Beyond broad and narrow: Intermediate level traits in the personality of bridge players.

Abstract

Games offer a unique context for studying human behavior within the realm of social interactions, where a crucial aspect is the role of personality. The personality of individuals is often conceptualized as divided between general traits (broad traits) that are difficult to apply to specific situations and highly specific traits (narrow traits) that only offer a partial depiction of contextual aspects. In this study, we propose an intermediary level of traits revealed through self-ratings (as broad traits), but defined with respect to a particular game context (as narrow traits). We focus on the popular game of Bridge, which is complex and similar to real-life interactions involving incomplete information, adversarial and cooperative concerns, and communication between players. Using a multidimensional analysis of a new 66-item Bridge Inventory survey completed by 1,300 players, we identified five factors (Aggressiveness, Discipline, Creativity, Emotionality, and Experience) that were meaningfully correlated with broad traits of the Five Factor Model (FFM), supporting their validity. Based on these game-related traits, we identified three types of Bridge players: Conventional, Measured, and Subversive and demonstrated the limitations of FFM traits in capturing nuances of player types. The results of our study highlight a discrepancy between broad, context-independent personality traits and narrow, game-specific traits. We propose that this gap can be bridged through self-ratings, revealing a set of intermediate-level, context-dependent traits, which are expected to better encompass interindividual variability in the context of social interactions.