What is Conscientiousness?
Conscientiousness is a personality trait which determines how organised, diligent, hard-working, and cautious a person is. People who score highly on conscientiousness tend to prefer structure and order, feeling comfortable operating within systems, processes, and routines. People who score low on conscientiousness tend to prefer a laidback approach to their life, finding structures and processes to be inherently stifling.
Conscientiousness is a major constituent of the Big Five personality traits, alongside openness to experiences, agreeableness, neuroticism and extraversion. Conscientiousness (or similarly defined constructs), also appear in other models of personality, including the HEXACO model and the 16PF model. Conscientiousness is therefore measured by a wide range of assessments, and is one of the more important psychological constructs in occupational settings.
In employee selection, conscientiousness is almost ubiquitously associated with job performance.
Schmidt & Hunter, 1998
Naturally, conscientiousness allows people to focus on their work, keeping them diligent and attentive, increasing the quantity and quality of their outputs.
Research also shows that conscientiousness is particularly important in less complex work, including routine blue collar occupations.
Wilmot & Ones, 2019
This is because highly conscientious individuals are better suited to structure and routine, helping them to remain focused and consistent in their efforts.
How to Assess Conscientiousness
Conscientiousness can be measured through our personality assessments. Our personality assessment will return a score for the candidate's level of conscientiousness breaking it down into the following scales:
- Diligence - An individual's propensity to follow the rules, uphold procedure and fulfil their obligations.
- Discipline - An individual's likelihood to remain productive and maintain focus during necessary day-to-day tasks.
- Methodical - An individual's attention to detail and their propensity to conduct tasks in a meticulous way.
- Self-Confidence - An individual's perceived competence and their sense of confidence in their own abilities.
- Vigilance - An individual's consideration of consequences and avoidance of impulsive decision-making.
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