Against all odds - is a more differentiated view of personality development in emerging adulthood needed? The case of young apprentices

Does Self-Efficacy for Affect Regulation Predict Lower Neuroticism?

In social cognitive theory, belief in the ability to manage emotions renders these emotions less aversive. Reduced emotional reactions to stress and greater self-regulation have been linked to lower neuroticism. The purpose of this study was to ascertain whether self-efficacy for regulation of distress/despondency (SEDes) and anger (SEAng) and self-efficacy for experiencing and expressing positive emotions (SEPos) predicted lower subsequent neuroticism. A second purpose was to determine whether these forms of self-efficacy buffered the relationship between perceived stress and subsequent neuroticism. Among 251 university students in the United States, perceived stress predicted 8% of the variance, and SEAng negatively predicted 2% of the variance, in time 2 neuroticism over 3-4 weeks. Contrary to hypotheses, high SEDes and SEPos did not protect against higher time 2 neuroticism when stress was high, but low levels of these forms of self-efficacy were risk factors for modestly higher time 2 neuroticism when stress was low.

Exploring associations between subjective well-being and personality over a time span of 15-18 months: a cohort study of adolescents in Sweden

Introduction

Subjective well-being (SWB) is a contributing factor for building resilience and a resource for positive outcomes, e.g. study achievement and work performance. Earlier studies have examined associations between and prospective effects of personality traits on SWB, but few addressed the role that SWB plays in formation of personality over time. The purpose of our study was to examine associations and prospective effects of SWB on personality traits and vice versa in a cohort sample of secondary school students in Sweden who completed self-reported measures of SWB and personality traits at baseline (N = 446, 76% females) and at 15–18 month follow-up (N = 283, 71% females).

Methods

SWB was defined and measured by the WHO-5 Well-being Index and the Satisfaction with Life Scale. The Big Five Inventory was used to measure personality traits. Autoregressive models were used to analyse associations and potential prospective effects of SWB on personality traits and vice versa.

Results

Low levels of neuroticism and high levels of extraversion, conscientiousness and agreeableness were associated with high levels of SWB at baseline and follow-up. The association between SWB and neuroticism was notably strong. We found high statistically significant rank order stability across the two time points for all measures of personality traits with stability effects, derived from the autoregressive models, ranging from .199 for extraversion to .440 for neuroticism. Stability for SWB was statistically significant across the two time points and ranged from .182 for well-being to .353 for life satisfaction. SWB had a prospective effect on agreeableness only. None of the personality traits had any significant prospective effects on SWB.

Conclusions

The present findings indicate that although correlated, bidirectional prospective effects between personality traits and SWB could not be confirmed. Neuroticism displayed the strongest negative association with adolescents’ SWB. Schools are an appropriate setting to improve well-being, and allocating resources that reduce neuroticism is crucial, including structural interventions, policies for healthy school settings and teaching emotional regulation techniques.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s40359-021-00673-9.

Toward an Integrative Model of Sources of Personality Stability and Change

There is now compelling evidence that people’s typical patterns of thinking, feeling, striving, and behaving are both consistent and malleable. Therefore, researchers have begun to examine the distinct sources of personality stability and change. In this article, we discuss traditional classifications of sources, review key findings, and highlight limitations and open questions in research on personality stability and change. We conclude by describing an integrative model and by outlining important directions for future research.

Testing Competing Hypotheses on the Interplay of Importance and Support of the Basic Psychological Needs at Work and Personality Development with Response Surface Analysis

Even though environmental contexts have been associated with personality development, little attention has been paid to individuals’ psychological perceptions thereof. Basic psychological needs theory assesses environments based on their levels of autonomy, competence, and relatedness support. In order to better understand the factors that drive personality development we related the support of basic psychological needs (BPN) and the individual importance ascribed to BPN support to Big Five personality development 1.5 years later. We focused on the context of the first job in a longitudinal study of young Germans (NT1 = 1,886; MageT1 = 18.41). Based on theory and previous research we derived multiple hypotheses and tested them simultaneously against each other with an information theoretic approach including response surface analyses. Results differed across the Big Five: Controlling for personality at T1, people who ascribed greater importance to BPN support, had higher perceptions of BPN support, and who had an incongruence between the two at T1 were higher in emotional stability and extraversion at T2. The pattern was more complex for openness, whereas individuals ascribing more importance to BPN support at T1 were more agreeable and conscientious at T2. Findings are discussed for theory and future research of personality development.