Abstract: The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between students’ HEXACO personality traits and academic achievement. The study objective was to explore the relationship between HEXACO personality traits and academic achievement in Murang’a County, Kenya. The study was guided by HEXACO Personality Traits Theory (Ashton & Lee, 2006) and it adopted correlational research design. Purposive sampling, proportionate sampling and stratified random sampling were used to select 379 form three students (183 boys and 196 girls) ranging from 14 to 18 years from 10 public secondary schools in Murang’a County, Kenya. Piloting of the questionnaires was done in one of the public secondary school. Data was collected using HEXACO Personality Inventory (Ashton & Lee, 2006) and the researcher adopted academic achievement proforma table. Academic achievement was obtained from their third term examination scores. Person’s Product Moment Correlation Coefficient and Multiple Regression Analysis were used to test the stated null hypothesis set at α=0.05. Analysis of the collected data was done using SPSS version 20.0 for windows while descriptive statistics such as percentages, means and frequencies were used to summarize the collected data. The results revealed that there was no statistically significant relationship between HEXACO personality traits and academic achievement at the facet level but there was statistically significant positive correlation at the sub facet levels like in the emotionality subscale, the facets of fearfulness (r(377) = .14, p < .05) and anxiety (r (377) = .11, p < .05) had significant positive correlations with academic achievement. Moreover, creativity (r(377) = .17, p < .05) a sub facet of openness to experience had a significant positive correlation with academic achievement. Recommendation of the study was that students should learn the personality traits that enhance academic achievement like anxiety management traits and creativity when learning.
Keywords: HEXACO Personality Traits; Academic Achievement; Secondary School Students.
Title: PERSONALITY TRAITS AS PREDICTORS OF ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT OF STUDENTS IN PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN MURANG’A COUNTY, KENYA
Author: Stephen Mbuthia Mugo, Dr. Samuel Mutweleli, Dr. Antony Ireri, Dr. Cecilia Mwangi
International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research
ISSN 2348-3156 (Print), ISSN 2348-3164 (online)
Vol. 10, Issue 3, July 2022 - September 2022
Page No: 285-295
Research Publish Journals
Website: www.researchpublish.com
Published Date: 16-August-2022
