Personality Profiles Among Honors and Regular Undergraduate Students: Associations With Well-Being and Strategies for Coping With Stress

Abstract

The aim of this study was two-fold: (a) to explore personality profiles among honors undergraduate students and regular undergraduate students, and (b) to investigate the extent to which these profiles are associated with students’ well-being and coping strategies for stress. Using latent class analysis (LCA) on the Big Five personality traits of a total of 532 undergraduate students (229 honors students), we identified three distinct profiles: Overcontrollers, Averages, and Resilients. Honors students were underrepresented in the Averages profile. No significant disproportionality was observed in the other two profiles. Resilients had the highest well-being scores and showed a greater tendency to engage in proactive problem-solving when faced with stress. In contrast, Overcontrollers leaned toward using accountability and self-critique as their primary coping strategy. Findings are discussed in the context of replicable personality prototypes and in relationship to prior research involving honors and academically advanced students.