Lecture 5 - Personality and Physical Health Flashcards
What are 4 potential pathways for personality to affect physical health?
Matthew et al. (2009)
Personality trait –> health (direct causation)
Factor X –> personality trait + health (correlational)
Personality trait –> behaviour –> health (causal chain)
Health –> personality trait (somatogenic)
What are ‘disease prone’ personality types?
Friedman/Rosenman (1959): personality factors predict cardiovascular diseases
Type A: competitive, ambitious, driven, impatient, hostility, etc.
Type B: takes life as it comes, uninterested in power, relaxed
Think of it as a continuum
Original challenging interview based measure (capture anger/hostility components)
Self report (Jenkins Activity) cover broader range
What did studies find about Type A personalities and CVD risk?
Maltby/Day/Macaskill: Large, longitudinal, epidemiological studies – inconsistent findings
Meta analyses: significant but modest effect of Type A on CVD, diff in results related to inconsistencies in personality assessments used
Glass (1977): three separable components of Type A personality: competitively striving for achievement, sense of urgency, hostility (toxic component)
Chida/Steptoe (2009): meta analysis: anger/hostility significantly associated w/ heart disease incidence/prognosis
Hostility –> reactivity to stress
What are other ‘disease prone’ personality types?
Cancer-Prone (Type C)
Kissen/Eysenck (1962): High E/Low N: suppresses/represses emotions
Little convincing evidence from prospective studies, questionable work
Type D (Distressed)
Denollet (2000): depressed/socially inhibited – poorer recovery from heart attack + increased risk of future heart problems
More useful to think about traits than types?
How is conscientiousness connected to physical health?
Chapman/Roberts/Duberstein (2011): clear link between C + longevity, most support for causal behavioural chain mechanism
Conscientiousness –> regular exercise/diet/low smoking + alcohol –> increased longevity
Potential causal biological chain mechanism
Conscientiousness –> better coping mechanisms –> lower interleuken-6 –> increased longevity
High C associated w/ fewer daily stressors + better coping
How is neuroticism connected to physical health?
Chapman/Roberts/Duberstein (2011): argued to be of general public health significance
Neuroticism (angry hostility/depression) –> exercise/diet/smoking –> reduced longevity
BUT: some confounding of socio-economic status, some inconsistent results
Friedman (2000): healthy N (high anxiety but low depression/vulnerability) –> engage in preventative behaviours –> increased longevity
How is extraversion connected to physical health?
C/R/D: mixed results, diff effects of specific facets
Ploubidis/Grundy (2009): 9003 people completed EPI, followed up 20 years later, found Higher E associated w/ increased mortality (partially explained by smoking)
Extraversion: excitement seeing –> associated w/ destructive addictive behaviours
Extraversion –> more social ties/support, active/engaged life –> increased longevity
Extraversion –> increased immune functioning
How did extraversion affect gorillas?
Measured Gorilla personality: gorillas w/ low extraversion scores survived for less time –> immune functioning/stronger social ties/lower cardiovascular disease
How is openness to experience connected to physical health?
C/R/D: good evidence for positive association w/ longevity, mechanism unclear
Openness –> likely to engage in cognitive/educational activities –> cognitive reserve (resilience to effects of neural disease/injury) + health decision making –> increased longevity
How does health in turn affect personality?
Waxman et al. (2013): very low birth weight associated w/ adult personality
Lower E/O, higher N/A/C, higher cautiousness
Potential mechanisms: extra-uterine brain development, subsequent illness, higher parental monitoring + restrictions
Jokela et al. (2014): impact of chronic disease on Big 5 traits
Heart disease/stroke/diabetes/cancer/respiratory disease/arthritis/hypertension
Meta analysis of 4 longitudinal studies
With exception for agreeableness, experience of chronic illness reduces levels of traits (greater reduction w/ more)
‘Dose dependent’ decreases in E, N, C, O
Disease-specific effects: greatest changes for stroke, least for cancer
Potential mechanisms: neural function, coping w/ distress/challenges of disease (N), fatigue (E), lowered ability to organise life (C)
What are practical applications of health and personality connection?
Hagger-Johnson/Pollard Whiteman (2008): The 5 Ts
Targeting campaigns to personality traits
Tailoring interventions to personality profiles
Personality training
Treatment of personality
Recording Transformation
