Exploring the connection between personality and psychological capital: Insights from the CPAI-2 in a Chinese context

Abstract

Positive psychological capital (PsyCap) has been found to predict various individual outcomes such as well-being and effectiveness. While it encompasses a trait baseline, little research has examined the role of personality as an antecedent in impacting the development of PsyCap. Despite some studies linking specific Big Five personality traits to PsyCap, research utilizing culturally relevant assessments in non-Western contexts, particularly in the Chinese setting, remains scarce. This study addresses this gap by employing the Cross-Cultural (Chinese) Personality Assessment Inventory (CPAI-2) and the Psychological Capital Questionnaire (PCQ-24) to analyze data from 326 undergraduate students in Hong Kong. The CPAI-2 is a culturally grounded personality assessment tool that enables a fair understanding of personality traits uniquely relevant in the Chinese context, thereby enriching insights from Western-centric personality models. Regression analyses revealed significant associations: higher scores on traits of novelty seeking, leadership, and responsibility correlated with increased hope; divergent thinking and leadership, along with lower inferiority, were linked to greater self-efficacy; higher responsibility and lower anxiety related to increased resilience; and higher optimism, internal locus of control, and graciousness were associated with enhanced optimism. A path model was established to illustrate the relationships between personality traits and PsyCap. The findings emphasize the importance of culturally relevant assessments for understanding these relations, and they suggest that similar frameworks could be adapted globally to explore how local cultural factors inform the development of PsyCap.