The Idea of the Mobile Personality Revisited

“To move, to breathe, to fly, to float; to gain all while you give; to roam the roads of lands remote; to travel is to live.” ―Hans Christian Andersen

The character and personality traits of great explorers and travelers have fascinated writers, historians, and the public for centuries. Captain James Cook (1722-1779), arguably one the most innovative explorers of the 18th century¹, was described by his contemporaries as “a modest man, and rather bashful; of an agreeable lively conversation, sensible and intelligent. In his temper he was somewhat hasty, but of a disposition the most friendly, benevolent, and humane” (Samwell, 1786). He was also known for his temperance, as well as for his “strength and capacity of mind, sense of duty" and his persistence (Beaglehole, 1956). On the other hand, Sir Richard Francis Burton (1821-1890), often named as one of the greatest travelers of all time, was known for his “remarkable character” and “magnetic personality," for his daring, his intemperate love for change and poetry, his passion for the wild and adventurous life, and his straightforwardness in always speaking his mind (Wright, 1906).

The brief descriptions above paint two rather different pictures of a “mobile personality”—one suggesting high levels of Conscientiousness (e.g., sense of duty, persistence) and Agreeableness (e.g., modest, agreeable, benevolent, friendly), and another characterized by high levels of Openness (e.g., love for change and poetry) and Extraversion (e.g., passion for the wild and adventurous life) and low levels of Agreeableness (e.g., straightforwardness).

So what personality traits are characteristic of people who are more inclined to travel abroad compared to those who stay at home?

New research by myself and my colleagues, just published in the Journal of Research in Personality, tried to shed some light on this by examining the associations between the Five-Factor Model (FFM) personality traits and cross-border mobility as indicated by mobile-phone data over a 12-month period.

The Mobile Personality

In the era of mass tourism and transnational migration, traveling is no longer the exclusive and risky affair it once was. Visiting other cultures and traveling to faraway places has become a common activity for increasing numbers of people around the world. According to the UNWTO, international tourist arrivals reached a record high of 1.5 billion in 2019, right before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. People travel for many different reasons, including visiting family or for work, but predominantly for leisure and holidays. And yet, not all people are equally willing to travel, regardless of the reason.

Researchers have been intrigued for some time over the question of why some people are more prone to move around and visit new places than others. Concepts such as the “mobicentric man,” the “pioneering personality,” or the traveler personality type have been proposed to describe people believed to be “predisposed” to travel and open to cross-cultural experience.

A number of studies conducted over recent decades have shown that higher Extraversion and Openness and lower Agreeableness and Neuroticism are strong predictors of people moving from one place to another, both within and between countries. However, very few studies have explored the relationships between the FFM personality traits and temporary international mobility, such as traveling abroad for leisure or work. It has been suggested that people who travel for tourism share characteristics with those who relocate to another country on a more permanent basis, but the empirical evidence is rather scarce and not conclusive.

Does Personality Predict Traveling Abroad?

Our recent study examined whether the FFM personality domains and facets could be used to predict people’s trips abroad and related decisions, such as the number, length, and distance of cross-border trips in a sample of adults betwen ages 22 and 86.

An innovative aspect of our study was that participants’ travel records over a 12-month period were obtained by analyzing their outbound roaming Call Detail Records (CDR)—that is, their outgoing calls, incoming calls, and outgoing text messages while abroad. As shown by a study published in Perspectives on Psychological Science in 2016, the use of mobile phones to collect behavioral data has grown greatly over the last decades and is considered to have excellent ecological validity. As for personality measurement, both self-reports and informant-ratings of the NEO Personality Inventory-3 were used.

Our findings show that a modern-day traveler indeed appears to have a specific wanderlust personality profile, involving facets from multiple FFM domains; they are likely not just younger but also open to new experiences (O4) and values (O6), as well as seeking excitement and novelty (E5). Overall, it is fair to say that they resemble Burton more than Cook, especially when also considering the role of higher spontaneity (C6), energy (E4), and social dominance (E3), in predicting how often people travel abroad and how many different countries they visit.

Altogether, our findings indicate the importance of studying personality at a more fine-grained level and “cautiously support the notion of the 'mobile personality,' in the sense that there seem to be some predisposing personality factors that may make some more likely to embark on a journey from the comfort of their home to a faraway land.”