Do You Love To Wear Your Wristwatch?
Do you wear your wristwatch regularly? What if wearing a watch is more than a fashion accessory?
If a watch on you gives clues to your personality/behavior were disclosed in a study (David A. Ellis, Watch-wearing as a marker of conscientiousness, PeerJ). The study conducted three experiments, discussed below.
Conscientiousness
In the first experiment, 112 subjects chosen split into two groups, completed the given questionnaire.
The first group comprised individuals who wear their watches regularly, whereas the second group does not.
The analysis of this small group study revealed people who loved wearing watches rated themselves higher on their conscientious scores. The control group, however, did not think highly of the same trait.
On the other two traits, extroverted disposition and receptivity to experiences, the watch wearers scored lower as compared to the opposite group.
A second experiment selected more than six hundred individuals. The reason for a larger group was to observe if results repeat. The people separated into two groups, completed a questionnaire.
The observations repeated. The group wearing watches showed a higher mean conscientiousness score once more. It held even after controlling for age and gender, with an odds ratio of 1.147.
What this means is the person reporting higher conscientiousness shows more odds of wearing a watch.
Punctuality
Eighty-five subjects from various backgrounds and ages (17–48 years), took part in the third experiment. The purpose of this trial was to see if people who love to wear watches show more inclination to be punctual as well.
In this study, the members were to appear for an appointment. The experimenter recorded the arrival times of the two groups. The analysis of the collected data showed a significant difference.
Thirty-four people forming the first group (watch-wearers) showed up for their meeting, on average, more than 4 minutes ahead of the meeting time. On the other hand, the corresponding value for fifty-one people from the second group stood at less than 1 minute.
The results indicate the notion that watch wearers are more inclined to be punctual, as measured in minutes early or late in this study.
In Conclusion
The results discussed above support well the punctuality and conscientiousness amongst watch wearers. Although with a classic chicken-and-egg metaphor.
Are conscientious people inclined toward wearing watches? Or the other way around.
Irrespective of which one is right, watch-wearing could be a valid marker of the discussed traits.
