Personality and multidimensional inequality: How the HEXACO model relates to different forms of capital, social class, and residence

Abstract

Sociological theorizing has largely equated people’s personality with the social context in which they find themselves, neglecting a large body of work in psychology. This exploratory study examines how personality traits, as measured by the HEXACO model, are related to multidimensional inequality in the Netherlands. Using a large representative sample of the Dutch population (N = 6,773), we analyzed the relations between the six HEXACO traits and different forms of resources (economic, cultural, social, person, and total capital), as well as social class and people’s place of residence. All personality traits predicted at least one form of inequality, with extraversion and openness to experience showing the strongest and most consistent relations across all forms. People who scored higher on these traits tended to have more resources and belonged to higher social classes. These findings highlight the long-term consequences of individual differences in personality, and the importance of including personality traits in sociological and psychological research on multidimensional inequality.