What is Openness 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. First up, the most mysterious trait of all: Openness to Experience.

Are you a Ross or a Phoebe?

As every Friends fan knows, these two characters couldn't be more different if they tried. Ross, the nerdy paleontologist who geeks out over dinosaurs, has a rational, scientific approach to the world and needs to be the smartest person in the room. Then there's Phoebe—the quirky, free-spirited masseuse-slash-musician who is unapologetically herself and finds joy in unexpected places.

But as different as they appear on the outside, these characters both score highly on the trait of Openness to Experience. Openness manifests in such wildly different ways that Ross and Phoebe probably wouldn’t even recognize this trait in each other, which is an interesting conundrum. Let's find out why.

A Brief Primer on the Big Five

Before we fully explore Openness, let's zoom out for a moment. Openness is one of the five Big Five personality traits which comprise Openness to Experience, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness and Neuroticism. Everyone has a mix of all five traits. They are considered foundational to understanding human personality.

Every trait exists on a spectrum high to low like the sliders on an audio equalizer. The mix you end up with is unique to each individual, which is why two people who both score the same on Openness may look very different. Their other traits have a moderating effect.

The Big Five is the most widely used and strongly validated model of personality. When researchers use this model, they find evidence that it predicts behavior in a wide variety of contexts.

How Does The Big Five Fit With Other Personality Systems?

We don't talk about the Big Five on this blog as much as we talk about other personality systems, perhaps because the Big Five is seen as more academic and less "fun" than other personality systems. You won't get a type label like "INTP" or "Enneagram Three" by taking the Big Five. 

However, there are clear overlaps between the Myers and Briggs personality system and the Big Five. Very loosely:

• Extraversion (Big Five) correlates with Extraversion v Introversion (Myers and Briggs)
• Openness to Experience correlates with Intuition v Sensing
• Agreeableness correlates with Feeling v Thinking
• Conscientiousness correlates with Judging v Perceiving

So, if you take a typical INTJ, for example, you would expect them to score lower than average on the Big Five trait of Extraversion, higher than average on Openness, lower than average on Agreeableness and higher than average on Conscientiousness. 

Neuroticism is not represented in the Myers and Briggs system because its inventors thought the trait was too uncomfortable for people to talk about—that's a blog post for another day!

But before you go any further, I recommend you take the Big Five test and the Typefinder test, based on the Myers and Briggs system. What do you notice? Can you see how the two systems correlate?

What is Openness to Experience?

Openness to Experience—or just "Openness"—refers to an individual’s willingness to engage with new ideas, experiences and unconventional ways of thinking. It's about curiosity, imagination and how open you (literally) are to exploring the unknown.

People on the high end of the Openness scale might easily lose themselves in a book, start painting as a hobby just for fun, ditch the office to work in a coffee shop, or solve problems in their dreams. Their mental gates are wide open, ready to take in all that the world has to offer. This impacts the way they process information. High Openness types are more likely to look at things from different angles and accept there is no single moral stance or solution to everything. They embrace nuances and complexities, because they're always gathering new information or trying a new approach.

On the flip side, those lower in Openness prefer tradition, consistency and familiarity—think steady routines, a classic movie from their comfort playlist, or ordering their “usual” at their favorite restaurant.

If you have a general, positive attitude toward new experiences, ideas and change, then you're probably high in Openness.

But as I said, it's a spectrum. Being in the middle is normal, and most people land between the two extremes.

Traits of High vs. Low Openness Individuals

High Openness Traits:

• Curious
• Imaginative
• Creative
• Unconventional
• Progressive
• Adventurous

Low Openness Traits:

• Realistic
• Conventional
• Practical
• Down-to-earth
• Stable
• Rule-following

Neither of these is better or worse—they’re just different ways of experiencing the world, and equally necessary. Imagine a workplace full of unconventional creatives with no one to give their ideas a reality check or provide concrete solutions for executing their plans. Or a group of rule-followers so afraid of change they can’t adapt to new market conditions. Every team needs a balance of Openness levels to be successful.

• Read: The Best and Worst Careers for Highly Open People

Openness in Action: How It Plays Out in Daily Life

To bring Openness to life, let's imagine five real-world situations and how people high and low in this trait might respond.

The scenario: You're on a group trip in a foreign country, and the itinerary has some free time this afternoon. The group is debating how to spend it.

• High Openness: "I want to see the hidden city! Let's ditch the guide book and see where the locals go."
• Low Openness: "I read TripAdvisor, and the top-rated museum is right down the street. Let's just go there."

The scenario: You're at a work meeting brainstorming ideas for a new marketing campaign.

• High Openness: "What if we completely change our approach and try something no one in our industry has ever done before? This amazing startup I know did something similar, and it went viral."
• Low Openness: "We brought our last five clients in at a trade show. We should focus our budget there because we know it works."

The scenario: You're at a restaurant and the waiter gets your order wrong.

• High Openness: "No big deal, let's try something new! I've always been curious about octopus carpaccio anyway."
• Low Openness: "This is not what I ordered. Can we please correct it? I’d really like to enjoy the meal I had in mind."

The scenario: You have a day off to yourself.

• High Openness: "I've always wanted to try a silent meditation retreat. How about I book one for tomorrow?"
• Low Openness: "I'll stick to my usual Saturday routine—yoga in the morning, brunch with friends, and then catching up on Netflix."

The scenario: A new colleague joins your team, and you’re tasked with training them.

• High Openness: "How about we role play this so you can learn hands-on?"
• Low Openness: "I have a manual you can follow for that process. Let’s go through it together, and then you can practice on your own."

Why Does Openness Look So Different From Person to Person?

Openness can present itself in many ways because the trait is not one-dimensional—it’s a bucket of sub-traits that statistically go together. We listed some of the most common traits earlier. Each sub-trait describes a really broad behavior. Take the sub-trait of "curiosity" for example:

• One person may be curious about new scientific theories and intellectual pursuits. These individuals often pursue careers in the sciences, academia, media or the law.
• Another person may be curious in an "experience-oriented" way. They may be drawn to travel, adventure, and the mechanics of systems, always asking "What makes this tick?" These individuals often pursue careers in engineering, music or design.
• Yet another person may be curious in a philosophical, spiritual or society-minded way. They may show radical acceptance of different belief systems, moral codes and backgrounds, and pursue careers in ministry, therapy or even activism.

All of these people could be equally high in Openness traits. But their curiosity manifests differently, to the point where they would probably struggle to recognize Openness in each other.

A professional, validated personality test would highlight their similarities.

What the Research Tells Us About Openness

The Big Five is considered by experts to be the most scientifically rigorous formalization of human personality to date. When researchers study personality psychology, they almost always use this system. And their research tells us many important things about Openness:

• High Openness is consistently associated with liberalism. It politically aligns with liberal values emphasizing change, progress and acceptance of diverse lifestyles.
• The most successful entrepreneurs have a higher preference for novelty and variety and are open to adventure, which are clear traits of Openness.
• At work, Open leaders are more receptive to feedback and new information, have better critical thinking skills, and are quicker at problem-solving.
• Openness is only moderately associated with overall intelligence, but clearly associated with cognitive flexibility. This is the ability to adapt your thinking and behavior to fit changing situations, which makes Openness a sought-after skill in today's ever-evolving job market.
• High Openness is consistently linked with higher income across various studies—but it's complicated. It could be that highly Open people are more willing to experiment and land on a career that's a great fit for their personality (which we know gives a significant income boost) than anything innate to the trait itself.
• Unfortunately, Openness does seem to be a risk factor for addiction. Studies have linked high Openness to the use of illegal drugs and internet addiction. Open individuals are novelty-seeking, which can lead to risky behavior at times.

Born This Way, or Made This Way?

Twin and family studies show that the Big Five traits have a significant genetic component, meaning your base level of Openness is, to some degree, an accident of birth.

But even if you were born this way, there's clear evidence that Openness levels are not fixed. You can  intentionally work on developing this aspect of your personality through consistent effort and practice. Here's what that might look like:

• Try new experiences: Challenge yourself to say "yes" to activities outside your comfort zone, whether it’s trying a new cuisine, attending a concert for a genre you don’t normally like, or taking a weekend workshop.
• Be curious: Read books on topics you know little about, or ask people about hobbies or interests that fascinate them.
• Neutralize judgmental thoughts. Take a moment to notice your own biases, and instead of sticking to the same answer you always go with, try replacing it with, "I'm not sure. What do other people think?".
• Surround yourself with people who think and live differently than you. Their perspectives on life can teach you a lot. 
• Explore other cultures and ways of life. You can do this by visiting new places, reading about other traditions, or even taking a road trip to somewhere you’ve never been before. 
• Listen more. Sometimes, shutting down conversations because the topic is not that interesting to us or we think we already have the answer can do us a disservice. Instead, make a conscious effort to listen more and ask questions—others may have something perspective-opening to share.
• Read: Is It Possible to Become More Open Minded?

Final Words

Whether you’re the Ross or Phoebe of your friend group — or an ever-practical Monica! — learning about your Openness can help you understand yourself a little better. Openness is a fascinating trait, because it's a growth trait. Becoming more Open can help in all sorts of areas, from the way you approach job opportunities and personal relationships to the way you experience different music, culture, books, food, places, people and ideas.

You can be situational with Openness. For example, you may naturally be extremely practical and look at situations in realistic ways. But when you're with your arts-scene friends, you may visit a local art exhibit and be able to open up your imagination in ways that surprise you. The point is not to try to change who you are, but to stretch the boundaries of "what makes sense" for you — the definition of what being "Open" really means.