The Big Five Across Socioeconomic Status: Measurement Invariance, Relationships, and Age Trends

Associations between socioeconomic status (SES) and personality traits have important implications for theory application. Progress in understanding these associations depends on valid measurement, unbiased estimation, careful assessment of generalizability. In this registered report, we used data from AIID, a large online study, to address three basic questions about SES. First, evaluated the measurement invariance common measure personality, Big Five Inventory, across indicators educational attainment, income, occupational prestige. Fit indices showed some instances detectable noninvariance, but with little practical impact substantive results. Second, estimated SES personality. Results that were largely independent (most rs < .1), contrast predictions derived several previous studies. Third, tested whether age trends moderated by did not support social investment theory, they suggest generalizable We discuss findings developing validating measures use diverse samples. also theories propose are responsive to, or partially responsible for, people’s economic conditions.