ABSTRACT

As with extraversion, emotional variability/neuroticism and its opposite, emotional stability, is featured in or can be inferred from a wide range of personality measures; although not the ubiquitous MBTI®. Similarly, there is generally a good measure of equivalence between these different psychometrics. Good tests have a variety of subtle items known to associate with emotional variability and stability and may also contain others to assess how far the person completing the questionnaire may be, consciously or unconsciously, distorting answers. As with extraversion, Eysenck believed that neuroticism was hard wired; in this case to the areas of the brain associated with emotion. In short, he thought that higher levels of neuroticism involved increased sensitivity to stress. An exploration of personality factors which might contribute to the 'derailment' of management careers associated high neuroticism/emotional variability with seven of 11 types of dysfunctional personality.