The link between critical thinking and personality: individual differences in a concern for truth

Author

Elias C. Acevedo, Colorado Mesa UniversityFollow
Chelsie Hess, Colorado Mesa UniversityFollow

Periodical Title

Modern Psychological Studies

Volume

27

Number

1

Department

Dept. of Psychology

Publisher

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Place of Publication

Chattanooga (Tenn.)

Abstract

This study explored the relation between a concern for truth (a measure of critical thinking disposition), the big five personality traits, and demographic variables. College students (N = 367, 75% women) completed an online survey that assessed a concern for truth and personality. Correlational analysis indicated a concern for truth was significantly related to openness, neuroticism, and agreeableness. Stepwise multiple regression analysis showed that openness, age, grade point average (GPA), neuroticism, and class rank were significant predictors of a concern for truth. Openness was the most significant predictor of a concern for truth and accounted for 13% of the variance between students. Implications of these findings in relation to critical thinking education and future research are discussed.

Keyword

truth-seeking; personality; critical thinking dispositions

Document Type

article

DCMI Type

Text

Language

English

Rights

http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Recommended Citation

Acevedo, Elias C. and Hess, Chelsie (2022) "The link between critical thinking and personality: individual differences in a concern for truth," Modern Psychological Studies: Vol. 27: No. 1, Article 9.
Available at: https://scholar.utc.edu/mps/vol27/iss1/9