There is no scientifically established list of seven “most difficult personality types.” Personality traits exist on a spectrum, and someone who is difficult to work with in one situation may be highly effective in another. Using the Big Five framework, it is more useful to look at personality tendencies that can create challenges when they become extreme or are poorly managed.
1. Highly Low Agreeableness
People low in Agreeableness may be more direct, competitive, skeptical, or willing to challenge others. These qualities can be valuable when making difficult decisions, but they may create conflict when the person becomes overly confrontational or dismissive.
In teams, this personality tendency can make collaboration more difficult if disagreements are handled without consideration for others.
2. Highly Low Conscientiousness
People low in Conscientiousness may be more spontaneous, flexible, and comfortable with less structure. However, when the trait is very low, it can show up as disorganization, missed deadlines, inconsistent follow-through, or difficulty maintaining routines.
The challenge is often greater in roles that require careful planning and reliability.
3. Highly High Extraversion
High Extraversion is not inherently difficult. Outgoing people can bring energy, enthusiasm, and confidence to a team.
However, very high Extraversion can sometimes become challenging when someone dominates conversations, acts before listening, or takes up too much space in group discussions. Learning when to step back can make this tendency much more effective.
4. Highly Low Emotional Stability
People who score lower on Emotional Stability may experience stronger reactions to stress, uncertainty, criticism, or pressure.
In a workplace, this can sometimes make challenging situations more difficult to manage. However, it is important not to interpret this as a weakness. Workplace environment, workload, leadership, and personal circumstances can all influence how someone responds to stress.
5. Highly High Openness
High Openness is generally associated with curiosity, imagination, creativity, and interest in new ideas. These qualities can be extremely valuable.
The difficulty can arise when someone constantly wants to change existing processes, introduces too many ideas at once, or becomes frustrated with routine. In highly regulated or structured environments, this tendency may require additional balance.
6. Highly Low Openness
At the other end of the spectrum, people lower in Openness may prefer familiarity, established processes, and practical solutions.
This can provide stability and consistency. However, it may become challenging when someone strongly resists new ideas, technologies, processes, or organizational change.
The issue is not the trait itself but how inflexible the behavior becomes.
7. A Combination of Several Extreme Traits
Sometimes the most difficult workplace behavior does not come from one personality trait. It can emerge from a combination of tendencies.
For example, someone who is highly competitive, low in Agreeableness, and low in Emotional Stability may respond strongly to disagreements and competition. Another person who is highly Extraverted but low in Conscientiousness may generate plenty of ideas while struggling with follow-through.
This is why looking at a complete personality profile can be more useful than assigning someone a single “difficult personality type.”
Why Personality Assessment Matters
The Big Five model is useful because it does not put people into fixed categories. Instead, it looks at personality across dimensions and recognizes that people can be higher or lower on different traits.
The WorkPlace Big Five Profile™ applies the Big Five framework specifically to workplace personality. It can help individuals understand their natural tendencies and consider how those tendencies may influence communication, teamwork, leadership, decision-making, and relationships at work.
Rather than asking, “Which personality types are difficult?”, a more productive question is, “Which personality tendencies could create challenges in this situation, and how can we manage them?”
Understanding personality is most valuable when it leads to greater self-awareness, better communication, and more effective ways of working with different people.