Survey of personality traits of perfectionism and inhibition of aggression in Australian Aborigines by use of internet sources
A. M. Benis*, Sc.D., M.D.
Sources of Grant Support: none
* Research Associate Professor (ret.), Mt. Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY 10029, USA.
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Survey of personality traits of perfectionism and inhibition of aggression in Australian Aborigines by use of internet sources
A. M. Benis, Sc.D., M.D.
ABSTRACT
The intent of this study was to survey specific personality traits in an inaccessible population with the use of internet resources. We assessed two traits: perfectionism (P) and inhibition of aggression (U) in 110 Australian Aboriginal communities. The sources included documentary articles, photographs and video recordings. Trait P was assessed by ranking behaviour and the qualities of neatness, order, cleanliness and symmetry. Trait U was assessed from video recordings. Each community was categorized according to the presence or absence of the two traits as P+U+, P−U−, P−U+ or P+U−.
Results: The frequencies of traits P and U varied markedly, but coherently, with geographic location. The P+U+ phenotype was clustered mainly along the northern coast of Western Australia, while the P−U− phenotype was found extensively in the central desert regions and in Arnhem Land. It was found that the results are qualitatively consistent with a previous analysis of the geographic distribution of genetic traits in the Aborigines (Birdsell, 1993).
Conclusions: Personality traits may vary greatly in Aborigines according to geographic location. The use of internet resources to provide hypotheses about inaccessible populations should be further investigated.
