Degree Research #1

I’d like to thank each and every one of the 155 participants who helped Me with My research.

The research was to show a correlation between personality types and tolerance levels. Ideally in research we let our respondents know the full details BEFORE they engage in research so that their consent is 100% informed. However, under certain circumstances this would “spoil” the results and in these situations a “de-brief” must be made available for participants. For example, had I said that I was looking for a correlation between assertive personalities and tolerance levels towards certain issues, people answering the questions may have tried to protect their self-image by answering in a more or less tolerant fashion. I hope this explains why I was unable to give everyone the full facts at the time?

The test used to determine personality type is called the Global 5/SLOAN test Details about this test can be found at http://similarminds.com/sloan.html#10. The brief for this piece of work stated I had to use a recognised personality test and then ask My own questions in regard to attitudes and tolerance levels. I felt the SLOAN test was a good choice if I wanted to be able to add the results into My dissertation research as it is a recognised and respected measure of personality types.

Tolerance and attitudes towards career women were explored and correlated against two main personality types: social (extroverted) and reserved (introverted). All invited to participate in the survey were drawn from alternative lifestyle sites representing the BDSM and transvestite/ TS/TG communities. This was to enable attitudinal research to be carried out within a specific target group who are ordinarily perceived to possess polarised perceptions of femininity.

Full results will be posted here by 13/06/2008 for those interested. However, initial findings place the respondents as exceptionally tolerant and unsually balanced in their distribution of personality types across genders. Personal orientation as to Dominance or submissive identification was not explored in this piece of research.

Should you have any questions regarding this research, please do not hesitate to post to this topic thread or to contact Me directly via the sites you access.

In closing, I’d like to again express My genuine gratitude to those of you who were kind enough to participate. Thank you so very, very much!

My apologies for the extended delay in publishing the following findings. Computer issues meant I was unable to post the results up as swiftly as intended, and pressing personal issues extended this time. Below is as full a version of my findings as I am able to publish on this site. If you require a full copy of the findings, please email me. Copyright is exercised across this research, and it's findings.

Correlation study into personality type and tolerance of successful career women within a specific sub-cultural target group.

Abstract The aim of this piece of research is to establish whether there is a correlation between social and reserved personality types and tolerance towards successful career women. Using an on-line version of the Big Five Personality Type test, with additional questions geared towards expected roles of women (to set the stage) and then a question utilising emotive language to explore perceptions of and attitudes towards successful career women. Research was targeted towards an established sub-cultural group to establish if there were variants from societal norms within the group where distinct polarisation is both accepted and embraced, as well as being perceived negatively by those external to the group.

Initial findings indicate higher than usual levels of balanced personality types (outside the remit of the design of this piece of research). However, findings within the remit of this design do not support the hypothesis advanced from a position of societal norms, although research findings are statistically significant.

Introduction The study required the use of a published personality test to be included in the design. There are many different published personality tests available, some having a stronger scientific background and research basis than others. In electing to follow the more scientific rather than “social” route from magazines and media it was hoped a baseline from other research could be established. Investigation as to which test would produce a reliable definition of personality type with minimum questions needed to be sourced, and many were examined for suitability.

Research pointed to several significant personality tests that were available: · Jung & Myers-Biggs Taxonomy · Adorno’s F-scale · Goldberg’s Big Five · McCrae and Costa’s Five Factor Model Allowing for the nature of the results that were required and the time scale involved, Goldberg’s Big Five seemed most suitable. The administration of the test was conducted electronically using Likert Scaling to arrive at results based on a standardised test that has been utilised many times by other researchers. The version of the Big Five adopted for this piece of research was sourced at www.similarminds.com as it was based on the Likert Scale and would be quick and simple to complete for respondents.

All those who were invited to complete the Big Five Test and the additional questions on tolerance were from targeted websites, but self-selecting after this. The sub-cultural group targeted were those engaged in the alternative lifestyle of Bondage, Dominance, Submission and Masochism (BDSM). This group was selected as open polarisation between dominant (assertive) and submissive (reserved) behavioural expression is considered acceptable [and often desirable] within the group.

The BDSM subculture is notoriously a closed community and as such little research has taken place. Recent large-scale research in this area was undertaken in the UK by the Clinical Psychology Research Team of a Sheffield University (2008); however, results are not due to be released until 2009 and the target group was not specifically involved in BDSM practices. In America, researchers such as Richard Joseph Martin at Princeton University in the States are exploring the BDSM sub-culture, but this focus is unusual because of the problems associated with this group, such as their perceptions of “outsiders”, distrust of researchers and instigative journalists, and legal status linked to associated activities.
The aim of this study was to see whether those with more reserved personality types were more or less tolerant of successful career women within a group electing to express themselves in a behaviourally polarised manner. To specifically target this group would enable a research gap to be filled with regards to attitudes and perceptions of women’s roles within a community notoriously closed, and for which this perception is a strong belief expressed by members. Thus far research within this target group has focused primarily on motivations to engage in preferred activities rather than attitudinal beliefs. It was expected that this group would differ significantly in their perceptions and attitudes from other groups. The results looked for were: 1. The hypothesis that reserved personality types would be more tolerant towards women having choice over whether they were career based or home/family based. 2. The hypothesis that reserved personality types would have a more positive attitude towards successful women. 3. The hypothesis that more social (assertive) personality types would display greater range of attitudinal responses than the reserved group. Method A questionnaire was used to establish personality type and the respondents perceived tolerance levels towards women and their role. The questionnaire was made available on-line and although the invitation to participate was issued to targeted audience groups, participants were self-selecting after this point.

While results for this study were good, with a high number of respondents, the repetition of such a study with a comparably high response rate would also be dependant upon how accepted the researcher is perceived to be by the groups identified. This would require the researcher to establish themselves within the group and become trusted. Although this variable is difficult to establish in future research, it is not impossible, enabling the research project to be reproduced exactly.

The personality test used came with results gathered from numerous sources and then summarised. Each type having a baseline percentage of females and males found to belong in each type. Gender and age questions were added to the original selection presented to the invited respondents to act as a control with regard to personality type distribution when measured against the averages released.

Sample The population targeted for this piece of research were invited from known sources of alternative lifestyle communities. Only those with an interest in or active participation in these community groups are members of the relevant sites or closed groups. Each site requires membership in order for certain sections of the sites to be viewed, and this is where the invitations were posted. This helped to ensure that those who responded were members of the sample group required.

Due to the nature of the groups interviewed, it was prudent to include a third gender option of transgender or transsexual (TG/TS) as this sector of society is heavily represented within the group identified. This was extended as a sub-cultural courtesy towards participants, but revealed some interesting results.

Materials And Procedure The questions used to establish personality type were downloaded in from www.similarminds.com with permission (see appendix A). The test was then transcribed and posted on a free research website www.misterpoll.com and invitation to participate posted on several web sites focused towards this sub-cultural group (see appendix B). The sites used to issue the invitation to participate were: 1. www.informedconsent.co.uk 2. www.collarme.com 3. www.tvchix.com 4. www.mydommespace.com 5. www.myspace.com (closed community group based on line within this site) 6. www.facebook.com (closed community group based on line within this site) By inviting participants from specific web sites and closed community groups within larger web sites the respondents invited all contained the relevant condition of having an interest in or active participation in the lifestyle of the targeted group (BDSM). From this point onwards all participants were self-selecting in their participation.

The nature of the correlation requires that all information be not disclosed to participants as knowledge that tolerance is being observed could mean that answers to questions are not 100% unbiased. Although 100% informed consent is desirable, individuals responding to this kind of survey may alter their tolerance responses as a method to protect their self-image. In order to ensure that ethical standards were met, a debriefing article was made available after the test closed, enabling all participants to access full information (see appendix C). It should be noted that the de-briefing contains unusual use of capitalisation in keeping with the conventions of the target group.

The numbers of respondents were not limited, but the duration of the research was timed to close on a specific date, giving respondents limited time in which to take the survey. The response rate was unexpectedly high, so a sample of 30 responses was selected from the 155 respondents by selecting one in three randomly, using a sequential method until the desired number was reached. These results were then examined for the purpose of this correlation study.

Results Overall results from all 155 respondents can be seen in appendix E and accessed online at: http://www.misterpoll.com/polls/341989/results.

Performing Spearman’s rho on the data generated a result of –1.09, which, when compared with a critical value of 0.306 indicates that there is no correlation between personality type and tolerance levels across the 30 randomly selected respondents (see appendix G).

Figure 1 - UNABLE TO REPORODUCE HERE As can be observed in Figure 1, a greater number of social (extroverted) respondents felt that women should be able to choose between work and the home environment. Additionally, a greater (though not significantly so) number felt that women who were successful in their chosen career had attained such success through their assertiveness (a positive trait) than via a negative one. A higher proportion of social personality types responded to the survey, based on the sample of 30 random respondents used. This is unsurprising as social types have a greater inclination towards communication as a whole (see appendix D for descriptors).

The scatter graph in Figure 2 displays the results from the randomly selected 30 respondents. As can be seen by the distribution, no obvious line of best fit exists in either a negative or positive context, indicating that there is no correlation between personality type and tolerance levels.

Discussion While the findings of this research have served to disprove all three of the initial hypothesis of the original design, they do throw up clear areas for continuation research. As seen in Figure 2 there are distinct patterns within the results which merit further examination, even though they fail to produce lines of best fit. In addition to this, the distribution of personality type from this specific group does not correspond with the general results issued with the test. The results obtained seem initially to indicate that personality types are more balanced within the sub-cultural group of BDSM/TV/TG/TS respondents.

Figure 2 UNABLE TO REPORODUCE HERE

This would seem to indicate a greater level of self-actualisation [or soul searching] from this group. A result such as this merits further and more focused investigation as this far it has been assumed that those who are members of sub-cultural groups are on average of a lower educational standard than the norm and therefore less inclined to self-actualise. If further research displays a disproportionate level of highly educated individuals who are more inclined to self-actualise than the norm, then the commonly held descriptors of sub-cultural grouping will be challenged, particularly the work of Walter Miller (1958) [noted for his views hat sub-cultural groups are primarily formed from lower/working classes and all that this implies] and David Matza (1964) [famous for his research into the social mores held by sub-cultural groups] but supporting and extending the work of Phil Cohen (1971) [who felt that sub-cultural groups were not defined by class]. All the theoreticians mentioned are respected criminology focused as well as dealing with sub-cultural theories. This is because engagement in BDSM/TV activities is still considered illegal and an expression of deviance within the UK, therefore making these theoreticians the most relevant in this instance.

Perhaps the most surprising result was that reserved types proved to be the least tolerant of the two personality types examined. The clearest result obtained from this research is that this sub-cultural group is a significantly under-researched area, specifically with regards to general attitudes towards every-day concepts and ideals. Not only was this seen in the results generated, but also in the anecdotal evidence offered by feedback and questions raised on the sites mentioned where the invitation to participate was issued.

Having performed an initial piece of research into this sub-cultural group, admittedly from a more favoured position than the few others who have initiated research into this area, the implied complexity of social construction indicates that a few more specific questions as to individual orientation would have been useful (i.e. did the respondent identify with a dominant, submissive or switch role, and does this identity correlate against both personality type and tolerance levels). Pre-existing knowledge of the sub-cultural group concerned would indicate that identification with specific roles could alter the way that social or reserved personalities “translate” into a general social context and therefore have an implication in attitudes and tolerances displayed. Again, this is clearly identified area for further and more refined research in the future.