Student personality differences are related to their responses on instructor evaluation forms

Abstract

The relation of student personality to student evaluations of teaching (SETs) was determined in a sample of 144 undergraduates. Student Big Five personality variables and core self-evaluation (CSE) were assessed. Students rated their most preferred instructor (MPI) and least preferred instructor (LPI) on 11 common evaluation items. Pearson and partial correlations simultaneously controlling for six demographic variables, Extraversion, Conscientiousness and Openness showed that SETs were positively related to Agreeableness and CSE and negatively related to Neuroticism, supporting the three hypotheses of study. Each of these significant relations was maintained when MPI, LPI or a composite of MPI and LPI served as the SET criterion. For example, the MPI-LPI composite correlated .28 with Agreeableness, .35 with CSE and –.28 with Neuroticism. Similar correlations resulted for MPI and LPI. Hierarchical multiple regression demonstrated that the CSE was an independent predictor of MPI ratings, Agreeableness was an independent predictor of LPI ratings, and both the CSE and Agreeableness were independent predictors of MPI-LPI composite ratings. Neuroticism did not emerge as an independent predictor because of the substantial correlation between CSE and Neuroticism (r = .53) and because CSE had greater predictive capacity. This is the first study to incorporate the CSE construct into the SET literature.

Keywords:

• student evaluation of teaching
• core self-evaluations
• Agreeableness
• neuroticism
• Big Five