The influence of personality on induced depressive mood

An experimental group (n = 40) of normal female undergraduates underwent a Velten type of depressive mood-induction procedure (DMIP) and was compared with a control group (n = 40) which underwent a neutral mood-induction procedure (NMIP). Ss were selected on the basis of scores on the EPI to give a composition in each group of 10 neurotic introverts (NI), 10 neurotic extraverts (NE), 10 stable introverts (SI) and 10 stable extraverts (SE). Depressive mood was assessed before and after each MIP using a measure of psychomotor retardation (writing speed). An ANOVA applied to residualized change scores on the writing-speed measure showed that the DMIP produced a significantly greater depressive effect on mood than the NMIP and that neurotic Ss displayed a significantly greater degree of depressive deficit than stable Ss regardless of type of MIP undertaken. However, a significant interaction between neuroticism and type of MIP showed that neurotic Ss were especially prone to depressive deficits in the DMIP. No effects of extraversion/introversion on susceptibility to depressed mood were detected. The results are discussed in terms of Eysenck and Gray's theory of personality predisposition to depression and it is suggested that the Velten technique may have limitations for the induction of depressed mood.     

Personality and Fears

The contribution to self-reported fears of individual differences in extraversion-introversion (E) and neuroticism (N) was studied in 102 female college students. Four groups of 20 Ss each were constituted - high E high N, high E low N, low E high N, and low E low N. A fear survey schedule and the Eysenck Personality Inventory were employed. By analysis of variance, total fear scores were a significant function of N but not E. Extreme or phobic fears were a significant function of neither personality dimensions, though the N effect approached conventional significance levels. Correlational analyses on the full sample confirmed these findings, except that a statistically significant though slight (6 percent) proportion of extreme fear variance was accountable by N.     

A new approach to Eysenck's theory of criminality

Studies examining Eysenck's theory of criminality by contrasting delinquent and non-delinquent groups have produced equivocal results. Some studies have shown criminals to score higher, as the theory predicts, on psychoticism, neuroticism and extraversion, whilst other studies have not. The current study examines the theory from a new approach by using cluster analysis to demonstrate the heterogeneity of personality types in delinquent sample (N =100) and in a comparison group (N = 100).Four personality types were found in each group. Two personality types which were present in the delinquent sample were not found in the comparison group. The first type consisted of individuals scoring high on neuroticism and extraversion whilst the second type consisted of individuals scoring high on psychoticism, neuroticism and extraversion. These types appeared to be consistent with Eysenck's theory of criminality.     

Extraversion and neuroticism: Investigation of resting electrodermal activity

In 1967 Eysenck published his biological account of extraversion and neuroticism. In the same year Claridge identified several problems with this theory. More recently Robinson has detailed a promising modification to Eysenck's theory which addresses many of the issues raised by Claridge. Drawing on Robinson's theory it was hypothesised that differences in resting electrodermal activity (EDA) would contrast extraverted‐neurotics (low arousal) and introverted‐neurotics (high arousal). The Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) was used to identify four extreme groups of female participants: extraverted‐stable (n = 16), extraverted‐neurotic (n = 15), introverted‐stable (n = 8) and introverted‐neurotic (n = 16). EDA measures of skin conductance level (SCL) and non‐specific skin conductance response (NS‐SCR) were collected during two rest periods. Planned contrasts between the extraverted‐neurotic and introverted‐neurotic groups provided support for Robinson's theory on SCL but not NS‐SCR. It was argued that the results for NS‐SCR frequency could be accommodated by Robinson's theory if NS‐SCR was conceptualised as a measure of cortical reactivity to unspecified stimuli rather than as a measure of tonic arousal.     

A quantitative review of the relations between the “Big 3” higher order personality dimensions and antisocial behavior

In this meta-analytic review, Hans J. Eysenck’s theory of criminality (Eysenck, 1964, Eysenck, 1977) serves as a theoretical framework for examining the relations between higher order personality dimensions and antisocial behavior (ASB). The three higher order dimensions examined are referred to as extraversion/sociability, neuroticism/emotionality, and impulsivity/disinhibition (see Sher & Trull, 1994), and they are likened to Eysenck’s dimensions of extraversion (E), neuroticism (N), and psychoticism (P), respectively (Eysenck & Eysenck, 1975) and Tellegen’s dimensions of positive emotionality (PEM), negative emotionality (NEM), and constraint (reversed) (CON), respectively (Tellegen, 1982). Ninety-seven samples, from 52 published and unpublished studies, were reviewed. The results indicated that among the “Big 3” personality dimensions, impulsivity/disinhibition is most strongly related to ASB and extraversion/sociability is least strongly related to ASB. Additional variables, including age and methodological differences, were found to moderate the associations between the personality dimensions and ASB.     

Clergy Personality and Collaborative Ministry: The Way Ahead for Stable Extraverts?

A sample of 991 male clergy affiliated to the Evangelical Alliance in the United Kingdom completed the short-form Revised Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, together with a scale regarding collaborative ministry. The data demonstrated that effective collaborative ministry was significantly related to the clergy's personality. Effective collaborative ministry was correlated positively with extraversion, correlated negatively with neuroticism, and unrelated to psychoticism. While the model of collaborative ministry may provide an exciting way ahead for clergy who display stable extraversion, this may be a less welcome route for clergy who display neurotic introversion.     

National differences in personality: India and England

This study reports comparisons between results on the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) obtained from 558 male and 636 female Indian Ss; the comparison group of the original standardized English Sample (Eysenck and Eysenck, 1975). Factor analysis of item correlations showed close correspondence between the factors extracted in the two samples, with indices of factor comparisons being well in excess of 0.97. The reliabilities in the Indian sample were only marginally lower than in the original English standardization group. Some items from the original EPQ did not load on the hypothesized factors; they were substituted by the extra items contained in the 101-item version of the EPQ used in India. The Indian data showed no sex differences with respect to extraversion; females were found to score higher on the Neuroticism and also slightly higher on the Lie scale than the males. The Lie scores for both males and females being quite high suggests a consistent trait of conformity in operation. It was concluded that the organization of personality in India is sufficiently similar to that in England to make national comparisons feasible since identical dimensions underlie the personalities of Indian and English Ss.     

The mediating role of values between personality and religiosity

The aim of this work was to examine the relationships between Eysenck’s personality traits (psychoticism, extraversion and neuroticism), Schwartz’s values, and religiosity. To this purpose a sample of Italian teenagers (N = 343; mean age 15.43, SD = 1.023) were asked to fill out a battery of questionnaires and, a structural equation model was tested, where the mediating role of Schwartz’s values between personality traits, and religiosity was accurately analysed. Results showed that all personality traits considered had relevant direct and/or indirect effects on religious experience, mediated by values.     

Determinants of Perceived Stress in Adolescence: The Role of Personality Traits,Emotional Abilities,Trait Emotional Intelligence,Self-Efficacy,and Self-Esteem

The aim of the current study was to examine the explanatory power of personality traits, emotional abilities, trait emotional intelligence, self-efficacy, and self-esteem in predicting perceived stress in adolescents. The data were collected from 406 high school students, aged 18-22 years (M_age = 18.47, SD = 0.64). Perceived stress was assessed with the 10-item Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10). Personality traits were measured with the Eysenck Personality Short Scale (EPQ-R-S), emotional abilities were assessed with two performance tests, the Emotional Intelligence Scale – Faces (SIE-T), and the Emotion Understanding Test (TRE), and trait emotional intelligence was measured with a selfreport questionnaire (the Schutte Emotional Intelligence Scale, SEIS). The Generalized Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES) and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES) were also used. Results indicate that the strongest determinant of perceived stress in adolescents was high neuroticism. Perceived stress was also determined by low self-efficacy and self-esteem, as well as high extraversion and psychoticism. Women reported higher perceived stress than men. There also were differences in the determinants of perceived stress between graduate and nongraduate students. The obtained results suggest that the development of high self-esteem and high self-efficacy may contribute to perceptions of lower stress in adolescents and may be especially valuable for neurotic individuals and for women, who are more exposed to stress.     

An Inventory of Affective Tolerance

The two dimensions of personality, extraversion (E) and neuroticism (N) as measured by the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI), were tested for their social desirability response set and their independence. Results from a collegiate sample (N = 282) show that E and N scales were susceptible to social desirability response bias for males and females, respectively. This bias could not be overcome by eliminating Ss who reported higher scores on the lie scale included in the EPI. The dimensionality of the two scales for the male Ss is questionable.     

Attachment theory as a framework for explaining engagement with Facebook

Research on the relation between personality and styles of engagement with social media is surprisingly limited and has generated mixed results. The present research applied attachment theory to illuminate individual differences in styles of Facebook engagement. Two studies (N = 583) supported a mediational model explaining various forms of active Facebook use as stemming from attachment anxiety, which predisposes individuals to sensitivity about social feedback, thereby leading them to engage in attention-seeking social media behavior. These results held while controlling for extraversion, neuroticism, and self-esteem. Attachment avoidance predicted restrained Facebook use, primarily due to its association with (low) extraversion. These findings resolve inconsistencies in previous research and demonstrate that attachment theory is a particularly useful framework through which to study the influence of personality on social-media behavior.     

The hardy personality and its relationship to extraversion and neuroticism

Hardiness is conceptualised as a personality characteristic which encompasses three component traits (commitment, challenge and control), and acts as a resistance resource mitigating the adverse effects of stressful life events (Kobasa, 1979). A number of empirical studies in the U.S. have demonstrated its role in moderating stress-illness relationships, but hardiness has not received much attention in the U.K. In the present article, data from a U.K. sample (N = 87) are used to examine (i) the psychometric characteristics of the current version of Kobasa's hardiness measure, and (ii) the relationships of hardiness, and its component scales, to the Eysenck dimensions of extraversion, neuroticism and the lie scale.Hardiness scores were found to be negatively related to age, but did not differ significantly between males and females, and were not influenced by social desirability biases. The alpha value for the reliability of the overall scale was 0.89. Scores on the components of commitment, challenge and control were strongly related to extraversion (positively) and to neuroticism (negatively), the canonical correlation being 0.60. Multiple regression analysis showed that age, gender and the Eysenck dimensions jointly accounted for 37% of the variance in hardiness scores. These results are discussed in relation to psychometric issues and relevant literature findings.     

Neuroticism and extraversion are associated with amygdala resting-state functional connectivity

The personality traits neuroticism and extraversion are differentially related to socioemotional functioning and susceptibility to affective disorders. However, the neurobiology underlying this differential relationship is still poorly understood. This discrepancy could perhaps best be studied by adopting a brain connectivity approach. Whereas the amygdala has repeatedly been linked to neuroticism and extraversion, no study has yet focused on the intrinsic functional architecture of amygdala-centered networks in relation to both traits. To this end, seed-based correlation analysis was employed to reveal amygdala resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) and its associations with neuroticism and extraversion in 50 healthy participants. Higher neuroticism scores were associated with increased amygdala RSFC with the precuneus, and decreased amygdala RSFC with the temporal poles, insula, and superior temporal gyrus (p < .05, cluster corrected). Conversely, higher extraversion scores were associated with increased amygdala RSFC with the putamen, temporal pole, insula, and several regions of the occipital cortex (p < .05, cluster corrected). The shifts in amygdala RSFC associated with neuroticism may relate to the less-adaptive perception and processing of self-relevant and socioemotional information that is frequently seen in neurotic individuals, whereas the amygdala RSFC pattern associated with extraversion may relate to the heightened reward sensitivity and enhanced socioemotional functioning in extraverts. We hypothesize that the variability in amygdala RSFC observed in the present study could potentially link neuroticism and extraversion to the neurobiology underlying increased susceptibility or resilience to affective disorders.     

Physical activity and personality: A behaviour genetic analysis

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to obtain a heritability estimate of exercise behaviour in twins and to examine the genetic and environmental contributions to phenotypic associations between personality and exercise behaviour.DesignTwin study was used, the sample including 339 twin pairs (105 MZ and 234 DZ), between 15 and 22 years of age (M = 18.6, SD = 2.31).MethodThe participants filled in a NEO-FFI personality inventory and answered two questions about the frequency (FPE) and intensity (IPE) of physical exercise. We also calculated the composite physical exercise score (CS) representing a combination of FPE and IPE items.ResultsThe broad heritability estimates of three physical exercise variables (FPE, IPE, CS) were significant, with results in the 0.55 to 0.69 range. We found significant phenotypic associations with neuroticism and extraversion. Contrary to our expectations, correlations with conscientiousness were not significant. People scoring higher on extraversion and lower on neuroticism reported exercising more often and more intensely. Phenotypic association between personality traits and physical exercise variables were due to overlapping genetic influences.ConclusionsOur results indicate that the genetic factors contributing to an active lifestyle overlap with those contributing to personality traits extraversion and neuroticism, in line with the “nature” hypothesis which infers the presence of biological differences in predisposition for regular physical activity.     

Personality dimensions and subjective well-being

This work examines the association between personality dimensions (extraversion and neuroticism) and subjective well-being. Subjective well-being is associated both with extraversion and neuroticism, and currently, neuroticism is generally considered the more important. A total of 368 students from the University of Rovira i Virgili completed the Extraversion and Neuroticism subscales of the revised Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (Eysenck, Eysenck, and Barrett, 1985), the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS; Diener, Emmons, Larsen, and Griffin, 1985), and the Positive and Negative Affect Scale (Watson, Clark, and Tellegen, 1988). Regression analyses revealed the personality variable of neuroticism as one of the most important correlates of subjective well-being. Regression analyses also showed that 44% of the variance of subjective well-being was accounted for by neuroticism, whereas extraversion only explained 8% of the variance.     

The relationship between psychological type and the three major dimensions of personality

Five hundred and fifty-four undergraduate students attending a university-sector college in South Wales, United Kingdom, completed the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) (Form G) and the short-form Revised Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. The results showed a number of statistically significant relationships between the two models of personality and drew attention to two substantively significant relationships. In Eysenckian terms, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator constructs of introversion and extraversion translated as “neurotic introversion” and as “stable extraversion.” The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator constructs of judging and perceiving translated as “low psychoticism” and “high psychoticism”. Based on their interpretation of findings, the authors argue that the MBTI and the Eysenckian models should be viewed as interacting in a dynamic and informative fashion, not as unrelated, totally disparate models.     

Extraversion,neuroticism, psychoticism and self-reported delinquency: Evidence from eight separate samples

Eight separate samples of high school and university students (Total N = 410) in Britain and Canada were used to test predictions from Eysenck's theory that delinquents should be high scorers on scales of extraversion, neuroticism, and psychoticism. Self-report paper- and pencil-questionnaire measures of both personality and delinquency were administered under conditions that ensured anonymity. The evidence showed clear support for a relationship between high delinquency scores and high scores on both extraversion and psychoticism. These relationships held up across diverse samples and different ways of analyzing the data. No support was found for a relationship between delinquency scores and the dimension of neuroticism.     

Personality differences within a diagnostic entity: Types of phobia in men and women

Often, psychodiagnostic entities, like phobias, have been assumed implicitly to be homogeneous with respect to important personality variables. Three types of phobic women, agoraphobics, social phobics and simple phobics (n = 15 per type) were compared among themselves and with non-phobics on a variety of personality characteristics. The same was done with phobic men (respectively, n = 12, n = 11, n = 8). The results showed that types of phobia differ with regard to several personality characteristics; for women differently than for men. Implications for theory building, diagnosis, and therapy are discussed. On the whole, a personality-oriented approach to psychopathology is advocated.     

Self-monitoring and the prediction of one's own and others' personality test scores

This study had two aims. Firstly, it examined the similarity between subjects' ratings of themselves and others and their scores on various personality tests. A group of 264 undergraduates in psychology completed Snyder's (1974) Self-Monitoring Scale and the Neuroticism and Extraversion Scales from the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (Eysenck and Eysenck, 1975; 1986). Then, they estimated both their own score and that of a peer on those questionnaires. The results showed that subjects (i) were fairly good at estimating their own and others' extraversion and neuroticism scores, (ii) were less accurate at estimating self-monitoring scores, (iii) were better at predicting their own scores than those of others, and (iv) erroneously believed themselves to be significantly similar to the chosen peer. Secondly, individual differences in the accuracy of personality estimation were studied. According to Synder's (1974) self-monitoring construct, people high in self-monitoring would be especially adept at reading others' expressive behaviours; therefore, any differences in the accuracy of perceiving the personality of others might be associated with differences in self-monitoring. High self-monitors were more accurate than low self-monitors at estimating neuroticism scores for others. Another implication of the self-monitoring theory is that, taking high and low self-monitors as targets of others' estimations, there should be greater discrepancy between actual scores and peer estimations for high self-monitors. The results here supported this prediction, but only in self-monitoring estimation.     

Comparison of EPI and psychoticism scales with measures of the five-factor model of personality

The need for a comprehensive model of personality traits acceptable to the entire community of personality researches has often been acknowledged. In this article, two such models are compared. Eysenck scales measuring neuroticism, extraversion, psychoticism and lie are correlated with self-report and peer-rating measures of the five-factor model—neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness and conscientiousness—in a sample of adult men and women. Findings suggest that: (1) neuroticism and extraversion factors from the two systems match well; (2) sociability and impulsivity are distinguishable traits, but both fall within the broad domain of extraversion; (3) the EPI L scale measures aspects of several substantive traits rather than a response bias; (4) openness to experience is not well-represented in the Eysenck system; and (5) psychoticism corresponds most closely to the low poles of agreeableness and conscientiousness.