Lecture 5- Wellbeing and Personality Flashcards
What broad areas of health can personality influence?
- Vulnerability to physical and psychological illness
- How we experience such illness (illness behaviour)
- likelihood of seeking support for health issues
- Recovery and outcome of illness
Outline the direct link between personality and health
- Personality has a causal role in health and illness
- E.g. “Disesase Prone” Personality (Psychosomatic Conditions)
- E.g. stomach ulcers, CHD,
PERSONALITY -> BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES-> ILLNESS
outline the correlational link between personality and health
- Correlational link between personality and illnss
- E.g. Matthews (2003) Genetic relationship between vulnerability to CHD and personality traits of hostility
BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES -> PERSONALITY
&
BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES -> ILLNESS
Outine personality traits influence behaviours as a link between personality and health
- Personality traits may influence our behaviours; which subsequently influence our risk for certain illness
- e.g more sensation seeking = substance use, risky sexual behaviour
PERSONALITY -> RISKY BEHAVIOUR -> ILLNESS
Outline changes in personality as a link between personality and health
- Having an illness may result in changes in our personality
- Brain disorders (Az), chronic conditions, illness in childhood (Psychosocial adjustment, sociability)
ILLNESS-> PERSONALITY
How is the big five linked to health
- Differing relations with psychological and physical illness for Big 5
- Evidence that lower levels of conscientiousness linked to lower treatment adherence
What were Smith (2006) 4 main features of links between personality and health/
- Role of anger and hostility
- Social dominance
- Neuroticisms and negative affect
- Optimism
How is neuroticism linked to health>
- Reduced longevity; serious physical disease
- Physical complaints with no identifiable medical caue
- More somatic symptoms
- Body dysmorphic disorder
Outline how optimism is linked to health
- Optimists are less susceptible to depression and anxiety
- Tend to live longer
- Experience fewer physical symptoms, recover better from surgery, report fewer complications (Scheier & Carver, 1987)
What are problems with research that links personality and health
X - could reflect psychological REACTION to disease
X - self-rated symptoms?
X - associations do not explain
Outline Williams et al (2011) study into illness beliefs and behaviours
- Explored Type D personality and illness beliefs/ behaviours
- Type D’s were Significantly different from non-type D on all illness perception dimensions
Outline Diathesis stress models of psychological disorders***
- individuals ability to cope with stress is a potentially important mechanism
- Stress is a response to perceived demands
- We vary in how we perceive demands and this effects how stressful it is
- Vulnerable individuals are more likely to have negative responses than resilient individuals
Outline 1. Health behaviour models of stress
- Personality impacts on engagement with health behaviours, and this impacts on illness
- Personality can also influence our appraisal and coping strategies when faced with stressful situations
PERSONALITY -> HELATH BEHAVIOURS -> ILLNESS
PERSONALITY -> APPRAISAL
PERSONALITY -> COPING
COPING -> HEALTH BEHAVIOURS
outline 2. Interactional Stress models
Personality moderates the physiological responses to stressors that can influence the subsequent likelihood of disease
PERSONALITY -> APPRAISAL & COPING
APPRAISAL & COPING -> PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSE
PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSE -> ILLNESS
outline 3. Transactional Stress Model
Personality influences exposure to stressefull circumstances
PERSONALITY -> APPRAISAL & COPING
PERSONALITY -> STRESSFUL CIRCUMSTANCES (and vice versa)
PERSONALITY -> SUBSEQENT CIRCUMSTANCES (and vice versa)
APPRAISAL & COPING -> PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSE -> ILLNESS