A new discovery: Personality traits matter – researching the sense of belonging

28.01.2024 04:10
Updated: 13.05.2024 21:21

A team of scientists discovered that people who are more social, friendly, or less anxious are more likely to feel like they belong at school.

Earlier research also suggested that your personality traits are linked to how much you feel like you belong.

Let's find out what else they've discovered.

A new experiment

In a college setting, experiencing a real sense of belonging has been associated with various positive things, such as better academic performance and better mental health.

While some experiments have explored the ties between students' sense of belonging and demographic traits like gender and race, there has been limited exploration of the ties between their personality and the feeling of school belonging.

Photo:Pixabay

The surveys checked each person's sense of belonging and their levels of "the Big Five" personality traits.

Statistical analysis uncovered that students with higher levels of extraversion or agreeableness were more likely to feel a stronger sense of belonging after their first year at school.

Conversely, those with higher neuroticism tended to feel a lower sense of belonging.

Why it's important

The discoveries provide new perspectives on the links between personality and the sense of belonging at school, highlighting the potential impact of school size.

The authors recommend getting more data to investigate influences such as students' race and ethnicity on these connections, along with other school characteristics beyond size.

This research could assist schools in aiding students with diverse personalities and backgrounds in developing their sense of belonging and thriving in college.

Furthermore, contrary to common beliefs, openness to new ideas and conscientiousness did not show any correlation with students' feelings of belonging.

Previously, we talked about memory transfers.

Author: Kate Yakimchuk Editor internet resource

Content
  1. A new experiment
  2. Why it's important