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Abstract
Research in psychology has traditionally focused on identifying and treating disorders and dysfunction. In contrast, the burgeoning field of positive psychology has directed attention towards understanding the correlates and causes of human flourishing, principally through the study of subjective well-being (SWB). SWB encompasses both affective evaluations (e.g., happiness) and cognitive appraisals (e.g., life satisfaction) of one's life. Personality has been shown to be a strong predictor of SWB. In particular, extraversion is the personality trait most positively and consistently related to SWB; the two are thought to be linked by biological, genetic, behavioural, and situational variables. In fact, some of these links are so strong that positive affect, a sub-facet of extraversion according to the Five Factor Model described by McCrae and Costa (1987), is almost indistinguishable from SWB (Steel, Schmidt, & Schultz, 2008). The relationship between SWB and extraversion found in adults parallels the relationship between SWB and temperament characteristics akin to extraversion in children (e.g., high sociability and low shyness; Holder & Klassen, 2010). Understanding and promoting SWB is important because it has implications for overall health, immune functioning, longevity, career success, quality of social relationships, and cognitive functioning. Clarifying the role extraversion plays in SWB could facilitate the development of more effective interventions to increase SWB. For instance, this understanding could help tailor some interventions according to a person's level of extraversion. Alternatively, interventions might be developed that focus on modifying personality (e.g., increasing extraversion). There may also be implications for developing interventions for specific populations (e.g., those with Social Anxiety Disorder) or settings (e.g., children's classrooms). Future research on the relations between extraversion and SWB should consider the facets of extraversion (current research is primarily conducted at the trait level), focus on identifying the causal links between SWB and extraversion (current research is primarily descriptive), and explore how extraversion and its facets can modify and mediate the relationships between SWB and factors and interventions of interest. Additionally, research will need to elucidate the relations between extraversion and other components of SWB such as hope and gratitude in more detail. As research in positive psychology continues, it will be important to remember that interventions to increase SWB are not best described as "one size fits all"; personality will need...