Virtues in action are related to the integration of both temperament and character: Comparing the VIA classification of virtues and Cloninger’s biopsychosocial model of personality

In this study, we describe a psychobiological model of the structure and development of personality that accounts for dimensions of both temperament and character. Previous research has confirmed four dimensions of temperament: novelty seeking, harm avoidance, reward dependence, and persistence, which are independently heritable, manifest early in life, and involve preconceptual biases in perceptual memory and habit formation. For the first time, we describe three dimensions of character that mature in adulthood and influence personal and social effectiveness by insight learning about self-concepts. Self-concepts vary according to the extent to which a person identifies the self as (1) an autonomous individual, (2) an integral part of humanity, and (3) an integral part of the universe as a whole. Each aspect of self-concept corresponds to one of three character dimensions called self-directedness, cooperativeness, and self-transcendence, respectively. We also describe the conceptual background and development of a self-report measure of these dimensions, the Temperament and Character Inventory. Data on 300 individuals from the general population support the reliability and structure of these seven personality dimensions. We discuss the implications for studies of information processing, inheritance, development, diagnosis, and treatment.

Health is a state of physical, mental, and social well-being. Personality traits measure individual differences in adaptive functioning and mental health, but little is known about how well personality accounts for health's affective aspects (i.e., "happiness") and its non-affective aspects (i.e., "wellness") in the general population. 1102 volunteer representatives of the Sharon area of Israel completed the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI), the Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS), the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (PSS), and the subjective health assessment of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). Multidimensional personality profiles were used to evaluate the linear and non-linear effects of interactions among dimensions on different aspects of well-being. Self-directedness was strongly associated with all aspects of well-being regardless of interactions with other dimensions. Cooperativeness was strongly associated with perceived social support, and weakly with other aspects of well-being, particularly when Self-directedness was low. Self-transcendence was strongly associated with positive emotions when the influence of the other character dimensions was taken into account. Personality explained nearly half the variance in happiness and more than one-third of the variance in wellness. Our data are cross-sectional and self-reported, so they are subject to personal perceptual bias. The emotional, social, and physical aspects of well-being are interdependent, but specific configurations of TCI Self-directedness, Cooperativeness, and Self-transcendence influence them differentially. Interactions among different combinations of character traits have strong effects on the perception of both wellness and happiness. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.