Why Are Extraverts More Satisfied? Personality, Social Experiences, and Subjective Well–Being in College

It is widely appreciated that extraversion is associated with greater subjective well–being. What is not yet clear is what mechanisms relate the two. In two longitudinal studies, we explored whether extraversion is prospectively associated with higher levels of satisfaction during college through influencing college social experiences using longitudinal cross–lagged mediation models. In both studies, students’ extraversion at the beginning of college predicted their subjective well–being 4 years later. In both studies, extraversion at the beginning of college predicted a variety of self–reported and peer–reported social experiences (e.g. feelings of belonging and size of social network). We tested whether qualitative or quantitative aspects of social experiences explained the association between extraversion and subjective well–being. In the first study, neither type of social experience explained the effect of extraversion on satisfaction. Only qualitative social experiences in the second study were instrumental in explaining this effect. The results suggest that extraversion's ability to create better social experiences can play a role in extraverts’ greater subjective well–being, but these experiences are not the only reason extraverts are happier and more satisfied.