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They say that behind every great man is a great woman. However, in our time of gender equality, the opposite may well be true. What qualities should a “great” husband or wife have? And how does this help the partner become more successful?
Psychologist Joshua J. Jackson, assistant professor at Washington University in St. Louis (USA), and graduate student Brittany C. Solomon analyzed the data using information on more than 5000 married couples, taken from one large multi-year Australian research on the dynamics of income and employment. Scientists were interested in those participants in this study who were tested on the so-called five-factor personality questionnaire, which determines the severity of five personality traits (Big Five): openness to new things, extraversion, cooperation, neuroticism and conscientiousness. In this sample, the age of participants ranged from 19 to 89 years, in 75% of families both husband and wife worked.
To determine how one partner’s personality traits might be related to the other’s career success, the researchers looked at factors such as job satisfaction and the dynamics of salary increases and promotions.
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The partners of those who most successfully moved up the career ladder were usually very conscientious (as measured by the results of a personality test). This relationship was observed regardless of whether only one of the spouses worked in the family (it does not matter, husband or wife), or both at once. It is noteworthy that the quality of “conscientiousness” manifested itself regardless of how similar the spouses were to each other.
Researchers have put forward several hypotheses about how the personal characteristics of one of the spouses, especially conscientiousness, can influence the career success of the other. After testing these hypotheses, they drew three conclusions:
- A working spouse can rely on a partner for daily chores such as household chores, paying bills, shopping for groceries, raising children.
- Working spouses can adopt the good habits of their conscientious partners – such as diligence, reliability, responsibility. All this is important in any job.
- A sense of security and stability in your personal life helps reduce stress and maintain an optimal balance between work and family.
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Previous research has shown that most people seek out accommodating, cooperative partners who are not narcissistic. However, this work shows that ambitious individuals, for whom a career is a top priority, are more suitable for conscientious and responsible spouses who can support them.
“Our research has shown that success in work and career can depend not only on your personal qualities, but also on the personality traits of your partner. This influence is not limited to individual cases – for example, when one of the spouses persuades the other to demand an increase in salary or a raise. It manifests itself through many different factors,” sums up Joshua Jackson.
Подробнее см. J. Jackson, В. Solomon «The Long reach of one’s spouse: Spouses’ personality influences occupational success», Psychological Science, October 2014.