Expanding the Nomological Network of Intellectual Humility: An Examination of Personality Traits, Cognitive Styles, Critical-Thinking, and Self-Perception Restricted; Files Only

Bowes, Shauna (Summer 2019)

Permanent URL: https://etd.library.emory.edu/concern/etds/xd07gt908?locale=it
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Abstract

Although intellectual humility (IH) has long been discussed in academic disciplines such as philosophy and ethics, research on the psychological correlates of IH is still in its relative infancy. Preliminary research suggests that IH is positively associated with certain general personality traits, including humility and agreeableness, and negatively with certain personality disorder traits, such as narcissism. Research also indicates that IH is positively associated with certain cognitive styles, such as objectivism and need for cognition, and negatively associated with others, such as dogmatism. Studies suggest that IH, although strongly associated with general humility, is relatively distinct from it, insofar as IH predicts significant variance in relevant outcomes over-and-above general humility. Although research on the nomological network of IH is informative, there are noteworthy gaps in our knowledge. First, little research has simultaneously examined multiple measures of IH, so it remains unclear if certain IH measures possess relatively more construct validity compared with others. Second, potentially key constructs have not yet been examined in relation to IH, including values and personality disorder dimensions. Third, it is unclear whether IH buffers against overconfidence. To replicate and extend research, I examined the associations between IH and a plethora of individual difference constructs in a large community sample (N=573). In addition, I examined the incremental validity of IH above-and-beyond general humility, agreeableness, social desirability, and general intelligence in statistically predicting relevant outcomes. Finally, I investigated the potential for a Dunning-Kruger effect to elucidate whether low IH is associated with overconfidence in one’s abilities. My results indicate that IH is robustly associated with an array of individual difference constructs, including normative and abnormal personality traits, cognitive styles, values, and critical-thinking. IH also predicted significant variance in relevant outcomes above-and-beyond all assessed covariates. There was little consistent evidence for a Dunning-Kruger effect in IH. My results suggest that IH is best conceptualized as an intrapersonally-oriented construct that is likely to be multidimensional in nature. Additional research is needed to clarify the latent structure of IH and elucidate its behavioral correlates. In addition, future research should examine whether IH buffers against cognitive bias.

Table of Contents

1. BACKGROUND………………………………………………………………………………1

2. METHODS…………………………………………………………………………………...19

3. RESULTS…………………………………………………………………………………….33

4. DISCUSSION………………………………………………………………………………...51

5. REFERENCES……………………………………………………………………………….70

6. TABLES………………………………………………………………………………………82

7. APPENDICES……………………………………………………………………………....104

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