Dutifulness

A low score is not dishonesty as a settled fact. The items ask about rules and promises; many low scorers are honest people who think some rules are stupid and some promises were made too quickly. A high score is not a certificate of character either.

It is not the same as the morality facet of agreeableness, which is about not exploiting people. A person can be scrupulous about rules and still use others, or bend rules and be straight with everyone.

Four items make a short scale. A facet score moves more between attempts than the 24-item domain score, and it describes a tendency in ordinary life as the person reports it, not a diagnosis of anything.

High. People high on this facet say they keep their promises, tell the truth and do not break rules. In daily life that shows as being where they said they would be, doing the paperwork properly, returning the extra change, and discomfort when others cut corners. They are the people organisations run on.

Low. People low on this facet say they break rules and sometimes their promises. In daily life that shows as a flexible attitude to deadlines and procedures, a readiness to make exceptions, and little love of form-filling. Low scorers are often the ones who get things done when the rules would have stopped them.

• Conscientiousness: the broad trait this facet belongs to, with five sibling facets.

In a meta-analysis of job performance, dependability, the narrow trait this facet measures, predicted performance and in particular the avoidance of counterproductive behaviour at work. (Dudley and others, 2006)

Across seven major questionnaires, a facet about honesty and rule-following emerged separately from facets about industry and order. (Roberts and others, 2005)

Responsibility and conventionality, the trait family that includes dutifulness, relate to less risky driving, drug use and other behaviours that shorten life. (Bogg and Roberts, 2004)

• Self-efficacy
• Orderliness
• Achievement-striving
• Self-discipline
• Cautiousness