Big Five traits · the E in OCEAN
Extraversion and introversion
Extraversion is the Big Five trait that describes how much you seek out people, activity and excitement. High scorers are outgoing, talkative and energized by company; low scorers, often called introverts, are reserved, prefer quieter settings and recharge on their own. It is a scale, and most people fall in between.
Also spelled extroversion. The low end is introversion. It is the E in OCEAN.
By the Personality Test editorial team · Updated · 5 sources
The six facets of extraversion
In the IPIP-NEO-120, the questionnaire this site uses, extraversion splits into six narrower facets of four statements each. Other Big Five questionnaires divide it in slightly different ways. Two people with the same extraversion score can differ a lot facet by facet.
E1Friendliness
Warmth toward other people and ease in making friends. Low scorers are not unkind; they are slower to open up.
E2Gregariousness
Preference for being with others: crowds, parties and busy places. Low scorers like their own company and small groups.
E3Assertiveness
Taking charge, speaking up and leading. Low scorers let others set the direction.
E4Activity level
The pace of your life. High scorers keep busy and move fast; low scorers prefer a slower, more relaxed rhythm.
E5Excitement-seeking
Need for stimulation and thrills: loud music, risk, noise. Low scorers find too much of it draining.
E6Cheerfulness
How often you feel joy, enthusiasm and amusement. It is the facet most closely tied to day-to-day happiness.
High vs. low extraversion
Extraversion is a scale, not a type. Most people score somewhere in the middle, and both ends come with strengths and costs.
Low extraversion
Reserved, calm and independent: an introvert.
- Recharges alone or with one or two close people
- Thinks before speaking and listens well
- Prefers depth over a wide social circle
- Can be overlooked in groups or drained by long social events
High extraversion
Outgoing, energetic and talkative.
- Gains energy from people and lively places
- Speaks up quickly and enjoys leading
- Feels enthusiasm and excitement often
- Can be impulsive, dominate conversations or find solitude dull
What extraversion is linked to
Extraversion has one of the strongest links to happiness of any personality trait. Across many studies, extraverts report more positive emotions and higher life satisfaction on average (Steel et al., 2008). The cheerfulness facet carries much of that link.
Extraverts are also more likely to emerge as leaders. In a meta-analysis of 73 samples, extraversion was the Big Five trait most consistently related to leadership (Judge, Bono et al., 2002). That doesn’t make introverts poor leaders; it means groups tend to pick the person who speaks up first.
Introversion is not the same as shyness or social anxiety. Shyness, the fear of being judged, sits mainly in the self-consciousness facet of neuroticism. Many introverts are socially confident and simply prefer less stimulation.
Does extraversion change with age?
Different parts change differently. Social dominance (assertiveness) tends to rise in young adulthood, while social vitality (gregariousness and activity) rises in adolescence and falls in old age (Roberts et al., 2006).
Extraversion at work and in relationships
Extraverts tend to enjoy roles with lots of contact and variety: sales, teaching, management, events. Introverts often prefer work that allows long stretches of focus and one-to-one conversations over meetings. Either can do well in most jobs; the difference is mostly in what drains them and what they have to plan around.
Socially, the gap shows up as energy. An extravert may come home from a party buzzing while an introvert comes home tired. Neither is being antisocial or needy. Planning quiet time after busy days, or going to some events separately, heads off a lot of resentment in mixed couples and friendships.
How the test measures extraversion
The IPIP-NEO-120 uses 24 statements, four per facet, such as "I make friends easily" and "I love excitement" (Johnson, 2014). Your answers are compared with a large online sample to give a percentile from 1 to 99.
Find your extraversion score
The free Big Five test scores extraversion and the other four traits in about 12 minutes, with no sign-up. You get each score as a percentile right away; your six extraversion facet scores are in the optional full report. See a sample report
Questions about extraversion
Am I an introvert or an extravert?
If your extraversion score is below the 31st percentile you lean introverted; at the 69th or above you lean extraverted. Most people land in the middle, sometimes called ambiverts, and act differently depending on the setting.
What is an ambivert?
Someone in the middle of the extraversion scale. Because extraversion is a continuous trait, not a type, the middle is where most people are, not a rare third category.
Is this the same as MBTI introversion (I vs. E)?
They measure a similar idea, and scores correlate strongly. The difference is that the Big Five gives you a position on a scale with a percentile, while MBTI sorts you into one of two letters even if you sit right at the boundary.
How do I find out how extraverted I am?
Take the free Big Five test on our homepage. In about 12 minutes you get your extraversion percentile and the other four traits; the optional full report adds the six facets.
Sources
Written by the Personality Test editorial team from published research. We don’t claim clinical credentials. This page is for education and self-reflection, not a medical or psychological diagnosis.
- Steel, P., Schmidt, J., & Shultz, J. (2008). Refining the relationship between personality and subjective well-being. Psychological Bulletin, 134(1), 138–161. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.134.1.138
- Judge, T. A., Bono, J. E., Ilies, R., & Gerhardt, M. W. (2002). Personality and leadership: A qualitative and quantitative review. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(4), 765–780. doi:10.1037/0021-9010.87.4.765
- Roberts, B. W., Walton, K. E., & Viechtbauer, W. (2006). Patterns of mean-level change in personality traits across the life course: A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies. Psychological Bulletin, 132(1), 1–25. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.132.1.1
- McCrae, R. R., & Costa, P. T. (1989). Reinterpreting the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator from the perspective of the five-factor model of personality. Journal of Personality, 57(1), 17–40. doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.1989.tb00759.x
- Johnson, J. A. (2014). Measuring thirty facets of the Five Factor Model with a 120-item public domain inventory: Development of the IPIP-NEO-120. Journal of Research in Personality, 51, 78–89. doi:10.1016/j.jrp.2014.05.003