The Employment-Resistant Personality Profile

Abstract

In order to assess the credibility of the idea that the welfare state could undermine human capital by inducing personality mis-development in the domains of conscientiousness and agreeableness, it is first necessary to summarise evidence showing the importance of these personality traits in the world of work. That is the purpose of this chapter, which presents evidence from three different parts of the scientific literature. First, we shall review neurological case studies of people who have suffered injuries to the prefrontal area of their brains. These injuries are relevant to personality and employment because they do not necessarily alter intelligence but do tend to alter personality in a way that is consistent with a reduction in conscientiousness and agreeableness (for example, Blumer & Benson, 1975). Furthermore, a prefrontal brain injury will typically transform a person with a good work record into someone who is unemployable. Such case studies, therefore, provide evidence that conscientiousness and agreeableness play a causal role in determining the likelihood that a person will work for a living.