The effect of information on consensus and accuracy in personality judgment

An experimental study examined the effect of the amount of available information on interjudge consensus and self-other agreement (accuracy) in personality judgment. Three hundred sixty perceiver-subjects (180 F and 180 M) each watched one of 6 targets (3 F and 3 M) on videotape for 5-10, 15-20, or 25-30 min. Accuracy was significantly greater in the longest than in the shortest observation condition. Within this overall difference, the linear effect of information on accuracy was strong (and significant) only for the most visible of the traits that were judged, including those relevant to extraversion. A fairly high level of consensus was achieved after the shortest period of observation and did not increase with longer observation for any kind of trait. Among a separate group of acquaintances who had known the targets for an average of 14 months, both accuracy and consensus was much higher than our perceiver-subjects achieved after 30 min. Further analyses showed that, with more information, consensus was more highly associated with accuracy, even though the level of consensus did not change. (C) 1998 Academic Press.