Personality operationalization: between testing and evaluating for research in management sciences

Abstract

The objective of this research is to understand the specificities of the operationalization of the concept of personality when applied in management sciences. Several studies in management sciences use personality as an explanatory variable. The operationalization of this concept can lead to discrepancies in the methodology and the results of the studies themselves. Through this research, we attempt to verify these discrepancies in order to understand the particularities of personality evaluation in management sciences research. We conduct a comparative analysis of 27 research articles in management sciences, which were selected on the basis of their recency, field of study and operationalization methodology. We analyzed 2 pools of articles, each pool dealing with a different issue. We started by grouping together articles that have the same objectives, then, we grouped together within each pool the articles that used the same method for operationalizing personality. Our results show that there are several differences in the results of the studies mainly due to the different operationalization methods used; the conceptualization of personality (specific to the dependent variables); the nature of correlational rather than longitudinal studies; the adoption of self-assessment tools; and cultural biases that impact the understanding and analysis of personality facets and traits. Finally, we initiate a discussion about the need for model for personality operationalization that is specific to research in management science. We draw researchers’ attention to the fact that the operationalization of personality for management sciences should lie between the test and the evaluation of the concept.

Keywords: Management sciences, personality, operationalization, entrepreneurial intention, satisfaction.

JEL Classification: M00

Article Type: Theoretical Research