Big Five Personality Traits and Security Awareness Training Preferences

Individual behavior plays a central role in information security, as many incidents result from user behavior. Accordingly, Information Security Awareness training has become a central measure to support individual security-related decision-making. However, standardized ISA training often shows limited effectiveness, as it rarely accounts for individual differences in learning preferences and motivation. This study examines how personality traits relate to ISA training preferences. A quantitative survey assessed personality using the BFI-2 and collected preference ratings for 18 training methods. Significant relationships were found for Agreeableness and Conscientiousness. Higher Agreeableness was associated with lower preference for socially exposed methods, while individuals high in Conscientiousness preferred structured and practice-oriented methods. The findings suggest that personality shapes how ISA training is perceived and highlight the importance of considering individual differences in the design of training methods. Providing a variety of training methods, rather than a single standardized approach, may improve perceived fit and acceptance.