ABSTRACT
One of the major programs of the trait approach to personality during the last few decades has been the study of taxonomies of personality traits. This persistent and longtime endeavor toward a comprehensive mapping of individual differences began in the seminal work of Allport and Odbert (1936). Cattell (1943), a pioneer in the field, formulated the rationale behind this approach: "All aspects of human personality which are or have been of importance, interest, or utility have already become recorded in the substance of language" (p. 483). Another pioneer in the field of individual differences, Eysenck (1947) pursued a similar goal, namely to strive after a system to "cover all the diverse features of personality" (p. 20).
