According to allport, characteristics that dominate the persons life are called

Gordon Willard Allport spent nearly his entire academic career at Harvard, completing both his bachelor’s degree and his PhD at the university, and serving as a faculty member from 1930 – 1967.

Allport pioneered research on human personality. At a time when behaviorism held sway in psychology departments in the U.S., and psychoanalytic approaches dominated elsewhere, Allport championed an empirical methodology that considered the influences of current context and conscious motivations, without dismissing the possible contribution of unconscious memories and/or mechanisms to human thought and behavior.

“My plea … is that we avoid authoritarianism, that we keep psychology from becoming a cult from which original and daring inquiry is ruled out by the application of one-sided tests of method; that we come to evaluate our science rather by its success in enhancing … our powers of predicting, understanding, and controlling human action. As an aid to progress I have tried especially to strengthen the case for research upon complex patterns of human mental organization, frames of reference, the subject's point of view, and the act of understanding.” Gordon W. Allport, 1939 APA Presidential Address

Allport created a highly influential three-tiered hierarchy of personality traits, consisting of:

Cardinal traits: Rare, but strongly deterministic of behavior.

Central traits: Present to varying degrees in all people.  Central traits influence, but do not determine, an individual’s behavior.

Secondary traits: Also present in all individuals and can influence behavior, but secondary traits are strongly dependent upon immediate context, such that they are not apparent in all situations.

Allport also conducted seminal research into the psychological underpinnings of prejudice and discrimination. In 1954 he published The Nature of Prejudice, based on his research.  The book was widely read and cited, not only by other psychologists but also by civil rights leaders such as Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X.  It is still in print today.

Allport was a well-regarded teacher, who shaped the thinking of numerous students, including Jerome Bruner and Stanley Milgram.  The influence of Allport’s research is broad and long-lived; he is ranked at number 11 on the American Psychological Association’s list of the 100 most eminent psychologists of the 20th century.

Sources

Allport, G.W. (1979).  The Nature of prejudice. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Pub. Co.

Allport, G.W. (1940).  The psychologist’s frame of reference. Presidential address delivered at the Forty-seventh Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association, Berkeley, California, September 7, 1939.

Eminent psychologists of the 20th century.  (July/August, 2002). Monitor on Psychology, 33(7), p.29.

Nicholson, I. (2003).  Inventing personality:  Gordon Allport and the science of selfhood.  Washington, D.C.:  American Psychological Association

By Mia Belle Frothingham, published July 16, 2022 | Fact Checked by Saul Mcleod, PhD

A personality trait is defined as something in regards to an individual that influences how they tend to think, feel and behave on a constant basis.

Personality traits are characteristic of lasting behavioral and emotional patterns rather than sequestered occurrences. Anyone can have an unenjoyable day once in a while, which can lead them to get aggravated, and make a snappy remark.

When this happens in isolation, it does not reflect a personality trait. However, when someone has a specific behavior of snapping at people rather than communicating politely, then snappiness is likely a personality trait this person has.

A discussion of Gordon W. Allport's Trait Theory is essential to examine the meaning of Cardinal Traits. Allport was a psychologist curious in studying and categorizing traits to comprehend personality.

Cardinal Traits can conquer a person's life, sometimes leading to world-changing personalities and effects. Allport was one of the first pioneers to research in the study of traits.

For Allport, cardinal traits dominate and shape a person's behavior. Central traits are characteristics found to some degree in every person. Secondary traits are only seen in particular circumstances (such as the snappy remark mentioned earlier).

These traits merge to provide a comprehensive picture of human personality. Cardinal traits dominate a person's personality to the point that they become known for them. Cardinal traits are the most predominant personality traits but also the rarest. Only so few people are so dominated by a singular theme that shapes the course of their entire life.

Such traits are so inherently tied to an individual's personality that the person becomes almost synonymous with those qualities.

Cardinal traits often develop later in life. They shape almost all characteristics of an individual's purpose, behavior, and attitudes.

The majority of people do not have a cardinal trait but rather a variety of several central traits. However, famous or notorious documented figures are often thought of in terms of their cardinal traits. 

Some examples include:

• Abraham Lincoln: Honest

• Albert Einstein: Brilliant

• Mahatma Gandhi: Peaceful

• Martin Luther King, Jr.: Just, heroic

• Mother Teresa: Good, charitable

• Niccolo Machiavelli: Ruthless

• Oprah Winfrey: Sociability, openness

• Sigmund Freud: Psychoanalytical

There are also examples of cardinal traits in literature and myth. Don Juan was so renowned for his romantic exploits that his name became a synonym for heartbreaker and profligate.

Ebenezer Scrooge represented the cardinal trait of greediness. Narcissus, of Greek mythology, was so enamored with his reflection that his name became the root of the term narcissism or extreme self-obsession.

What are the differences among cardinal central and secondary traits?

Central traits affect, but do not determine, a person's behavior. Secondary traits are also present in all individuals and can influence behavior, but secondary traits are strongly dependent upon immediate context, so they are not apparent in all situations.

Secondary traits tend to show themselves in particular situations. Again, for example, you might generally be pretty easy-going, but you might become short-tempered when under much pressure. Alternatively, an ordinarily calm person might become very anxious when faced with speaking in public.

What are the differences among cardinal central and primary traits?

Allport believed central traits are much more common than primary cardinal traits and serve as the basic building blocks of most people's personalities.

Essentially, primary cardinal traits are rare but are strongly deterministic of behavior. In comparison, central traits are present to varying degrees in everyone. If you think of the essential terms you might use to determine and describe your overall character, such as anxious, honest, friendly, or generous, those would probably be identified as your central traits.

Allport suggested that most individuals have about 5 to 10 central traits. He also theorized that the majority of people have many of these traits to a certain degree.

No, extraversion is one of the "big five" broad categories of personality traits. Extraversion relates to focusing attention outward, onto other people and the environment.

An individual high in extraversion (often spelt "extroversion") might be sociable and outgoing. It is necessary to note that each of the "big five" personality categories represents a range between two extremes of personality characteristics.

For example, extraversion represents a spectrum between extreme introversion and extreme extraversion. Most people lie between the two opposite ends of each dimension in the real world.

Kindness can be a cardinal trait. The thing to make clear here is that a cardinal trait is a pervasive characteristic that becomes the person's identity.

If you dedicate your whole life to helping others, volunteering your time, making donations, and treating people with endless compassion, you can earn the cardinal trait of kindness.

Behavior involves an interaction between a person's fundamental personality and situational components. The situation that an individual finds themselves in plays a significant role in how the person reacts.

However, in most cases, people offer responses consistent with their underlying personality traits.

Like mentioned in this article, a cardinal trait is one that dominates your entire personality and, therefore, your life. Hence, we say that cardinal traits are not very common.

Only a few select people have personalities dominated by a single trait. Instead, our personalities typically consist of multiple traits.

Mia Belle Frothingham is a Harvard undergraduate in her senior year majoring in Biology & Psychology. She is a passionate author, science communicator, and aspiring astrobiologist and astronaut with a great interest in clinical, cognitive, and behavioral psychology.

Content is rigorously reviewed by a team of qualified and experienced fact checkers. Fact checkers review articles for factual accuracy, relevance, and timeliness. We rely on the most current and reputable sources, which are cited in the text and listed at the bottom of each article. Content is fact checked after it has been edited and before publication.

Frothingham, M.B. (2022, July 16). Cardinal Traits of Personality. Simply Psychology. www.simplypsychology.org/cardinal-traits.html

Allport, G. W. (1937). Personality: A psychological interpretation. New York: Henry Holt.

Cattell, R. B. (1965). The scientific analysis of personality. Baltimore: Penguin Books.

Fleeson, W., & Jayawickreme, E. (2015). Whole trait theory. Journal of research in personality, 56, 82-92.

Goldberg, L. R. (1990). An alternative" description of personality": the big-five factor structure. Journal of personality and social psychology, 59(6), 1216.

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