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Shields AN, Malanchini M, Vinnik L, Tucker-Drob EM, Harden KP, Tackett JL. Genetic variance in conscientiousness relates to youth psychopathology beyond executive functions. JOURNAL OF PSYCHOPATHOLOGY AND CLINICAL SCIENCE 2022; 131:830-846. [PMID: 36326625 PMCID: PMC10782840 DOI: 10.1037/abn0000781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
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).
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Margherita Malanchini
- Department of Psychology, Queen Mary University of London
- Texas Population Research Center, University of Texas at Austin
| | - Liza Vinnik
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin
| | - Elliot M. Tucker-Drob
- Texas Population Research Center, University of Texas at Austin
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin
| | - K. Paige Harden
- Texas Population Research Center, University of Texas at Austin
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin
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Laible MC, Anger S, Baumann M. Personality Traits and Further Training. Front Psychol 2020; 11:510537. [PMID: 33304290 PMCID: PMC7701053 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.510537] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2019] [Accepted: 09/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The notion of lifelong learning is gaining importance, not only in the labor market but also in other areas of modern societies. Previous research finds variation in occupation-related training participation by worker and workplace characteristics, gender, and education. However, evidence on the individual's socio-emotional skills creating favorable conditions for overall further training is scarce. To close this research gap, we analyze the role of personality for further training participation. First, we compare how the Big Five Personality Dimensions relate to different training types by differentiating between non-formal and informal training measures. Second, we investigate how personality traits affect further training chosen for occupational and private reasons separately. Drawing on a sample of 10,559 individuals from the Adult Stage of the German National Educational Panel Study (NEPS), we find that throughout our estimations, openness to experience positively relates to further training participation and is the most important determinant among the Big Five Personality Dimensions. However, the relationship between personality traits and training participation varies according to the training type and the reason for participating in further training. Moreover, we find gender-specific differences in the association between personality traits and lifelong learning. We conclude that personality is an important predictor of lifelong learning decisions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie-Christine Laible
- Research Department Education, Training, and Employment Over the Life Course, Institute for Employment Research (IAB), Nuremberg, Germany
| | - Silke Anger
- Research Department Education, Training, and Employment Over the Life Course, Institute for Employment Research (IAB), Nuremberg, Germany.,Chair of Economics, Economics of Education, Faculty of Social Sciences, Economics, and Business Administration, Otto-Friedrich University Bamberg, Bamberg, Germany.,IZA Institute of Labor Economics, Bonn, Germany
| | - Martina Baumann
- Research Data Centre, Institute for Employment Research (IAB), Nuremberg, Germany
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Apers C, Lang JW, Derous E. Who earns more? Explicit traits, implicit motives and income growth trajectories. JOURNAL OF VOCATIONAL BEHAVIOR 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jvb.2018.12.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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Shim H, Ailshire J, Zelinski E, Crimmins E. The Health and Retirement Study: Analysis of Associations Between Use of the Internet for Health Information and Use of Health Services at Multiple Time Points. J Med Internet Res 2018; 20:e200. [PMID: 29802088 PMCID: PMC5993973 DOI: 10.2196/jmir.8203] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2017] [Revised: 12/14/2017] [Accepted: 04/11/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The use of the internet for health information among older people is receiving increasing attention, but how it is associated with chronic health conditions and health service use at concurrent and subsequent time points using nationally representative data is less known. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to determine whether the use of the internet for health information is associated with health service utilization and whether the association is affected by specific health conditions. METHODS The study used data collected in a technology module from a nationally representative sample of community-dwelling older Americans aged 52 years and above from the 2012 Health and Retirement Study (HRS; N=991). Negative binomial regressions were used to examine the association between use of Web-based health information and the reported health service uses in 2012 and 2014. Analyses included additional covariates adjusting for predisposing, enabling, and need factors. Interactions between the use of the internet for health information and chronic health conditions were also tested. RESULTS A total of 48.0% (476/991) of Americans aged 52 years and above reported using Web-based health information. The use of Web-based health information was positively associated with the concurrent reports of doctor visits, but not over 2 years. However, an interaction of using Web-based health information with diabetes showed that users had significantly fewer doctor visits compared with nonusers with diabetes at both times. CONCLUSIONS The use of the internet for health information was associated with higher health service use at the concurrent time, but not at the subsequent time. The interaction between the use of the internet for health information and diabetes was significant at both time points, which suggests that health-related internet use may be associated with fewer doctor visits for certain chronic health conditions. Results provide some insight into how Web-based health information may provide an alternative health care resource for managing chronic conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyunju Shim
- USC Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Jennifer Ailshire
- USC Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Elizabeth Zelinski
- USC Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Eileen Crimmins
- USC Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States
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Hart J, Chabris CF. Does a “Triple Package” of traits predict success? PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2015.12.041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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Duckworth AL, Yeager DS. Measurement Matters: Assessing Personal Qualities Other Than Cognitive Ability for Educational Purposes. EDUCATIONAL RESEARCHER (WASHINGTON, D.C. : 1972) 2015; 44:237-251. [PMID: 27134288 PMCID: PMC4849415 DOI: 10.3102/0013189x15584327] [Citation(s) in RCA: 178] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
There has been perennial interest in personal qualities other than cognitive ability that determine success, including self-control, grit, growth mindset, and many others. Attempts to measure such qualities for the purposes of educational policy and practice, however, are more recent. In this article, we identify serious challenges to doing so. We first address confusion over terminology, including the descriptor "non-cognitive." We conclude that debate over the optimal name for this broad category of personal qualities obscures substantial agreement about the specific attributes worth measuring. Next, we discuss advantages and limitations of different measures. In particular, we compare self-report questionnaires, teacher-report questionnaires, and performance tasks, using self-control as an illustrative case study to make the general point that each approach is imperfect in its own way. Finally, we discuss how each measure's imperfections can affect its suitability for program evaluation, accountability, individual diagnosis, and practice improvement. For example, we do not believe any available measure is suitable for between-school accountability judgments. In addition to urging caution among policymakers and practitioners, we highlight medium-term innovations that may make measures of these personal qualities more suitable for educational purposes.
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Gale CR, Deary IJ, Wardle J, Zaninotto P, Batty GD. Cognitive ability and personality as predictors of participation in a national colorectal cancer screening programme: the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. J Epidemiol Community Health 2015; 69:530-5. [PMID: 25648994 PMCID: PMC4453587 DOI: 10.1136/jech-2014-204888] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2014] [Accepted: 12/30/2014] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The English NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme has offered biennial faecal occult blood testing to people aged 60-69 years since 2006, and to those aged 60-74 years since 2010. Analysis of the first 2.6 million screening invitations found that 54% of eligible people took up the invitation. The reasons for this low uptake are unclear. We investigated whether participation in screening varies according to cognitive ability and personality. METHODS Participants were members of The English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. In 2010-2011, respondents were asked about participation in bowel cancer screening, and cognitive ability and the 'Big Five' personality traits were assessed. Logistic regression was used to examine the cross-sectional relationships between cognitive ability and personality and screening participation in 2681 people aged 60-75 years who were eligible to have been invited to take part in the UK national screening programme for bowel cancer. RESULTS In age-adjusted and sex-adjusted analyses, better cognition and higher conscientiousness were associated with increased participation in cancer screening. ORs (95% CIs) per SD increase were 1.10 (1.03 to 1.18) for cognitive ability and 1.10 (1.01 to 1.19) for conscientiousness. After further adjustment for household wealth and health literacy-shown previously to be associated with participation-these associations were attenuated (ORs were 1.07 (1.00 to 1.15) and 1.07 (0.97 to 1.18), respectively). CONCLUSIONS We found some indication that better cognitive function and greater conscientiousness may be linked with a slightly increased likelihood of participation in bowel cancer screening. These relationships need investigation in other cohorts of older people.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catharine R Gale
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Cognitive Ageing & Cognitive Epidemiology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK MRC Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - Ian J Deary
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Cognitive Ageing & Cognitive Epidemiology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Jane Wardle
- Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, London, UK
| | - Paola Zaninotto
- Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, London, UK
| | - G David Batty
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Cognitive Ageing & Cognitive Epidemiology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, London, UK Alzheimer Scotland Dementia Research Centre, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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Identification of the healthy neurotic: Personality traits predict smoking after disease onset. JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN PERSONALITY 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jrp.2014.04.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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Damian RI, Su R, Shanahan M, Trautwein U, Roberts BW. Can personality traits and intelligence compensate for background disadvantage? Predicting status attainment in adulthood. J Pers Soc Psychol 2014; 109:473-89. [PMID: 25402679 DOI: 10.1037/pspp0000024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
This study investigated the interplay of family background and individual differences, such as personality traits and intelligence (measured in a large U.S. representative sample of high school students; N = 81,000) in predicting educational attainment, annual income, and occupational prestige 11 years later. Specifically, we tested whether individual differences followed 1 of 3 patterns in relation to parental socioeconomic status (SES) when predicting attained status: (a) the independent effects hypothesis (i.e., individual differences predict attainments independent of parental SES level), (b) the resource substitution hypothesis (i.e., individual differences are stronger predictors of attainments at lower levels of parental SES), and (c) the Matthew effect hypothesis (i.e., "the rich get richer"; individual differences are stronger predictors of attainments at higher levels of parental SES). We found that personality traits and intelligence in adolescence predicted later attained status above and beyond parental SES. A standard deviation increase in individual differences translated to up to 8 additional months of education, $4,233 annually, and more prestigious occupations. Furthermore, although we did find some evidence for both the resource substitution and the Matthew effect hypotheses, the most robust pattern across all models supported the independent effects hypothesis. Intelligence was the exception, the interaction models being more robust. Finally, we found that although personality traits may help compensate for background disadvantage to a small extent, they do not usually lead to a "full catch-up" effect, unlike intelligence. This was the first longitudinal study of status attainment to test interactive models of individual differences and background factors.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Rong Su
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Purdue University
| | - Michael Shanahan
- Department of Sociology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
| | - Ulrich Trautwein
- Hector Research Institute of Education Sciences and Psychology, University of Tübingen
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Weston SJ, Hill PL, Jackson JJ. Personality Traits Predict the Onset of Disease. SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PERSONALITY SCIENCE 2014. [DOI: 10.1177/1948550614553248] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
While personality traits have been linked concurrently to health status and prospectively to outcomes such as mortality, it is currently unknown whether traits predict the diagnosis of a number of specific diseases (e.g., lung disease, heart disease, and stroke) that may account for their mortality effects more generally. A sample ( N = 6,904) of participants from the Health and Retirement Study, a longitudinal study of older adults, completed personality measures and reported on current health conditions. Four years later, participants were followed up to see if they developed a new disease. Initial cross-sectional analyses replicated past findings that personality traits differ across disease groups. Longitudinal logistic regression analyses predicting new disease diagnosis suggest that traits are associated with the risk of developing disease—most notably the traits of conscientiousness, neuroticism, and openness. Findings are discussed as a means to identify pathways between personality and health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara J. Weston
- Department of Psychology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | | | - Joshua J. Jackson
- Department of Psychology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
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Mike A, Jackson JJ, Oltmanns TF. The conscientious retiree: The relationship between conscientiousness, retirement, and volunteering. JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN PERSONALITY 2014; 52:68-77. [PMID: 25843985 DOI: 10.1016/j.jrp.2014.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
The current study examined the relationship between conscientiousness, work status, and volunteering utilizing two large samples, the St. Louis Personality and Aging Network (SPAN) and the Health and Retirement Study (HRS). It was hypothesized that conscientious adults who were retired would be more likely to volunteer because, after retirement, they gain a substantial amount of free time, while losing an outlet for their industrious and achievement-striving tendencies. Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses revealed that conscientious, retired individuals were more likely to volunteer than conscientious, working individuals. Further analyses revealed that facets of conscientiousness provide differential information from the general trait. These findings indicate that volunteering during retirement fills an important niche for high-striving, conscientious individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anissa Mike
- Washington University in St. Louis, United States
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Abstract
In this review, we evaluate developmental and personality research with the aim of determining whether the personality trait of conscientiousness can be identified in children and adolescents. After concluding that conscientiousness does emerge in childhood, we discuss the developmental origins of conscientiousness with a specific focus on self-regulation, academic motivation, and internalized compliance/internalization of standards. On the basis of the accumulated body of evidence, we conclude that self-regulation fosters conscientiousness later in life, both directly and via academic motivation and internalized compliance with norms. We argue that elements of conscientiousness are evident by early childhood; self-regulation skills are likely a core developmental component of conscientiousness; and despite the contribution of heredity to the aforementioned aspects of functioning, environmental factors likely contribute to conscientiousness.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Tracy L Spinrad
- T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University
| | - Carlos Valiente
- T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University
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Duckworth AL, Weir D, Tsukayama E, Kwok D. Who does well in life? Conscientious adults excel in both objective and subjective success. Front Psychol 2012; 3:356. [PMID: 23162483 PMCID: PMC3498890 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2012.00356] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2012] [Accepted: 09/03/2012] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
This article investigates how personality and cognitive ability relate to measures of objective success (income and wealth) and subjective success (life satisfaction, positive affect, and lack of negative affect) in a representative sample of 9,646 American adults. In cross-sectional analyses controlling for demographic covariates, cognitive ability, and other Big Five traits, conscientiousness demonstrated beneficial associations of small-to-medium magnitude with all success outcomes. In contrast, other traits demonstrated stronger, but less consistently beneficial, relations with outcomes in the same models. For instance, emotional stability demonstrated medium-to-large associations with life satisfaction and affect but a weak association with income and no association with wealth. Likewise, extraversion demonstrated medium-to-large associations with positive affect and life satisfaction but small-to-medium associations with wealth and (lack of) negative affect and no association with income. Cognitive ability showed small-to-medium associations with income and wealth but no association with any aspect of subjective success. More agreeable adults were worse off in terms of objective success and life satisfaction, demonstrating small-to-medium inverse associations with those outcomes, but they did not differ from less agreeable adults in positive or negative affect. Likewise, openness to experience demonstrated small-to-medium inverse associations with every success outcome except positive affect, in which more open adults were slightly higher. Notably, in each of the five models predicting objective and subjective success outcomes, individual differences other than conscientiousness explained more variance than did conscientiousness. Thus, the benefits of conscientiousness may be remarkable more for their ubiquity than for their magnitude.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angela L Duckworth
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA, USA
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Roberts B, Jackson JJ, Duckworth AL, Von Culin K. Personality Measurement and Assessment in Large Panel Surveys*. Forum Health Econ Policy 2011; 14:1268. [PMID: 23503719 PMCID: PMC3595542 DOI: 10.2202/1558-9544.1268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Personality tests are being added to large panel studies with increasing regularity, such as the Health and Retirement Study (HRS). To facilitate the inclusion and interpretation of these tests, we provide some general background on personality psychology, personality assessment, and the validity of personality tests. In this review, we provide background on definitions of personality, the strengths and weaknesses of the self-report approaches to personality testing typically used in large panel studies, and the validity of personality tests for three outcomes: genetics, income, and health. We conclude with recommendations on how to improve personality assessment in future panel studies.
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