Uncovering the motivational core of Honesty-Humility

Personal goals represent the motivational foundation underlying personality traits, yet the motivational underpinnings of honesty-humility remain poorly understood. We developed and validated the Goals for Honesty and Goals for Dishonesty (GHGD) questionnaire - the first comprehensive instrument measuring honesty-humility through its motivational core. Using a multi-method, bottom-up approach across three studies, we systematically identified and classified personal goals associated with honesty-humility traits. Study 1 employed participant-driven goal elicitation using personality-descriptive adjectives. Responses were classified using natural language processing and independent raters' coding, yielding a final set of goals. Study 2 refined candidate goals, selecting those specifically associated with honesty-humility and its facets, and developed the GHGD questionnaire. Study 3 provided comprehensive validation using self-reports, informant-reports, and observed behavior in an incentivized cheating task. Results revealed a robust two-factor structure distinguishing honesty-oriented goals (GH) from dishonesty-oriented goals (GD). These dimensions were moderately negatively correlated, indicating distinct rather than bipolar motivational orientations. GD consistently predicted actual dishonest behavior beyond traditional trait measures, while GH related more strongly to authentic living and self-concept integrity. Agreement between self- and informant-reports suggested that close others can form quite accurate impressions of individuals' honesty-related motivations. Findings demonstrate that goal-based assessments can improve prediction of honest behavior compared to conventional trait self-reports. This work integrates trait-based and process-oriented approaches to personality, delivering theoretical contributions and empirical instruments that will facilitate future research on moral personality and behavior.