Self-Regulation and Personality Profiles: Empirical Development, Longitudinal Stability and Predictive Ability

We used Latent Profile and Latent Profile Transition Analysis to empirically develop and compare competing models of personality profiles (three- and four-profile models). We do so using data from the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study, a large longitudinal national probability sample of New Zealanders. Both three- and four-profile solutions demonstrated good fit and longitudinal stability. Trait configurations and predictive outcomes of the four-profile model were the most interpretable in terms of the theoretical literature, as this solution mirrored the theoretical foundation of self-regulatory ego-constructs. This supported the interpretation of a four-profile model as providing a useful distinction over and above the three-profile model. We conclude that, compared to the three-profile model, the four-profile solution provides a better foundation to serve as a complementary approach to variable-centre research. Copyright (c) 2016 European Association of Personality Psychology