I'm looking for either official rules in Pathfinder/D&D to give good descriptions on ability scores in relation to your character.
I am very interested in studying something and making sure I use it for role playing purposes for my character, especially with being fair to the scores I've received. I don't like it when a character dumps a stat and they play as if nothing is flawed in their decision except when it's time to roll for a skill check.
If there isn't anything official then please share house rule things or your own opinions. I'm sure something must exist, especially since I believe I read something a long time ago possibly in 3.0
There is a lot of variance packed into those 6 numbers, so you'll never see a single explanation. Here's a short explanation of how I see ability scores, along with a few suggestions for RP traits to go with high/low scores in each.
Keep in mind though, that a PCs low score is unlikely to be below 6 or 8: these are noticeably worse than 'average', but well within the normal variance in a standard community. The 8 int fighter might not be the smartest guy in the party, but he's far from being the dumbest guy in town. He's not disabled, he's just a C student.
Strength - Fairly self explanatory. Able to lift heavy things, and hit things harder, throw things further.
High score? Surging muscles, or at least compact and toned.
Low Score? You're feeble or easily winded from carrying.
Constitution - Endurance, solidity, ability to shrug off poisons or other effects
High score? You rarely get sick. Perhaps you're a stoic, who suffers but doesn't show it, or have a high pain tolerance. Maybe you look broad and/or solid. Maybe you have a fast metabolism and eat lots. You don't get tired or winded.
Low score? You're prone to allergies or other inconvenient but not debilitating illnesses. Your stomach is easily upset, or you're a very light sleeper. You're subject to 'jet lag' if your sleep or eating routine is disrupted. You heal slowly and have a low pain tolerance.
Dexterity - Agility, speed, coordination, bodily control.
High score? You have excellent reflexes, balance, or other physical skill. You are the one who catches things other people drop. You go up (or down) steps several at a time without needing the banister. You are flexible or have an excellent kinesthetic/proprioceptive sense.
Low score? You're clumsy and prone to dropping things. Maybe you're accident prone: always nursing a small cut on the back of your hand or the like. You look for banisters and guard-rails to make up for your lack of balance. You trip over your own two feat, set down or pick up objects without being aware of it, or the right hand otherwise does not know what the left hand is up to.
Intelligence - Intellectual capacity, speed of thought, quality of memory/recall. "Smarts". Sometimes useful to think of as 'mental dexterity'.
High score? You have an excellent memory. Maybe you enjoy puzzles. You complete other people's sentences, since you can think much faster than they talk. You learn quickly, and make easy extrapolations or deductions.
Low score? You're forgetful or easily confused. You think lessons and lectures are boring because you fall behind quickly and the rest makes no sense. You can solve puzzles, but it takes you longer than most. You can only think about one thing at a time.
Wisdom - Mental 'groundedness' and observation. Empathy and introspection. Sometimes useful to think of as 'mental constitution'.
High score? You're patient and empathetic. You give helpful advice. You understand your place in the world and how things work together. You know yourself.
Low score? You don't tend to finish thinking things through. You leap to conclusions. You fail to empathize with others or understanding foreign motivations. You mistake your own motivations.
Charisma - Mental projection, confidence. If wisdom is about understanding the world around you, charisma is about the world knowing of you. Sometimes useful to think of as 'mental strength'.
High score? You're charming, or maybe just attractive. People listen to you (even if they shouldn't.) Your jokes get laughed at even when they aren't funny. You rarely offend someone on accident, or if you do, you are usually able to defuse the situation to the point where they don't even remember it occurred. The people who like you really like you, but the people who hate you REALLY hate you. You're the life of the party.
Low score? You blend into a crowd and have a hard time drawing attention. You're a bad storyteller, or flub jokes. No one hates you, but then no one really likes you either.
Ross, thank you so much for your response. I found this to be very helpful and entertaining. There are the obvious abilities such as strength, dexterity, and constitution, but the others you really helped me out a lot with understanding how to properly gauge things. I'm about to play a character with low intellect and was talking to my friend who argues a 7 will be a Forrest Gump level.
I am still very much interested in knowing if there was anything published on what I was looking for, but if anyone else wants to include their opinions of the matter, then definitely do that.
Forrest Gump might actually be a good analogy for int 6-7: You're a couple standard deviations below average, and you're clearly not that bright, but you can be a still be a functional adult.