a high level of hubristic
pride; since conscientiousness is also significantly correlated with emotions like joy, contentment
and (authentic) pride (Shiota, M., Keltner, D., & John, O., 2006). Hubristic pride is negatively
correlated with the more adaptive and prosocial traits in the Big 5, one of which is
conscientiousness (Tracy & Robins, 2007). This implies that conscientiousness can help predict
whether an individual has a high or low level of hubristic pride. If an individual is impulsive and
careless, it is assumed that the same individual experiences hubristic pride more. On the other
hand, if an individual has a high level of conscientiousness and is more inclined to goal-directed
behaviors then that means he or she may experience less hubristic pride and more authentic
pride. A low level on conscientiousness is a good indicator of whether an individual experiences
hubristic pride because it is more geared towards a distorted self-view that is not achievement-
based, and having a low level of conscientiousness implies that an individual does not have an
inclination to goal-directed behaviors.
Extraversion is depicted as sociable and vigorous, this trait includes characteristics such
as excitability, sociability, talkativeness, assertiveness, and high amounts of emotional
expressiveness. This factor implies an energetic approach toward the social and material world
and includes traits such as sociability, activity, assertiveness, and positive emotionality. People
high in this factor tend to approach strangers at a party and engage in a conversation or take a
lead in organizing with others. These people are the life of the party; they have an energetic force
that pulls people towards them. These are the people who know many people but may not have
many friends.
Tracy and Robins (2007) found that authentic pride is positively correlated with
extraversion, which is also a more adaptive and prosocial behavior. Additional researches also
12
discussed that Extraversion is strongly associated with positive emotions, most especially with
joy, pride and contentment (Shiota, M. and colleagues, 2006). Results from the scale developed
by Shiota, Keltner and John (2006), named the Dispositional Positive Emotional Scale (DPES)
showed that extraversion has the strongest significant correlation with emotions like joy,
contentment and pride. Prestigious individuals, individuals who attain a high status in society
through skills, and individuals high in authentic pride tended to be extraverted (Cheng, J.T.,
Henrich, J. & Tracy, J.L., 2010). This implies that there is a strong positive relationship between
extraversion and authentic pride, which means that being friendly, is a good indicator of
authentic pride. This is because authentic pride connotes a range of interpersonal
accomplishments (Tracy & Robins, 2007) which could be a factor for its positive relationship
with extraversion.
In a study on emotion dispositions by Shiota, M., Keltner, D., & John, O. (2006), they
hypothesized that major personality traits including the Big 5 personality traits are correlated
with several corresponding emotions including pride. Results from Shiota, Keltner and John’s
(2006) study showed that extraversion has the strongest significant correlation with emotions like
joy, contentment and pride. This study implies that extraversion is a good predictor for authentic
pride and although hubristic pride was not mentioned, this study supported the hypothesis and
findings of Tracy and Robins (2007) that authentic pride is positively correlated with the more
socially desirable traits of the Big 5 like extraversion. It would entail that this study would follow
the hypothesis that hubristic pride is negatively correlated with extraversion. This means that a
low level of the extraversion trait could be an indicator of a high level of hubristic pride. This
may be because an individual who is high on hubristic pride might be viewed as insolent and
contemptuous, which would be the cause for people to avoid him or her. In order to regulate his
13
or her self-view, the individual might suppress feelings of shame, in part, by expressing
exaggerated feelings of hubristic pride (Tracy & Robins, 2003) and keeping to himself or herself.
Agreeableness is a predisposition of being welcoming and empathetic, this dimension
includes attributes such as trust, altruism, kindness, affection, and other prosocial behaviours
such as tender-mindedness and modesty. Agreeable people emphasize the good qualities of other
people when talking about them or console friends who are upset. These people are those who
just go take care of the group’s well being by avoiding and preventing conflict within the group.
These people also are trusting towards people; they believe that other people are innately good
and decent.
People exhibiting authentic pride were more likely to score high on agreeableness, an
adaptive, appealing trait (Tracy & Robins, 2007). Results supported the hypothesis that authentic
pride was positively correlated with all of the adaptive personality factors, one of which is
agreeableness (John & Srivastava 1999). According to Cheng, J.T., Henrich, J. & Tracy, J.L.
(2010) prestigious individuals were also high in agreeableness, and authentic pride is associated
with prestige or the use of skills to attain status in human societies. These results imply that a
high level of agreeableness is a good indicator of a high level of authentic pride. This is because
agreeableness is a prosocial trait and authentic pride is related to the prosocial and adaptive traits.
A definite predictor of hubristic pride is if an individual has a low level of agreeableness.
Agreeableness is one of the socially desirable traits in the Big 5, and hubristic pride is said to be
negatively correlated with this and the other more pro-social traits. A study by Cheng, J.T.,
Henrich, J. & Tracy, J.L. (2010) supported this claim with their hypothesis that hubristic pride
should be positively related to narcissism, aggression, and disagreeableness. According to their
study about routes to attaining social status in human societies, either through dominance (based
14
on intimidation) or prestige (based on the possession of skills), results show that hubristic pride
is associated with dominance, which is positively associated with narcissism, aggression and
disagreeableness. This supports the assumption that hubristic pride has a negative association
with agreeableness. This means that the more disagreeable an individual is the more probability
that he or she experiences hubristic pride than authentic pride. This is because an individual high
in hubristic pride is more inclined to self-aggrandize and this may sometimes be the cause for
him or her to disagree with others and have conflict.
Neuroticism or also know as Emotional Stability, the last dimension that places people
along a continuum according to their emotional stability and personal adjustment. This trait
signifies individuals that are susceptible and worried often having emotional distress; persons
high in this trait tend to experience emotional instability, anxiety, moodiness, irritability, and
sadness. These people are the ones who are heavily affected by stress, and tend to view ordinary
conditions as threatening or hopeless. They are the ones who panic at the slightest disturbance.
Based on the research done on the relationship of the Big 5 personality traits and
hubristic pride, it is seen that hubristic pride has a significantly negative correlation with
extraversion, conscientiousness and agreeableness; which are the socially desirable traits in the
Big 5. Openness is also a socially desirable trait, but results show that it has no significant
correlation with hubristic pride. There are two contrasting notions on the relationship of
emotional stability and hubristic pride. Based on the implications of Shiota, Keltner, and John’s
(2006) study, there is a negative correlation between emotional stability and hubristic pride.
While, Tracy and Robins’ (2010) results showed that there is no relationship between emotional
stability and hubristic pride. However, if hubristic pride is the negative facet, the researchers then
hypothesize that neurotism will gain positive correlation with hubristic pride. That is, people
15
high on neuroticism will also be high in hubristic pride. As mentioned in the earlier part of this
paper, the researchers aim to resolve this uncertain position on the relationship of emotional
stability and hubristic pride.
16
Statement of the Problem
This study aims to determine if there is a significant relationship between the two facets
of pride: Authentic and Hubristic and the Big 5 Personality Traits.
Specifically, this aims answer the following questions:
1. Does Authentic Pride and Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness,
and Neuroticism have a statistically significant relationship?
2. Does Hubristic Pride and Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness,
and Neuroticism have a statistically significant relationship?
Statement of the Hypothesis
The two facets of pride are correlated with the Big 5 Personality Traits.
Specifically,
1. Obtaining positive correlation with
1.1 Authentic Pride - Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion and Agreeableness
1.2 Hubristic Pride – Neuroticism
2. Obtaining negative correlation with
2.1 Authentic Pride - Neuroticism
1.2 Hubristic Pride – Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion and Agreeableness
17
Significance of the Study
This study will be a significant attempt in providing a stronger relationship between pride
and the Big 5. So far there has not been any independent study specifically correlating pride to
the Big 5 personality traits other than the one conducted by Tracy and Robins (2007) which is
part of a larger study. This study provides additional literature on pride. Correlating pride with a
more established set of personality characteristics can lead to a better and wider understanding of
pride. This in turn can lead to a wider scope in understanding personality and self-conscious
emotions. If the hypotheses are proven correct, this research can strengthen the definition of each
facet; that authentic pride is a positive facet of pride and hubristic pride is a negative facet. It will
also serve as a future reference for future researchers regarding the concept of pride: authentic
and hubristic and what kind of personality is associated with each facet. And importantly, this
research will educate people about pride. That pride is not only a negative emotion but also has a
positive side to it.
18
METHODOLOGY
Research Design
This is a correlational study which aims to establish a significant relationship between
two facets of pride: authentic and hubristic with the Big 5 Personality Traits.
Research Environment
The study was conducted in the three campuses of the University of San Carlos (USC
Main Campus, USC Talamban Campus and USC South Campus. This venue was able to
accommodate the population of the subjects.
Research Respondents
The researchers did a convenience and purposive sampling. The subjects were three
hundred and thirty-one (331) college students studying in Cebu City with 197 females and 134
males aged 16 to 21 years old.
Research Instruments
Two Facet Pride Scale. Jessica Tracy and Richard Robins (2004) found evidence for the
presence of the 2 facets of pride. To further test or provide support for the theoretical distinction
between the 2 facets of pride, Tracy and Robins (2007) conducted a series of studies. These
studies demonstrate that the 2 facets emerge in analysis of the semantic meaning of pride-related
words. The 2 facets also appear from dispositional tendency to experience pride and from reports
of actual pride experience. The 2 facets have divergent personality correlates and distinct
19
antecedent causal attributions. They have also proven that the 2 facets do not simply reflect
positively and negatively valenced, high- and low activation or state versus trait forms of pride.
They were able to develop brief 7 item scales from an original 77 item pool of pride related
words (See Appendix I for the scale). The Authentic Pride scale included the words:
accomplished, achieving, confident, fulfilled, productive, self-worth and successful; and the
Hubristic Pride scale included the words: arrogant, conceited, egotistical, pompous, smug,
snobbish and stuck-up (See Appendix II).
The 7-item scales were tested for reliability and factor structure in two independent
samples – that is one that assessed pride as a trait (Sample A) and one that assessed pride as a
state (Sample B). Results showed that for Sample A (trait pride), the Authentic Pride scale had
an Alpha reliability of .88 and the Hubristic Pride scale had a reliability of .90. For Sample B
(state pride), the Authentic Pride scale had an Alpha reliability of .88 and the Hubristic Pride had
an Alpha reliability of .90. These reliabilities suggest that the scales have an adequate internal
consistency, regardless of whether pride is assessed as a trait or as a state and despite their
relatively short length. The items are scored by getting the mean of the 7 items that comprises
each facet.
Big Five Inventory. This 44-item test, developed by Oliver P. John, Ph.D. and V. Benet-
Martinez in 1998, is in the public domain and has been normed on tens of thousands of adults. It
is used to assess the participants’ Big Five Personality Traits – Openness (α = .74),
Conscientiousness (α = .82), Extraversion (α = .87), Agreeableness (α = .74) and Neuroticism or
Emotional Stability (α = .82). It provides a score for each of the Big Five personality traits. A
high score on Agreeableness implies appreciative and sympathetic disposition. Also, high score
on Conscientiousness implies a responsible and goal-directed behaviour. A sociable and
20
outgoing character entails a high score on Extraversion. Meanwhile, a high score on Openness
implies an innovative and insightful outlook. A high score on Neuroticism implies a tense and
anxious emotional state or less emotional stability. The test will be scored by summing the items
for each of the personality traits. Some of the items will be scored reversely as indicated in
Appendix III. One of the advantages of using the BFI is its efficiency taking only about 5
minutes of administration time. Moreover, the BFI items are shorter and easier to understand.
Research Procedures
Gathering of Data. The two sets of questionnaires were consecutively administered to the
participants. First administered is the Two Facet Pride Scale followed by the Big 5 Inventory. No
transmittal letter was written since the questionnaires were administered outside of school
grounds.
Treatment of Data. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Software was
utilized to interpret the gathered data. Descriptive statistics was used for socio-demographic data
such as age, gender, and course. Pearson Product – Moment Correlation (Pearson r) was used to
determine the degree of relatedness between authentic and hubristic pride and the Big 5
Personality Traits.
21
RESULTS
To test for the correlation between the two facets of pride and the Big 5, two measures
were used. First is the two-facet pride scale developed by Tracy and Robins (2007) which
assesses the two facets of pride in both ways it is experienced; either as a trait or a state. Trait
pride refers to the general feeling of pride while state pride refers to the momentary experience
of pride. Two-facet pride scale is score by getting the mean of the seven words that comprises
each facet. Two scores are yielded for each facet but Tracy and Robins (2007) claimed that there
is no significant difference between trait and state pride so the sum of the two score foreach facet
was computed to get one score for authentic pride and one score for hubristic pride. The second
measure used is the Big 5 Inventory (BFI) that measures the Big 5 personality traits. It yields one
score for each factor.
Table 1 shows the correlation between Extraversion and the two facets of pride including
the individual scores for the state and trait pride.
Table 1: Extraversion and Pride
State
Authentic
Pride
Trait
Authentic
Pride
Authentic
Pride State Hubristic
Pride
Trait
Hubristic
Pride
Hubristic
Pride
Extraversion Pearson
Correlation .165** .099 .147** .011 .006 .009
Sig. (2-tailed) .003 .072 .007 .837 .907 .866
N 331 331 331 331 331 331
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
*. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed).
22
As seen in Table 1, there is a significant positive correlation between Extraversion and
Authentic pride (r = .147, p < .05). This supports the present researchers’ hypothesis that there is
a positive relationship between authentic pride and Extraversion. This implies that scoring high
on Extraversion can also mean having a high level of authentic pride.
On the other hand, results regarding hubristic pride and Extraversion (r = .009, p > .05)
showed there is no significant relationship between the two. This means that having a low level
of Extraversion does not necessarily conclude that a person is high in hubristic pride or does
having a high level of Extraversion mean that an individual is low in hubristic pride.
Table 2 shows the correlation between Agreeableness and the two facets of pride
including the individual scores for the state and trait pride.
Table 2: Agreeableness and Pride
State
Authentic
Pride
Trait
Authentic
Pride
Authentic
Pride
State Hubristic
Pride
Trait Hubristic
Pride
Hubristic
Pride
Agreeableness Pearson
Correlation .014 .030 .024 -.201** -.147** -.183**
Sig. (2-tailed) .798 .592 .657 .000 .007 .001
N 331 331 331 331 331 331
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
*. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed).
Results from Table 2 indicates the significant negative correlation between hubristic
pride and Agreeableness (r = -.183, p < .05). This confirms to the hypothesis that hubristic pride
is negatively correlated with Agreeableness. This means that having low in agreeableness is
23
indicative of a high level of hubristic pride. Inversely, having a high level of Agreeableness is
suggests of a low level of hubristic pride.
There is no significant relationship between authentic pride and Agreeableness, as seen
in Table 2 (r = .024, p > .05). Contrary to the hypothesis of the researchers, Agreeableness is not
positively correlated to authentic pride. This means that being agreeable does not predict a high
level of Authentic pride.
Table 3 shows the correlation between Conscientiousness and the two facets of pride
including the individual scores for the state and trait pride.
Table 3: Conscientiousness and Pride
State
Authentic
Pride
Trait Authentic
Pride
Authentic
Pride
State Hubristic
Pride
Trait
Hubristic
Pride
Hubristic
Pride
Conscientiousness Pearson
Correlation .296** .303** .334** -.031 -.031 -.032
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000 .580 .580 .560
N 331 331 331 331 331 331
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
*. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed).
Conscientiousness is positively correlated with authentic pride (r = .334, p < .05), as seen
in the results from Table 3. This is in accordance with the hypothesis postulated by the
researchers and it surmises that being conscientious is a reliable indicator of authentic pride.
Table 3 shows of a negative correlation with Conscientiousness and hubristic pride (r =
-.032, p > .05), albeit a weak one. This agrees with the hypothesis of the researchers that
24
hubristic pride has a negative relationship with Conscientiousness, although in-depth
investigation might be needed to add more support to this hypothesis.
Table 4 shows the correlation between Neuroticism and the two facets of pride including
the individual scores for the state and trait pride.
Table 4: Neuroticism and Pride
State
Authentic
Pride
Trait
Authentic
Pride
Authentic
Pride
State Hubristic
Pride
Trait Hubristic
Pride
Hubristic
Pride
Neuroticism Pearson
Correlation -.246** -.125* -.206** .074 .068 .075
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .023 .000 .179 .217 .175
N 331 331 331 331 331 331
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
*. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed).
Table 4 shows the results for the correlation between Neuroticism and authentic pride. In
accordance to the hypothesis of the researchers, there is indeed a negative relationship between
Neuroticism and authentic pride (r = -.206, p < .05). This implies that being emotionally unstable
means having a low level of authentic pride. On the other hand, being emotionally stable means
that the individual experiences authentic pride more.
Hubristic pride and Neuroticism has no statistically proven relationship (r = .075,
p > .05), according to Table 4. This implies that neither being emotionally stable nor unstable is a
reliable predictor of a high or low level of hubristic pride.
25
Table 5 shows the correlation between Openness and the two facets of pride including the
individual scores for the state and trait pride.
26
Table 5: Openness and Pride
State
Authentic
Pride
Trait
Authentic
Pride
Authentic
Pride
State Hubristic
Pride
Trait
Hubristic
Pride
Hubristic Pride
Openness Pearson
Correlation .031 .122* .086 .033 .052 .045
.418Sig. (2-tailed) .576 .027 .119 .552 .350
N 331 331 331 331 331 331
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
*. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed).
According to the researchers’ hypothesis, Openness is positively correlated with
authentic pride and negatively correlated with hubristic pride. Results from Table 5 show that
there is a significant relationship between the trait form of authentic pride and Openness to
experience (r = .122, p < .05). Although when the researchers summed up the scores for the trait
and state forms of authentic pride, there was no significant correlation (r = .086, p > .05).
These results show that there is no relationship between hubristic pride and Openness to
experience (r = .045, p > .05). This does not correspond to the hypothesis of the researchers that
the two variables are negatively correlated. This means that having a high level of Openness is
not an indicator of a low level of hubristic pride, nor does having a low level of Openness be an
indicator of a high level of hubristic pride.
27
DISCUSSIONS
The present study explored the correlation between the two facets of pride: authentic and
hubristic pride, and the Big 5 personality traits. Prior studies have observed the relationship
among the two facets of pride and each of the Big 5 personality traits. The present results
suggest that authentic pride is more inclined to prosocial profiles of the Big 5, except for
Agreeableness and that there is no relationship between hubristic pride and Neuroticism, which
supports the conclusion of Tracy and Robins (2010) but opposes the hypothesis of the present
study.
Authentic pride is positively correlated with Extraversion, which means that people high
in Extraversion experience authentic pride more than those who are low in Extraversion. This
implies that people who are sociable and friendly are the people are likely to feel genuine self-
worth. These are the people who take pleasure in large gatherings such as parties, community
activities, and public demonstrations. This might be the reason why people high in Extraversion
tend to feel authentic pride, because they feel they helped their community through outreach
activities or through public demonstrations where they are fighting for a cause. Similarly, Weiner
(1985) and Williams & DeSteno (2008) concluded that authentic pride may be what promotes
positive behaviors in the achievement domain. In contrast, people who are introverts or have low
levels of Extraversion tend to experience a lower level of authentic pride. The reason for this
may be because people with a low level of Extraversion do not find it enjoyable to mingle with
others, which is why they might not find joining a community activity desirable and might also
be one of the reasons why they do not feel like they have accomplished much. Results of the
present study regarding Extraversion and authentic pride are supported by the similar findings of
Tracy and Robins (2007), Shiota, Keltner and John (2006) and Cheng, Henrich and Tracy
28
(2010). They all concluded that Extraversion is strongly associated with associated positive
emotions like joy, contentment and pride (authentic).
Authentic pride is also positively correlated with Conscientiousness; this means that
people who are careful, thorough, and organized are the ones who experience authentic pride
more. This implies that the more a person is mindful of details and is generally hard working and
reliable; there is a greater possibility that these people experience greater feelings of self - worth
and accomplishment than the people who do not have a high level of Conscientiousness. The
reason for this is that people who are conscientious have a need to be ideal, and in order for them
to achieve that they must work hard. People who have a high level of Conscientiousness feel
accomplished after they have done everything perfectly and carefully, resulting to feelings of
authentic pride which is based on accomplishments. Findings are similar to the conclusion of
Digman (199), Graziano & Tobin (2002), and Roberts et al. (2005) as cited by Tracy and Robins
(2007) that there is a strong relationship between authentic pride and conscientiousness because
it is one of the two traits that are most closely related to prosocial behaviors and achievement.
Authentic pride is also positively correlated with Openness to experience. This implies
that people who create new things experience higher levels of authentic pride. People who have a
low level of Openness to experience might not experience much authentic pride, unlike the
people who have a high level of the Openness trait. The reason for this might be because people
who do not have a high level of Openness tend to be conventional and traditional; this means that
they do not find new ways to do things. This might hinder progress and improvement on their
part which could be the reason why they do not experience authentic pride more, because
authentic pride is linked with feelings of self-worth. These results, however, did not coincide
with the results of Tracy and Robins (2007) for there study yielded no significant relationship
29
between authentic pride and Openness. They concluded that although authentic pride is said to
be positively correlated with the more adaptive and prosocial traits, openness to experience is not
as strongly regarded as an adaptive trait.
Authentic pride is negatively correlated with Neuroticism. People who have a high level
of Neuroticism do not respond well to stress, which could hinder how they do their tasks whether
at school or in the office. This could lead to poor job performance and result to feelings of
inadequacy with themselves. This could be one of the reasons why they have less feelings of
self-worth, thus leading to less feelings of authentic pride. People with a low level of
Neuroticism would have a higher tendency to experience authentic pride. This is because these
people can handle stress and anxiety well, resulting to better job performance and thus
accompany feelings of self-worth and accomplishment; which are linked to feelings of authentic
pride.
Although Agreeableness is considered as one of the prosocial traits in the Big 5, it did not
have a significant relationship with authentic pride. This does not mean that being pleasant and
accommodating during social situations do not accompany feelings of Authentic pride, only that
the relationship between the two variables are not as strong as the other constructs. This implies
that an individual’s level of Agreeableness is not a good indicator for an individual’s level of
authentic pride. Results were not as conclusive as with Tracy and Robins (2007) findings
wherein their results showed positive relationship with authentic pride and Agreeableness. This
may be due to the fact the being agreeable has a dual function. It could be being inherently
agreeable and pleasant or just being agreeable for the sake of avoiding trouble.
Results for correlations with hubristic pride were not very definite. Hubristic pride has
shown a weak negative correlation with Conscientiousness which suggests that a high level in
30
hubristic pride might indicate less efficiency and discipline. This means that a person who is less
goal oriented and less driven by success would tend to experience hubristic pride more. The
reason for this is because people who are fewer goals oriented could not base their pride on
specific accomplishments and they might exaggerate or distort their own accomplishments to be
used for self-aggrandizement, which results to feelings of hubristic pride. Results were somewhat
supported by the findings of Tracy and Robins (2007) wherein hubristic pride tended to be
negatively or not related to Conscientiousness.
Hubristic pride also yielded a strong negative relationship with Agreeableness, leading to
a conclusion that people high in hubristic pride are less agreeable but does not necessarily imply
that people high in authentic pride are also high in agreeableness. This conflict may be resolved
through further studies. This means that people who are helpful and have a concern for social
harmony seldom feel hubristic pride. The reason for this might be because they would rather
avoid conflict than to start it with self-aggrandizement, which is linked to feelings of hubristic
pride. Results were suported by the claim that hubristic pride is more experience by disagreeable
people in response to pride – eliciting events (Tracy & Robins, 2007).
In general, authentic pride was positively correlated with Extraversion,
Conscientiousness and Openness – all prosocial traits. This corresponds to the hypothesis that
authentic pride has a positive relationship with the prosocial traits in the Big 5 and is consistent
with the notion that authentic pride is more inclined to prosocial traits, as proposed by some
researchers (e.g., Shiota, Keltner, & John, 2006; Tracy and Robins 2007; Cheng, J.T., Henrich, J.
& Tracy, J.L., 2010). However, authentic pride is not positively correlated with all prosocial
traits in the Big 5, as proven by the results that there is no significant relationship between
authentic pride and Agreeableness - which implies that being pleasant and considerate is not a
31
good indicator of experiencing authentic pride. The hypothesis that authentic pride is negatively
correlated with Neuroticism was also proven by the results shown in the previous section,
implying that people who are easily affected by stress and anxiety experience less authentic
pride.
Hubristic pride was proven to be negatively correlated with agreeableness, which implies
that, a person who is disagreeable and inconsiderate experiences hubristic pride more. Hubristic
pride is also negatively correlated with Conscientiousness, although the relationship was a weak
one. This implies that people who are disorganized and careless tend to experience hubristic
pride more, rather than the individuals who are organized and mindful to details.
Although most of the hypotheses were met, supplementary studies regarding this topic
would be most helpful in providing a more certain conclusion regarding the relationship of pride
and the Big 5 personality traits. Findings from present research points to the need for continued
research and theory on both facets of pride.
The present researchers were only able to collect data from college students due to time
and financial constraints. Results from this study are limited to the correlation of the two facets
of pride to the Big 5 personality traits. For future researchers who would endeavor to study pride,
the present researchers recommend a larger sample of participants which would include people
of various ages, culture and profession. Also, in addition to strengthening the proven relationship
of the 2 facets of pride with the Big 5, the present researchers urge the future researchers to seek
other correlates. Either through studying the correlates of pride postulated by Tracy and Robins
(2007) which are self-esteem and narcissism or finding other constructs that the future
researchers think are in some way related to the 2 facets of pride.
32
REFERENCES
Berkely Personality Laboratory. (2007-9). The Big Five Inventory. Retrieved January 7, 2011, from http://www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~johnlab/bfi.htm
Burger, J. (2005). Personality. (pp. 176-180). Singapore: Thomson Learning, Wadsworth.
Cheng, J. T, Henrich, J. & Tracy, J. L., (2010). Pride, Personality and the Evolutionary Foundations of Human Social Status. Evolution and Human Behavior, 31(5), 334-347.
Darwin, C. & Ekman, P. (1872,1998). Disdain, Contempt, Disgust, Guilt, Pride, Etc. Helplessness, Patience, Affirmation and Negation. The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals. (pp. 552). New York: Oxford University Press, Inc.
Ekman, P. (2003). Emotions Revealed. New York: Times Books.
John, O. P., Naumann, L. P., & Soto, C. J. (2008). Paradigm Shift to the Integrative Big-Five Trait Taxonomy: History, Measurement, and Conceptual Issues. In O. P. John, R. W. Robins, & L. A. Pervin (Eds.), Handbook of personality: Theory and research (pp. 114-158). New York: Guilford Press.
John, O. P., & Srivastava, S. (1999). The Big Five trait taxonomy: History, measurement, and theoretical perspectives. In L. A. Pervin, & O. P. John (Eds.), Handbook of personality: Theory and research (pp. 102-138). New York: Guilford Press.
Lewis, M. (2000). Self-Conscious Emotions: Embarassment,Pride, Shame and Guilt. New York: Guilford Press.
Morrison, H. P. (1989). Shame: The Underside of Narcisissm. New Jersey: Analytic Press.
Srivastava, S. (2011). Measuring the Big Five Personality Factors. Retrieved January 10, 2011 from http://www.uoregon.edu/~sanjay/bigfive.html.
Sullivan, G. B. (2007). A Critical Psychology of Pride. International Journal of Critical Psychology, 21,166-189.
Shiota, M., Keltner, D., & John, O. P. (2006). Positive emotion dispositions differentially associated with Big 5 personality and attachment styles. Journal of Positive Psychology, 61-71.
Tagney, J. P., & Dearing, R. L. (2002). Shame and Guilt. New York: Guilford Press.
Tracy, J. L. (2003). "Death of a Narcissistic Salesman":An Integrative Model of Fragile Self-Esteem. Psychological Inquiry, 57-62.
Tracy, J. L., & Robins, R. W. (2004). Show your pride: Evidence for discrete emotion expression. Psychological Science, 15, 194-197
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Tracy, J. L., & Robins, R. W. (2007). The Psychological Structure of Pride: A Tale of Two Facets. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 506-525.
Tracy, J. L., & Robins, R. W. (2008). The Nonverbal Expression of Pride: Evidence for cross-cultural recognition. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
Weiner, B. (1985). An attributional theory of achievement motivation and emotion. Psychological Review, 92, 548–573.
Williams, L., & DeSteno, D. (2009). Pride: Adaptive social emotion or seventh sin? Psychological Science, 20, 284–288.
34
Appendix I
Two Facet Pride Scale
Q #:____
Name (optional):_________________________________ Date: ____________________
Age:____________ Gender: __M __F Course and Year: ___________
Instructions: Below are a number of words and phrases that describe different feelings and
emotions. Read each item and then indicate the extent to which you would use each of the
following words to describe yourself and your feelings right now.
Please use the scale below:
1 = Not at all
2 = Somewhat
3 = Moderately
4 = Very much
5 = Extremely
*As much as possible, kindly refrain from choosing Neutral (3), since this does not provide us
with useful information.
____Accomplished
____Arrogant
____Confident
____Fulfilled
____Productive
____Smug
____Stuck-up
____Like I am Achieving
____Conceited
____Egotistical
____Pompous
____Like I have self-worth
____Snobbish
____Successful
35
Instructions: Below are a number of words and phrases that describe different feelings and
emotions. Read each item and then indicate the extent to which you generally feel this way
(i.e., how you feel on the average).
Please use the scale below:
1 = Not at all
2 = Somewhat
3 = Moderately
4 = Very much
5 = Extremely
*As much as possible, kindly refrain from choosing Neutral (3), since this does not provide us
with useful information.
____Accomplished
____Arrogant
____Confident
____Fulfilled
____Productive
____Smug
____Stuck-up
____Like I am Achieving
____Conceited
____Egotistical
____Pompous
____Like I have self-worth
____Snobbish
____Successful
36
Appendix II
Retained Top 7 Loading Items for each Scale
Authentic Pride Hubristic Pride
Accomplished
Achieving
Confident
Fulfilled
Productive
Self-worth
Successful
Arrogant
Conceited
Egotistical
Pompous
Smug
Snobbish
Stuck-up
37
38
Appendix III
Big 5 Inventory – Scoring Key
Instructions for scoring:
Key items that are bold, italicized, and underlined (e.g., E) should be reverse scored. To
reverse score an item, change 1 to 5, 2 to 4, 4 to 2, and 5 to 1. After reverse scoring, find the total
score for E (Extroversion), A (Agreeableness), C (Conscientiousness), N (Neuroticism), and O
(Openness).
__1 Is talkative E __23 Tends to be lazy C
__2 Tends to find fault with others A __24 Is emotionally stable, not easily upset N
__3 Does a thorough job C __25 Is inventive O
__4 Is depressed, blue N __26 Has an assertive personality E
__5 Is original, comes up with new ideas O __27 Can be cold and aloof A
__6 Is reserved E __28 Perseveres until the task is finished C
__7 Is helpful and unselfish with others A __29 Can be moody N
__8 Can be somewhat careless C __30 Values artistic, aesthetic experiences O
__9 Is relaxed, handles stress well N __31 Is sometimes shy, inhibited E
__10 Is curious about many different things O __32 Is considerate and kind to almost everyone A
__11 Is full of energy E __33 Does things efficiently C
__12 Starts quarrels with others A __34 Remains calm in tense situations N
__13 Is a reliable worker C __35 Prefers work that is routine O
__14 Can be tense N __36 Is outgoing, sociable E
__15 Is ingenious, a deep thinker O __37 Is sometimes rude to others A
__16 Generates a lot of enthusiasm E __38 Makes plans and follows through with them C
__17 Has a forgiving nature A __39 Gets nervous easily N
38
39
__18 Tends to be disorganized C __40 Likes to reflect, play with ideas O
__19 Worries a lot N __41 Has few artistic interests O
__20 Has an active imagination O __42 Likes to cooperate with others A
__21 Tends to be quiet E __43 Is easily distracted C
__22 Is generally trusting A __44 Is sophisticated in art, music, or literature O
39