Article

Should economic psychology care about personality structure?

Author(s) / Creator(s)

Brandstätter, Hermann

Abstract / Description

Since economic psychology is primarily interested in (a) how people in general react to the economic aspects of their environment, and (b) how these reactions change the economic components of their environment, as yet individual differences are not an important issue in economic-psychological research. After a brief look at how economic psychology used to deal with individual differences in the past, some suggestions are given, based on literature from social psychology, economic psychology, and personality research, on how economic psychology should deal with in the future. Information on personality structure can be used for predicting economic behavior in addition to attitude measures and as moderators of predictions from attitude measures. With respect to the applicability of the model of 'economic man' individual differences in emotionality vs. rationality are discussed. It is further stated that the development and change of socio-economic systems is very much dependent on the frequency distribution of personality structures in the social system and on the proper matching of role structures and personality structures. Finally, this paper points to differential effects of socio-economic conditions on people's well-being depending on their personality structure.

Keyword(s)

Gruppenverhalten Wirtschaft Persönlichkeitsfaktor Unterschied Sozialpsychologie Gruppenverhalten Wirtschaft Persönlichkeitsfaktor Unterschied Sozialpsychologie Collective Behavior Economics Individual Differences Personality Traits Social Psychology

Persistent Identifier

Date of first publication

1993

Publication status

unknown

Review status

unknown

Citation

  • Author(s) / Creator(s)
    Brandstätter, Hermann
  • PsychArchives acquisition timestamp
    2022-11-21T17:09:48Z
  • Made available on
    2014-06-23
  • Made available on
    2015-12-01T10:31:09Z
  • Made available on
    2022-11-21T17:09:48Z
  • Date of first publication
    1993
  • Abstract / Description
    Since economic psychology is primarily interested in (a) how people in general react to the economic aspects of their environment, and (b) how these reactions change the economic components of their environment, as yet individual differences are not an important issue in economic-psychological research. After a brief look at how economic psychology used to deal with individual differences in the past, some suggestions are given, based on literature from social psychology, economic psychology, and personality research, on how economic psychology should deal with in the future. Information on personality structure can be used for predicting economic behavior in addition to attitude measures and as moderators of predictions from attitude measures. With respect to the applicability of the model of 'economic man' individual differences in emotionality vs. rationality are discussed. It is further stated that the development and change of socio-economic systems is very much dependent on the frequency distribution of personality structures in the social system and on the proper matching of role structures and personality structures. Finally, this paper points to differential effects of socio-economic conditions on people's well-being depending on their personality structure.
    en
  • Publication status
    unknown
  • Review status
    unknown
  • ISSN
    0167-4870
  • Persistent Identifier
    https://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bsz:291-psydok-40204
  • Persistent Identifier
    https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11780/795
  • Persistent Identifier
    https://doi.org/10.23668/psycharchives.10966
  • Language of content
    eng
  • Is part of
    In: Journal of Economic Psychology 14 (1993) 473-494
  • Keyword(s)
    Gruppenverhalten
    de
  • Keyword(s)
    Wirtschaft
    de
  • Keyword(s)
    Persönlichkeitsfaktor
    de
  • Keyword(s)
    Unterschied
    de
  • Keyword(s)
    Sozialpsychologie
    de
  • Keyword(s)
    Gruppenverhalten
    de
  • Keyword(s)
    Wirtschaft
    de
  • Keyword(s)
    Persönlichkeitsfaktor
    de
  • Keyword(s)
    Unterschied
    de
  • Keyword(s)
    Sozialpsychologie
    de
  • Keyword(s)
    Collective Behavior
    en
  • Keyword(s)
    Economics
    en
  • Keyword(s)
    Individual Differences
    en
  • Keyword(s)
    Personality Traits
    en
  • Keyword(s)
    Social Psychology
    en
  • Dewey Decimal Classification number(s)
    150
  • Title
    Should economic psychology care about personality structure?
    en
  • DRO type
    article
  • Visible tag(s)
    PsyDok