Objective

Mõttus argues that effects should not be attributed to traits if they are driven by particular facets or items. We apply this reasoning to investigate the relationship between facets and items of Extraversion and well-being.

Method

We analyzed five cross-sectional datasets (total N = 1,879), with facet- and item-level correlations and SEM.

Results

We found that the correlation between the energy level facet and well-being was solely responsible for the association between Extraversion and well-being. Neither sociability nor assertiveness were uniquely related to well-being when energy level was included as a predictor. Thus, the correlations between well-being and sociability and between well-being and assertiveness can be almost fully explained by these constructs' relationships with energy level.

Conclusions

We conclude that the link between Extraversion and well-being should be attributed to the energy level facet rather than generalized to the trait level.