For decades, consensus among psychologists has held that a
group of five personality traits –– or slight variations of these five –– are a
universal feature of human psychology. However, a study by anthropologists at
UC Santa Barbara raises doubt about the veracity of that five-factor model
(FFM) of personality structure as it relates to indigenous populations. Their
findings appear in the current issue of the American Psychological
Association's Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.