Personality Psychology Podcast

The hosts celebrate their 50th milestone by reflecting on four years of insightful discussions. They share memorable moments and valuable lessons learned along the way. Personal anecdotes highlight the unscripted charm of their conversations. The importance of content over technical perfection is emphasized. Exciting future plans include new collaborations and enhanced social media engagement, promising to deepen the exploration of personality psychology.

In this discussion, Filip De Fruyt, a professor renowned for his expertise in childhood personality development, unveils insights from his extensive research. He explores the AB5C model, emphasizing early indicators of personality traits and disorders in children. The conversation highlights the pivotal role of measurement in enhancing personality psychology's credibility. De Fruyt also addresses unique parenting approaches, advocating for tailored strategies to meet individual children's needs, especially for diverse temperaments. A fascinating dive into how technology is reshaping personality research concludes this enlightening exchange.

Ruben Arslan, a postdoctoral researcher at Leipzig University, and Farid Anvari, a researcher in the philosophy of statistics in Australia, tackle the perplexing world of psychological measurement. They discuss how the influx of new tests complicates the landscape, often leading to fragmented findings. The duo highlights the jingle jangle fallacies and argues for clearer standards. Their lighthearted approach also includes a unique rap battle, showcasing the tension between innovation and standardization in psychological assessments. Tune in for insights and a lot of fun!

In this episode, Jaap Denissen, the new editor-in-chief of Personality Science, discusses the journal's recent relaunch with Rebekka Weidmann. Jaap shares insights into what the relaunch involved, the current initiatives and goals of the journal, and highlights a recently accepted special issue. Learn more about the exciting changes and future directions of this open-access journal.

In this episode, Rebekka Weidmann spoke with Nic Weststrate about how he incorporates different, but less represented methods in his research with LGBTQ+ communities, such as narratives, psychobiographies, and community-engaged work. He also talks about how the field can embrace a “Yes, and” mindset in better valuing different theoretical and empirical approaches.

In our daily lives, we may come across many situations in which we act in ways that are different from our typical personality. In this episode, Lisanne de Moor speaks with Evy Kuijpers about what counterdispositional behavior is and what the consequences of behaving in ways that are “out of character” are.

Loneliness has received a lot of attention—especially since the Covid-19 pandemic. In this episode, Rebekka Weidmann speaks with loneliness experts Marlies Maes, Julianne Holt-Lunstad, Marcus Mund, and Susanne Bücker about the definition of loneliness and related but distinct constructs, the rising interest in loneliness, measurement issues, interventions, and more.

In this episode, Rebekka Weidmann spoke with Theo Klimstra and Kate McLean, the two authors of a recently accepted Target Article in the European Journal of Personality titled "Reconsidering Normative Interpretations in Personality Research". The authors summarize their article and speak about how the field can move forward. 

René Mõttus talks to Bill Revelle and Bob Hogan who are well respected personality researchers in the field. They argue that the main use of personality research is to predict what real people do in the real world. Yet, much of academic psychology has not taken this seriously, focusing on abstract ideas and models with little real-world relevance. They discuss why useful personality assessment is not about complex statistics or even measuring traits, but simply adding up questions that best predict important outcomes. They also discuss why we should stop believing in Easter Bunnies, how to reassess your work after forty years, and how to build a successful global company. And many other things.

Creative products—paintings, poems, but also innovative ideas like the invention of the wheel—help societies move forward. As such, it is no surprise that formal interest in creativity from psychologists dates back at least 100 years, and the informal interest arguably much longer. In this episode, Rodica Damian and Andreea Sutu, two experts in the study of creativity, discuss with Lisanne de Moor what creativity is, what the personality traits of a creative person are, and if creativity is linked to psychopathology.