Just loving these people: Extraverts implicitly associate people with reward

Several prominent theories have suggested that extraverts implicitly associate people with rewards. Two studies involving 268 participants were conducted in order to test this prediction. Study 1 utilized a traditional implicit association test, and Study 2 utilized a single-category implicit association test capable of providing separate indices for different associations in memory. Across both studies, extraverted participants displayed a more robust association between people and reward. Study 2 also indicates that extraversion was unrelated to the association between punishments and the absence of people. These studies therefore confirm an important prediction following from reward sensitivity theories of extraversion and may help to explain extraverts' increased sociability.