What is Extraversion in the Big Five Personality System?

In this blog series, we’re breaking down all the traits of the Big Five personality system, to show you how rich, nuanced and complex our personalities truly are. Third in the series is Extraversion, the 'energy' trait. If you are new to this series, check out our previous posts on Openness and Conscientiousness before diving in.

Are you a Mr. Darcy or an Elizabeth Bennet? 

Not every great love story starts out as a great love story, and when the two leads of Pride and Prejudice meet, they don’t exactly hit it off. If only Elizabeth could see past Mr. Darcy’s serious and reserved demeanor, she’d realize that he’s a genuinely good guy with a soft heart. As for Mr Darcy, he's really not a fan of the Bennet family's loud, inappropriate outbursts and lack of social restraint.

Introvert-Extravert couples can make for quite a dynamic duo, if they learn to accommodate the other's energy levels and the differing levels of "high" they get from power, social position, achievement and rewards.

What is Extraversion in the Big Five?

If you have taken Truity's TypeFinder® personality test, which is based on the Myers and Briggs personality system, then you will be familiar with Extraversion. "E" is the first letter of your four-letter code, and it describes someone who is energized by stimulation from the outside world, such as social interactions. Its opposite is "I" for Introversion, which describes someone who conserves their energy and is energized by quiet, reflective time.

In the Big Five personality system, Extraversion is one of five dimensions that are used to describe our personalities. The other four are Openness to Experience, Conscientiousness, Agreeableness and Neuroticism.

While Big Five Extraversion and Myers and Briggs Extraversion share a lot in common, they aren't exactly the same:

• The Big Five measures Extraversion on a continuous scale rather than a binary classification. You typically will hear someone described as having "high," "average" or "low" Extraversion, or being assigned a percentage score, rather than being labeled an "Extravert" or "Introvert."
• The Big Five looks more at observable behaviors and tendencies—how we interact with others, how we respond to rewards and social situations, and how much energy we draw from being around other people. Myers-Briggs, on the other hand, focuses more on our underlying motivations and preferences. This can sometimes lead to discrepancies in results when someone takes both tests.
• Breaking it down further, Big Five's Extraversion includes more detailed facets of the trait. For example, it measures a person's assertiveness, activity level and the emotional payoff they get from the victories they experience in life, such as getting a new job, buying a house or finding the love of their life. Someone who scores high on the Big Five trait of Extraversion is thrilled and energized by such experiences, especially if they win the attention of a crowd. So, they will go out of their way to have more of those experiences and will seek out opportunities for achievement and success. A low Extravert (who we will call an Introvert for simplicity) will not experience the same high from their personal victories. They may go after them with a lot of focus and effort, but they tend to celebrate successes in private, and are content living quieter, more reflective lives.

Traits of High vs. Low Extraversion

Traits associated with high Extraversion:

• Outgoing
• Talkative
• Energetic
• Confident
• Sociable
• Enthusiastic
• Friendly
• Gregarious

Traits associated with low Extraversion:

• Reserved
• Quiet
• Reflective
• Calm
• Independent
• Private
• Low-key

What Does the Research Say About Extraversion?

1. It leads to greater life satisfaction.

While low Neuroticism is most closely related to life satisfaction outcomes, multiple studies link Extraversion to a range of positive well-being outcomes, including:

• Overall satisfaction in life and psychological well-being (source).
• More zest for life and lower depression incidences (source).
• Stronger social connections, higher peer likability, and greater social status (source).

Interestingly, these impacts may vary with nationality. Extraverts in the US seem to experience greater life satisfaction effects compared to those in Germany, Great Britain and Japan. Truity's research shows that different states and cities have distinct personalities, which supports the idea that culture and location play a role in shaping personality. On a national level, it could be that the US has a more Extraverted culture, providing an environment where Extraverts thrive and feel more fulfilled compared to other nations.

2. It could lead to happier relationships, depending on your gender.

According to one study, Extraverted men have longer and happier marriages than their Introverted counterparts. However, the opposite is true for women! Introverted women and Extraverted men fared the best on relationship happiness in the long-term.

Other studies have also found a positive relationship between Extraversion and general relationship satisfaction. That's not to say their relationships are better, just that Extraverts report being more satisfied in their relationships, perhaps due to traits like energy, enthusiasm and sociability.

3. Extraversion is linked to career success.

When applying for jobs, many people report feeling like the role is just not built for them. In some careers and industries, this may be true. One analysis of BBC data — that's Britain's national TV station — found that highly Extraverted people had a 25% greater chance of being in a top, higher-earning job. That may make sense for media careers, where sociable, talkative, assertive and high-energy people tend to thrive. 

However, research has consistently shown that Extraversion is linked to higher earnings and more frequent promotions in other careers as well. For example, a study published in the Harvard Business Review found that a man who is average in Extraversion will earn $600,000 more over a lifetime than his Introverted peer, a difference that corresponds to about 15% of lifetime earnings.

Why is this the case? One possible explanation is that the traits of Extraversion themselves make someone more likely to be successful in the workplace. For example, one study found that Extraverted participants were more persistent when it came to completing achievement-oriented tasks. They also had greater reward sensitivity, and therefore more passion and enthusiasm for achieving their goals.

A second explanation is that it isn't Extraversion but the perception of Extraversion that matters. It is well documented that senior corporate executives have traditionally viewed Introversion as a barrier to leadership, linking it to lower confidence, less charisma, a lack of ambition or low assertiveness. Such perceptions can lead to those with lower Extraversion traits being undervalued.

These perceptions are changing, and have become a talking point since Susan Cain's book "Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking" became an international bestseller. Some studies suggest that it's Introverted leaders who drive higher productivity from their teams, and many others show there is very little difference in performance between Extraverted and Introverted leaders, and both are equally capable of succeeding.

Does Extraversion Change Over Time?

Our Big Five personality traits are relatively consistent over time, so if you score high in Extraversion today, you are likely to still score as an Extravert in 5 or 10 years’ time.

However, research consistently indicates that Extraversion tends to decrease with age, with a steeper drop after the mid-50s. Every person is different of course, but researchers hypothesize that  the lower social demands on us in later life, combined with a drop in energy levels, may contribute to this change.

Of course, there will always be people who become more outgoing and social as they age, possibly due to a greater sense of freedom after retirement or a desire to make the most out of their remaining years. Overall though, it's common for people to move closer towards the center of the Extraversion scale as they get older, even if they don't "switch sides."

Final Words

Whether you’re the life of the party with a friend list as long as your arm, or you prefer solitude and a small inner circle of loved ones, there’s no “right” level of Extraversion to aspire to. Fundamentally, it boils down to your energy expression — whether you direct your energy outward toward external stimuli, or inward towards your own thoughts and emotions. And since the Big Five measures your personality across five traits, it's fair to say that no two Extraverts are exactly alike. A highly Extraverted and Agreeable person is going to behave quite differently than someone who is highly Extraverted and Conscientious with low Agreeableness.

You can also be situational with Extraversion. It is very possible for an Extravert to enjoy quiet reflection and deeper, one-on-one conversations, and to employ them in certain situations — and vice versa for Introverts who can command a room for as long as their energy allows. The point is not to try to change who you are, but to recognize that personality traits are not black-and-white absolutes and can be expressed in different ways depending on the context.