Autotelic personality through a five-factor lens: Individual differences in flow-propensity

• Five-Factor Model (FFM) traits accounted for 38% to over 50% of the variance in flow-propensity.
• Neuroticism, Extraversion, Agreeableness and Conscientiousness predicted flow-propensity.
• FFM domains predicted 4–44% of the variance in DFS-2 components of flow.
• Canonical correlation analysis highlighted different kinds of flow experience.

Autotelic personality represents an individual difference factor believed to have an increased propensity to experience flow. In 316 young adults, we administered the Dispositional Flow Scale-2 (DFS-2; Jackson & Eklund, 2002) targeted to general life activities to capture cross-situational consistency in the propensity to experience flow, and a well-established measure of the Five Factor Model of personality (i.e., the NEO Personality Inventory Revised; NEO-PI-R; Costa & McCrae, 1992). NEO-PI-R domains of Neuroticism (−), Extraversion (+), Agreeableness (−), and Conscientiousness (+) predicted global flow propensity, accounting for 38% of the measured variance. Canonical correlation analysis highlighted these domains in relation to DFS-2 components of flow with the first canonical correlation (R = .73) accounting for 53.4% of the shared variance between NEO domains and DFS-2 subscales. Individually, DFS-2 subscales were variously predicted by NEO domains (e.g., Time Transformation at 4%; Clear Goals at 44%). NEO Openness was notably lacking in predicting flow components. These findings emphasize the strong and substantial relationship of FFM personality traits to flow-propensity.