Extending the understanding of the impact of conscientiousness on individual soccer performance: examining the mediating role of mental toughness

BACKGROUND

Drawing upon Motowidlo et al.'s theory of individual differences in individual performance, the current study aims to contribute to a better understanding of the relationship between conscientiousness and individual soccer performance, by examining whether mental toughness, posited as a characteristic adaptation, acts as a psychological mechanism underlying this link.

PARTICIPANTS AND PROCEDURE

Relying upon a concurrent validity design, 130 soccer players completed a survey including the measures of conscientiousness and mental toughness. Participants were also instructed to provide a subjective assessment of their individual soccer performance, by self-rating their physical, technical and tactical performance levels. Their objective performance was also measured as the total amount of minutes each player participated in official games, during the first half-season.

RESULTS

The findings showed that conscientiousness and mental toughness represent significant and meaningful predictors of both individual soccer performance measures gathered, i.e. individual soccer subjective and objective performance. As expected, further mediation analyses showed that the influence of conscientiousness on subjective performance is totally indirect, via mental toughness. Still, for the objective performance criterion, only the direct effect of conscientiousness was supported.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings support the merits of conscientiousness as a valid predictor of human performance across achievement contexts, namely in sports settings and specifically in the domain of soccer. They also suggest that while this personality factor exerts a direct impact on individual soccer objective performance, it seems to play a more distal influence on subjective performance, by enacting individual mental toughness resources. Major theoretical and applied research implications are discussed.

The Big Five Personality Domains and Their Facets: Empirical Relations to Problematic Use of Video Games, Social Media and Alcohol

Relatively common behavioral patterns in adolescence are problematic use of video games (PG), social media (PSMU) or alcohol (PAU). According to theoretical models, personality traits are relevant for Internet-related problematic behaviors. In the present study, associations of the Big Five personality domains and their 15 facets with PG, PSMU and PAU were compared for the first time. Therefore, 492 adolescents (mean age: 16.83 years) were examined with the established Big Five Inventory-2 as well as other standardized questionnaires on PG, PSMU and PAU. For statistical evaluation, correlation analyses were used as bivariate procedures and multiple regression analyses as multivariable procedures. At the personality domain level, consistently in bivariate and multivariate analyses, statistically significant associations between higher Negative Emotionality (Neuroticism) and PG, PSMU and PAU as well as between lower Open-Mindedness and PG and PAU were observed. At the level of facets, higher Anxiety (facet of Negative Emotionality) was related to PG and PSMU as well as lower Aesthetic Sensitivity (facet of Open-Mindedness) and lower Productiveness (facet of Conscientiousness) to PG. Considering the overlap of 95% confidence intervals, very comparable patterns of associations between PG, PSMU and PAU and the Big Five and their facets were observed in adolescence (indicating similarities in etiology).

Association between personality and cognitive performance in middle-aged and older adults with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)

BACKGROUND

Nearly half of adults with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) experience HIV-Associated Neurocognitive Disorder (HAND), characterized by cognitive impairments in two or more cognitive domains, which can interfere with everyday functioning. Many factors are thought to influence such cognitive impairments in adults with HIV; one factor seldom examined is personality.

OBJECTIVE

This study investigated the association between five major dimensions of personality (openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism) and cognitive function in older adults with HIV.

METHODS

In this cross-sectional study, a secondary data analysis was conducted on 261 HIV + participants. Participants completed a norm-based cognitive battery covering seven cognitive domains, which yielded the following indices: global cognitive impairment, and global and domain-specific T-scores. The Big Five Inventory was used to assess personality traits.

RESULTS

Higher openness, conscientiousness, and agreeableness were associated with better performance on individual cognitive domains while agreeableness and openness were also positively associated with global cognitive T-scores (p < .01). Only openness significantly predicted global cognition when adjusting for covariates (p < .01).

DISCUSSION

Openness was associated with better global cognitive function in persons with HIV. This study provides a basis for further investigation of potential mechanisms for the association between personality and cognition in people with HIV in order to ultimately inform intervention strategies.

What Drives Daily Perseverance and Passion? Grit, Conscientiousness, and Goal Pursuit Experiences

Two studies were conducted to further the understanding of daily experiences of perseverance and passion and the influences of personality traits (e.g., grit and conscientiousness) and contextual factors. Study 1 applied the experience sampling method (n = 116; observations = 5,187) and found that perseverance of effort (PE) predicted passion when controlling for conscientiousness. Study 2 used the day reconstruction method (n = 468; observations = 1,872) and found that both PE and consistency of interest (CI) had effects, although CI was a stronger predictor than PE. In both studies, PE was moderated only by instrumentality of the activity, whereas CI was moderated only by perceived difficulty. We also found mediating effects of instrumentality, (lower) perceived difficulty, and (fewer) intrusive thoughts on the pathways between traits and perseverance and passion. These results deepen our knowledge on why and how perseverance-related traits impact daily experiences of perseverance and passion.

Personality Traits and Coping Strategies as Psychological Factors Associated with Health-Related Quality of Life in Highly Sensitive Persons

Sensory-Processing Sensitivity (SPS) is the reactivity to different stimuli that occurs in some people with sufficient intensity to cause interference in daily life. There are not many previous studies that determine the influence of adaptive and maladaptive coping strategies on health-related quality of life through indicators of mental (anxiety and depression) and physical (vitality) health and functioning in their lives in different contexts (emotional role functioning). In this sense, contexts that promote the use of successful stress-coping strategies are related to the presence of positive mental health outcomes. This study focuses on the analysis of indicators of health-related quality of life in people with SPS in relation to certain personality traits and coping strategies. Participants (N = 10,525) completed HSPS-S, NEO-FFI, CSI, and SF-36. Differences were observed between men and women. Differences indicated that women had higher SPS scores compared to men and poorer health-related quality of life. The results showed significant relationships with the three indicators of health-related quality of life. Finally, it is confirmed that neuroticism and the use of maladaptive coping strategies act as risk factors, whereas extraversion, conscientiousness, and adaptive coping strategies act as protective factors. These findings highlight the need to develop prevention programs for highly sensitive persons.

Psychosocial Factors Affecting Drug Relapse among Youth in Punjab, Pakistan

The present study was intended to examine the effect of psychosocial factors on the stigma of mental illness among people addicted to drugs who have relapsed in Punjab, Pakistan. A sample composed of 116 people addicted to drugs and who have relapsed was collected through the purposive sampling technique. Certain self-report measures were used to assess the pertinent study variables. The results elucidated that self-efficacy, social support, and conscientiousness were found to be negative predictors and neuroticism a positive predictor of stigma. The results also confirmed social support as being a significant moderator in the relationship between self-efficacy and stigma, and self-efficacy as being a significant moderator in the relationship between social support and stigma. It was safe to conclude that psychosocial factors such as self-efficacy, social support, personality traits and stigma have a significant role in causing addiction relapse. The conclusions made have been discussed thoroughly.

Peer Relationship Profiles among Early Adolescents from Low-Income Families: The Unique and Combined Effects of Attachment to Mothers and Conscientiousness

Using research data gathered from multiple sources, the current study explored positive aspects of peer relationship profiles (indexed by peer-nominated acceptance and self-reported friendships) in a person-centered approach among early adolescents from low-income families. Moreover, this study investigated the unique and combined associations of adolescents' attachment to mothers and parent-rated conscientiousness with emerging peer relationship profiles. A total of 295 early adolescents (42.7% girls; M_age = 10.94, SD = 0.80) were involved in this study. Latent profile analysis identified three empirically derived peer relationship profiles: "isolated" (14.6%), "socially competent" (16.3%), and "average" (69.1%). Moderation analyses further showed that adolescents with secure attachment to mothers tend to have group memberships in socially competent and average profiles than the isolated profile. Such an association pattern was more heightened for those with higher conscientiousness (versus lower conscientiousness).

The effects of personality traits on entrepreneurial intention and creativity among Chinese and African college students in era of industry 4.0/5.0

Using samples of Chinese and African college students, this manuscript explored the effect of personality traits on entrepreneurial intention and creativity from the boundaryless career perspective. The empirical results showed that both Chinese and African college students' conscientiousness and openness had significantly positive effects on entrepreneurial intention and creativity, respectively, and boundaryless mindset had a mediating effect in the relationship between conscientiousness, openness, entrepreneurial intention, and creativity. However, the moderating effects of GPA were quite different. While Chinese college students' GPA strengthened the positive effect of boundaryless mindset on entrepreneurial intention and creativity respectively, African college students' GPA weakened the positive effect of boundaryless mindset on entrepreneurial intention and had no significant moderating effect on the relationship between boundaryless mindset and creativity. This study was based on the empirical research of Chinese and African college students through a combination of contrastive and advance study methodology. It has provided new perspectives for exploring influencing factors and effects of employment performance in the context of Industry 4.0/5.0 and it has made theoretical and practical contributions to promote creativity and entrepreneurial intention.

Esports Players Are Less Extroverted and Conscientious than Athletes

The worldwide status of esports as a sporting phenomenon has been developed in the past decade. However, as the esports industry has grown, it has remained an understudied scientific field. Esports is often contrasted with traditional sports regarding various aspects, including lack of physical activity and the online nature of social interactions. However, little is known whether individuals competing in esports-esports players-differ from individuals competing in traditional sports-athletes. To address this question, we examined the personality characteristics of both types of performers. We collected cross-sectional data on esports players' (n = 416) and athletes' (n = 452) personalities and performance characteristics. We found that esports players were less extroverted and conscientious than athletes. Furthermore, greater sports and esports experience was positively related to being more extroverted. Our findings contribute to the literature by documenting the preferences for competitive activities based on individuals' personality characteristics. We suggest that esports (rather than sports) might be a more suitable form of competition for less extroverted and conscientious individuals.

The Interactive Effect of Stressor Appraisals and Personal Traits on Employees' Procrastination Behavior: The Conservation of Resources Perspective

Purpose

Procrastination has become a pervasive phenomenon in the workplace, yet knowledge of its antecedents remains limited. Therefore, this study explains when and why employees procrastinate. As procrastination is an individual intentional behavior to escape potential resource loss by taking actions to relax; this study regards procrastination as resource-protection behavior. Building on the conservation of resources (COR) theory, the purpose of the current study is to explore the direct impact of external situational factors (ie, stressor appraisals) and individual traits (ie, personality) and their interactive effect on workplace procrastination behavior.

Participants and Methods

The study adopts a quantitative approach and uses two-wave data. Data was collected through the randomized cluster sampling technique and a structured questionnaire survey. The sample consisted of civil servants in an organization located in the Shandong province of China. Received 347 valid questionnaires representing an overall response rate of 87%. The theoretical model was tested through confirmatory factor analysis and regression analyses using Mplus 7.2.

Results

The results show that hindrance stressor appraisal is positively related to procrastination, whereas challenge stressor appraisal is negatively related to procrastination. Neuroticism had a positive relationship with procrastination, while conscientiousness had a negative relationship with procrastination. Conscientiousness moderates the relationship between challenge stressor appraisal and procrastination such that the relationship is salient under high conscientiousness.

Conclusion

Overall, our study suggests that procrastination is affected by personal traits and workplace stressor appraisals. This study makes potential contributions to employees' procrastination literature by and its understanding within the job procrastination knowledge base. Also, this study confirms the comprehensive reach and applicability of the COR theory developed by scholars such as Hobfoll (1989). In practically, the research benefits organizations by providing suggestions for managing employees' procrastination behavior.

Motivation to teach and preparedness for teaching among preservice teachers in China: The effect of conscientiousness and constructivist teaching beliefs

"Preparedness for teaching" refers to the degree of confidence preservice teachers have, and reflects their ability. Developing preparedness for teaching is an important part of preservice teachers' professionalization. A substantial body of literature has documented the critical influence of the motivation to teach on preparedness; however, how this relation is impacted by mediating and moderating mechanisms remains unclear. To respond to this gap in knowledge, the present study constructed a mediated moderation model through structural equation modeling and multigroup tests using 383 questionnaires completed by preservice teachers in China. The findings indicate that the preservice teachers' genders, entry path, and levels of certainty about their future teaching career choices all influence their preparedness for teaching. Specifically, preservice teachers who believe that they will choose a teaching career in the future have more intrinsic motivation, stronger constructivist teaching beliefs, and a higher levels of teaching preparedness. Moreover, preservice teachers' motivations to teach can positively predict their constructivist teaching beliefs and preparedness for teaching, but their constructivist teaching beliefs alone do not have a mediating effect on the relationship between motivation to teach and preparedness for teaching. However, the findings reveal that the constructivist teaching beliefs of highly conscientiousness group can partially mediate the relationship between the motivation to teach and the preparedness for teaching. Additionally, conscientiousness moderates the influence of constructivist teaching beliefs on preparedness for teaching. The study provides meaningful insights into the within-personal traits of how and when motivation to teach affects preparedness for teaching, which may be useful for the motivation best practices for preservice teacher recruitment, training, and support to create high-quality teachers.

Learning from failure feedback for subsequent task performance: A matter of personality?

The present study expands our knowledge of the differential consequences of failure feedback. Specifically, we conducted an online experiment to elaborate on how conscientiousness and extraversion contribute to explaining whether individuals learn from failure feedback for future task performance. In line with our hypotheses, we find that individuals who are highly conscientious and/or highly extraverted are more likely to learn from failure feedback than their counterparts. We discuss the implications of our study and derive practical implications.

Personality Traits and Mental Health among Lebanese Medical Students: The Mediating Role of Emotional Intelligence

Medical students face daily challenges such as large workload, time commitment and clinical environment pressure leading to a higher risk of psychological distress. The aim of our study was to assess the relationship between personality traits and depression, anxiety, and stress among Lebanese medical students and to evaluate the mediating role of emotional intelligence (EI) in this association. This cross-sectional study was conducted between June and December of 2019. Participants were from seven medical schools in Lebanon. Higher extraversion (B = -0.11), higher neuroticism (B = -0.28) and higher emotional intelligence (B = -0.03) were significantly associated with lower depression. Higher neuroticism (B = -0.29) and higher emotional intelligence (B = -0.03) were significantly associated with lower anxiety. Higher openness to experience (B = 0.07) and higher agreeableness (B = 0.08) were significantly associated with higher stress, whereas higher neuroticism (B = -0.05) was associated with lower stress. EI mediated the association between extraversion and depression and openness to experience and depression. EI mediated the association between extraversion and anxiety and openness to experience and anxiety. The results of this study were different from those previously cited in the literature. This could be secondary to the mediating role of emotional intelligence. This study consequently opens up the possibility of new studies highlighting the role of emotional intelligence in the possible preservation of medical students' mental health.

Morning affect, eveningness, and amplitude distinctness: Associations with behavioural indicators of conscientiousness

Morningness is associated with well-being, better sleep quality, and more conscientiousness, while eveningness is associated with negative emotionality, poorer sleep quality, and less conscientiousness. The current study aimed to further understanding of associations with conscientiousness by assessing specific behavioural indicators of conscientiousness, morningness-eveningness, and also the Morning Affect and Distinctness (amplitude of diurnal variation) aspects of circadian functioning. A survey of Chinese university students (N = 369, aged 18-30, mean = 19.48, SD = 1.922; 108 males, 261 females), included the Morningness-Eveningness-Stability-Scale, measures of conscientiousness, mindfulness, life satisfaction, aspects of sleep, and the Behavioural Indicators of Conscientiousness (BIC) scale. Morningness and Morning Affect were positively correlated with life satisfaction, mindfulness, better sleep quality, more conscientiousness, and with BIC including Hardworking, Self-control, and Punctuality. Distinctness showed negative correlations with these variables. Negative correlations between Eveningness and conscientiousness, and the BIC subscales of Hardworking and Cleanliness were no longer significant after controlling for Morning Affect. Mediation analysis showed that the associations between Eveningness and conscientiousness/BIC were mediated by Morning Affect. These results extend previous research by showing associations between circadian functioning and specific behavioural indicators of conscientiousness, and suggest that low Morning Affect may provide a mechanism for the relationship between Eveningness and conscientiousness.

Genetic variance in conscientiousness relates to youth psychopathology beyond executive functions

Because deficits in self-regulation (SR) are core features of many diverse psychological disorders, SR may constitute one of many dimensions that underlie shared variance across diagnostic boundaries (e.g., the p factor, a dimension reflecting shared variance across multiple psychological disorders). SR definitions encompass constructs mapping onto different theoretical traditions and different measurement approaches, however. Two SR operationalizations, executive functioning and conscientiousness, are often used interchangeably despite their low empirical associations-a "jingle" fallacy that pervades much of the research on SR-psychopathology relationships. In a population-based sample of 1,219 twins and multiples from the Texas Twin Project (Mage = 10.60, SDage = 1.76), with a comprehensive battery of measures, we aimed to clarify how these often-muddled aspects of SR relate to individual differences in psychopathology, and whether links between them are accounted for by overlapping genetic and environmental factors. The p factor and an Attention Problems-specific factor were associated with lower executive functioning and conscientiousness. Executive functioning shared a small amount of genetic variance with p above and beyond conscientiousness, whereas conscientiousness shared substantial genetic variance with p independently of genetic variance accounted for by executive functioning. Conversely, the Attention Problems-specific factor was strongly genetically associated with executive functioning independently of genetic variance accounted for by conscientiousness. Results support the notion that SR and psychopathology, broadly conceived, may exist on overlapping spectra, but this overlap varies across conceptualizations of SR and the level of specificity at which psychopathology is assessed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Association between conscientiousness and team emotional intelligence: A moderated mediation model

To investigate the influence of interpersonal emotion regulation and conscientiousness on team emotional intelligence. A total of 1369 college students were investigated with the conscientiousness subscale of Big Five Personality Questionnaire, Team Emotional Intelligence Scale and Leadership Positive Emotional Operation Questionnaire. Variance analysis, Pearson product difference correlation analysis, multiple regression analysis and path analysis were used. In order to avoid the possible skew problem, the bootstrap method was used to calculate the structural equation model. SPSS 22.0, Amos 24, R software were used for statistical analysis. A total of 1600 questionnaires were sent out and 1369 effective questionnaires were recovered. The total score of College Students' team emotional intelligence was 5.07 ± 0.70, with 4.88 ± 0.87, 5.38 ± 0.79, 4.74 ± 0.91, 4.71 ± 0.83, 5.23 ± 1.00, and 5.46 ± 0.91 for interpersonal understanding, asking for feedback, emotional management, organizational cognition, relationship building and problem-solving ability, respectively. Conscientiousness significantly predicted team emotional intelligence, and leadership's positive emotional operation. Furthermore, conscientiousness could predict team emotional intelligence through mediating individual emotional intelligence. Interpersonal positive emotion regulation played a part of mediating role between conscientiousness and team emotional intelligence.

The Relationship between Conscientiousness and Well-Being among Chinese Undergraduate Students: A Cross-Lagged Study

Chinese culture attaches great importance to the education and cultivation of youth conscientiousness, however in the context of Chinese culture, little is known about the relationship between conscientiousness and mental and physical health. The present study aimed to investigate whether there is a reciprocal relationship between conscientiousness and well-being (subjective and physical well-being) among Chinese undergraduate students. A series of self-reported questionnaires were administered to 365 undergraduate students in 2 waves, separated by 1 year. Cross-lagged regression analyses were applied to examine the reciprocal relationships. Results indicated that conscientiousness positively predicted subsequent levels of positive affect and life satisfaction, while negatively predicted subsequent levels of negative affect and physical symptoms, controlling for the effects of gender, age, body-mass index, socioeconomic status, and the prior level of conscientiousness. Whereas, positive and negative affect, life satisfaction, and physical symptoms did not significantly predict subsequent levels of conscientiousness. This study suggests that conscientiousness is a robust and prospective predictor of subjective and physical well-being. The reciprocal relationship between conscientiousness and well-being was not confirmed in the current sample of Chinese undergraduate students.

Personality traits modulate the neural responses to handwriting processing

Handwriting is a vital skill for everyday human activities. It has a wealth of information about writers' characteristics and can hint toward underlying neurological conditions, such as Parkinson's disease, autism, dyslexia, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Many previous studies have reported a link between personality and individual differences in handwriting, but the evidence for the relationship tends to be anecdotal in nature. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we examined whether the association between personality traits and handwriting was instantiated at the neural level. Results showed that the personality trait of conscientiousness modulated brain activation in the left premotor cortex and right inferior/middle frontal gyrus, which may reflect the impact of personality on orthography-to-grapheme transformation and executive control involved in handwriting. Such correlations were not observed in symbol-drawing or word-reading tasks, suggesting the specificity of the link between conscientiousness and handwriting in these regions. Moreover, using a connectome-based predictive modeling approach, we found that individuals' conscientiousness scores could be predicted based on handwriting-related functional brain networks, suggesting that the influence of personality on handwriting may occur within a broader network. Our findings provide neural evidence for the link between personality and handwriting processing, extending our understanding of the nature of individual differences in handwriting.

Developmental trajectories of Big Five personality traits among adolescents and young adults: Differences by sex, alcohol use, and marijuana use

OBJECTIVE

Individual differences in adolescent personality are related to a variety of long-term health outcomes. While previous studies have demonstrated sex differences and non-linear changes in personality development, these results remain equivocal. The current study utilized longitudinal data (n = 831) from the National Consortium on Alcohol and Neurodevelopment in Adolescence to examine sex differences in the development of personality and the association between substance use and personality.

METHOD

Participants (ages 12-21 at baseline) completed the Ten-Item Personality Inventory and self-reported past year alcohol and marijuana use at up to 7 yearly visits. Data were analyzed using generalized additive mixed-effects models and linear mixed-effects models.

RESULTS

Findings support linear increases in agreeableness and conscientious and decreases in openness with age and inform on timing of sex-specific non-linear development of extraversion and emotional stability. Further, results provide novel information regarding the timing of the association between substance use and personality, and replicate past reporting of differential associations between alcohol and marijuana use and extraversion, and sex-dependent effects of marijuana use on emotional stability.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings highlight the importance of modeling sex differences in personality development using flexible non-linear modeling strategies, and accounting for sex- and age-specific effects of alcohol and marijuana use.

Insomnia, Time Perspective, and Personality Traits: A Cross-Sectional Study in a Non-Clinical Population

Insomnia disorder is considered a public health problem and additional studies should investigate predisposing and perpetuating factors. This study examined the relationship between Big Five personality traits, time perspective, and insomnia. In a cross-sectional study, 400 participants (227 women; age range 18-74 years) were administered the Big Five Inventory-10 items, the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory, and the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI). A measure of chronotype was also included for control purposes. The results show that insomniacs reported lower scores for conscientiousness and extraversion, and for past-positive (PP) and future (F) perspectives, whereas they obtained higher scores for past-negative (PN) perspectives and deviation from a balanced time perspective. The correlations confirmed these findings, but negative correlations between present-hedonistic (PH) perspective and ISI score, and between emotional stability and ISI score, were also found. The mediation analyses showed that F played an indirect role in the relationship between consciousness and ISI score, PN had an indirect effect on the relationship between emotional stability and ISI or between extraversion and insomnia, and PH had an indirect effect on the relationship between extraversion and ISI score. The current outcomes shed light on the mechanisms which serve to mediate the relationship between insomnia and personality traits.

The role of neuroticism and conscientious facets in academic motivation

INTRODUCTION

Personality differences have been demonstrated to influence an individual's academic performance in different ways. Notably, conscientiousness is the most consistent significant predictor of academic performance, while neuroticism shows inconsistent results.

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to determine the relationship between the facets of conscientiousness and neuroticism on academic motivation.

METHOD

The study was conducted in Australia and consisted of 285 undergraduate students. The International Personality Item Pool and Motivated Strategies Learning Questionnaire were used to measure personality and motivation, respectively. Structural equation modeling results revealed that conscientiousness had the most significant relationship with academic motivation, while neuroticism was negatively related. The conscientious facets of self-efficacy and achievement striving were positively related to academic motivation. The results also revealed that the anxiety facet of neuroticism was the only significant positive predictor for academic motivation, while depression and vulnerability were negatively related.

CONCLUSION

This study reveals how personality facets contribute to academic motivation over assessing grades and superordinate factors alone. Trait-level anxiety significantly contributes to academic motivation, helping us shed light on underlying mechanisms such as defensive pessimism, resulting in higher motivation due to fearing the worst.

Relationship Between Personality Measures and Perceived Mental Fatigability

OBJECTIVE

Examine the association between personality measures and perceived mental fatigability.

METHODS

We performed a cross-sectional analysis in N=1670 men, age 84.3±4.1 years. Multivariable linear regression models were used to examine the covariate adjusted association between personality measures (conscientiousness, optimism, goal reengagement, and goal disengagement) and perceived mental fatigability (measured with the validated 10-item Pittsburgh Fatigability Scale, PFS).

RESULTS

One standard deviation lower conscientiousness (β=-0.91, p<.0001) and optimism (β=-0.63, p<.0001), and higher goal reengagement (β=0.51, p=.01) scores were independently associated with higher PFS Mental scores adjusted for age, cognitive function, self-reported health status, depressive symptoms, sleep disturbance, physical activity, and goal disengagement.

DISCUSSION

Lower conscientiousness, optimism, and higher goal reengagement were linked with more severe perceived mental fatigability in older men. Personality traits may potentially contribute to early risk assessment for fatigability in later life. Future work should be longitudinal in nature and include personality assessments to confirm the temporality of the relationships observed.

Instrumental Activities of Daily Living by Subjective and Objective Measures: The Impact of Depression and Personality

Objective

Previous research shows that depression and personality are independently associated with self- and informant-reports of the ability to perform instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs). However, less is known about the association between depression and personality and performance-based measures of IADLs. We aimed to determine how depression and personality predict self-and informant-reports of IADL compared to performance-based measures of IADLs in a sample of older adults with normal cognition (NC) and Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI).

Methods

Participants consisted of 385 older adults with NC (n = 235), or a diagnosis of MCI (n = 150), aged between 76 and 99-years from the Sydney Memory and Ageing Study. Participants underwent comprehensive neuropsychological and clinical assessments to determine global cognition and clinical diagnoses. Personality traits were measured by the NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) and depression by the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS). Subjective IADLs were self- and informant-reported Bayer Activities of Daily Living (B-ADL) scales and objective IADL was the Sydney Test of Activities of Daily Living in Memory Disorders (STAM). Linear regressions examined the relationship between depression and personality and the three types of IADL measures, controlling for all covariates and global cognition.

Results

Participant-reported IADL, although associated with global cognition, was more strongly associated with GDS and NEO-FFI scores (conscientiousness and neuroticism). Informant-reported IADL was strongly associated with both global cognition and participants' GDS scores. STAM scores were not associated with participants' GDS or NEO-FFI scores; instead, they were predicted by demographics and global cognition.

Conclusion

These results suggest that performance-based measures of IADL may provide more objective and reliable insight into an individual's underlying functional ability and are less impacted by the participants' mood and personality compared to subjectively reported IADL. We argue that performance-based IADL measures are preferable when trying to accurately assess everyday functional ability and its relationship to cognitive status. Where performance-based measures are not available (e.g., in some clinical settings), informant ratings should be sought as they are less influenced by the participant's personality and mood compared to self-reports.

Association of Personality with Cognitive Failure among Japanese Middle-Aged and Older Adults

This study explored the associations between personality traits and cognitive failure (including minor lapses and prospective and retrospective memory failure) among middle-aged and older adults living in Japan. The participants were 373 adults, aged 40–84 (167 men and 206 women). The 15-item Japanese version of the Short Inventory of Minor Lapses was used to evaluate minor lapses, and the 16-item Japanese version of the Prospective and Retrospective Memory Questionnaire was used to assess prospective and retrospective memory failure. The participants’ variables evaluated for their association with cognitive failure were gender, age, education, paid work, social network, chronic disease, sleep quality, and the Big Five personality traits (i.e., neuroticism, extraversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness). Multivariable regression analyses demonstrated that sleep quality (β = −0.232), neuroticism (β = 0.163), and conscientiousness (β = −0.295) were related to minor lapses; age (β = 0.152), sleep quality (β = −0.168), and conscientiousness (β = −0.290) were associated with prospective memory failure; and age (β = 0.268), sleep quality (β = −0.146), and conscientiousness (β = −0.221) were associated with retrospective memory failure. These findings may facilitate the development of efficient strategies for the prevention of cognitive dysfunction and its adverse consequences for personal health.

The Relationship Between Feedback Quality, Perceived Organizational Support, and Sense of Belongingness Among Conscientious Teleworkers

The belongingness literature has largely examined the antecedents of non-teleworkers’ sense of belongingness, but little attention has been paid to what job-related factors could affect teleworkers’ sense of belongingness. Grounded in organizational support theory, our research focuses on why feedback quality from the direct leader brings sense of belongingness and considers how conscientiousness of teleworkers shapes this effect. Based on data from 329 participants obtained at three different time points from one technology service organization in China, our results indicated that teleworkers’ perceived organizational support serves as an essential mediator of the positive relationship between feedback quality from the direct leader and sense of belongingness. Additionally, the teleworkers’ conscientiousness strengthened the positive direct effect of feedback quality on perceived organizational support and the indirect effect on sense of belongingness. The moderating role of conscientiousness in strengthening the link between feedback quality and perceived organizational support was significant for high levels of conscientiousness and not significant for low levels. Finally, we discussed theoretical and practical implications.