Personality dimensions, resilience, and depression during COVID-19 pandemic: A one-year longitudinal study.

BACKGROUND: The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to light a significant surge in depression across diverse populations. While a considerable body of research has linked this upswing to lockdowns and restrictive measures, it is crucial to recognize that lockdowns alone cannot fully elucidate the observed increase in mental health disorders, given the vast array of individual psychological responses. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to test e whether personality dimensions (Extroversion, Neuroticism, and Psychoticism) and resilience play a role in shielding individuals from developing depression during the COVID-19 pandemic, as observed in a sample of Brazilian adults. METHODS: This research employed a one-year longitudinal naturalistic study involving the general population. It utilized a web-based questionnaire administered in three waves during the COVID-19 pandemic: April 2020, September 2020, and May 2021. The research protocol contains the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 - PHQ-9, the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale - CD-RISC, and the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Revised-Abbreviated - EPQR-A. RESULTS: Our study encompassed 455 participants, of which 35.6 % met the criteria for depression in the first wave, and this figure decreased to 18.5 % in the second and third waves (p = 0.001). Resilience levels in the non-depressed group (consistently exhibited higher means across all three waves when compared to the depressed group (first wave: x¯= 27.98; second wave: x¯= 37.26; third wave: x¯= 36.67; p = 0.001). Furthermore, resilience exhibited an overall protective effect against depression in all waves (PR = 0.93, p = 0.000). Neuroticism and Psychoticism emerged as predictors of depression across all waves (PR = 1.346; p = 0.0001 and PR = 1.157; p = 0.030), while the Extroversion dimension showed no significant effect. CONCLUSION: The decline in depression rates during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic was influenced by levels of resilience, which acted as a protective factor against the development of depressive symptoms. Notably, Neuroticism and Psychoticism predicted the risk of developing depressive symptoms. Implications for practical intervention in future crisis scenarios suggest the need for public health policy programs featuring personalized interventions that prioritize enhancing resilience.

Personality dimensions and treatment adherence among glaucoma patients: the role of self-transcendence.

BACKGROUND: Cloninger's psychobiosocial model of personality proposes that consistent patterns of health behavior are determined by the complex interaction of different neurobiological processes of the patient's temperament and character dimensions. Poor medication adherence is a pervasive problem among glaucoma patients and can lead to increased morbidity and disability. The objective of the present study was to investigate the association between Cloninger's personality dimensions and medication adherence among glaucoma patients. METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted among 113 primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) patients. The treatment adherence was assessed through a valid and reliable self-administered questionnaire, the Culig Adherence Scale (CAS). Personality dimensions were evaluated using the abbreviated version of the Temperament and Character Inventory-Revised (TCI-140). Statistical analyses were performed using TIBCO Statistica 14.0.1. The study protocol was registered in the DRKS - German Clinical Trials Register; (DRKS-ID: DRKS00022081). RESULTS: According to CAS, only 39.8% of patients were adherent to glaucoma treatment. Adherence was significantly negatively related only to the character dimension of Self-Transcendence (p < 0.05). No other TCI-140 dimension was significantly associated with medication adherence (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that POAG patients with higher scores on the Self-Transcendent personality dimension are more likely to experience difficulties adhering to medication regimen. The study highlights the importance of a holistic approach to glaucoma treatment, which takes into account not only the biological aspects of disease but also the psychosocial factors that influence patient behavior. Healthcare providers may need to consider glaucoma patients' personality dimensions, beliefs and values when developing treatment plans and strategies to improve medication adherence.

The relationship between mood disorders, personality disorder and suicidality in adolescence: does general personality disturbance play a significant role in predicting suicidal behavior?

INTRODUCTION: Current research points to the importance personality pathology and Major Depression e as relevant psycopathological risk factors for understanding suicidal risk in adolescence. Literature has mainly focused on the role of BPD, however current orientations in personality pathological functioning suggest that BPD may be the representative of a general personality disturbance, a factor of vulnerability underlying diverse psychopathological variants and aspects of maladaptive functioning. However, recent studies seem to have neglected the contributions that other specific personality disorders and personality pathology as a general factor of vulnerability for suicidality; and only marginally investigated the interaction of personality disorder (PD) as an overall diagnosis and individual PDs and major depression (MDD). In this paper, the independent and cumulative effects of MDD and DSM-IV PDs on suicidal risk are investigated in a sample of adolescents observed in a longitudinal window of observation ranging from three months preceding the assessment to a six-month follow up period of clinical monitoring. METHODS: A sample of 118 adolescents (mean age = 15.48 ± 1.14) referred for assessment and treatment on account of suicidal ideation or behavior were administered the CSSRS, SCID II, Kiddie-SADS at admission at inpatient and outpatient Units. All subjects included in the study had reported suicidal ideation or suicide attempts at the C-SSRS; The CSSRS was applied again to all patients who reported further suicidal episodes during the six-months follow-up period of clinical monitoring. Dimensional diagnoses of PDs was obtained by summing the number of criteria met by each subject at SCID-%-PD 5, In order, to test the significance of the associations between the variables chosen as predictors (categorical and dimensional PDs and MD diagnosis), and the suicidal outcomes variables suicide attempts, number of suicide attempts and potential lethality of suicide attempt, non-parametric bivariate correlations, logistic regression models and mixed-effects Poisson regression were performed PD. RESULTS: The categorical and dimensional diagnosis of PD showed to be a significant risk factors for suicide attempt and their recurrence, independently of BPD, that anyway was confirmed to be a specific significant risk factor for suicidal behaviors. Furthermore, PD assessed at a categorical and dimensional level and Major Depression exert an influence on suicidal behaviors and their lethality both as independent and cumulative risk factors. LIMITATIONS: Besides incorporating dimensional thinking into our approach to assessing psychopathology, our study still relied on traditionally defined assessment of PD. Future studies should include AMPD-defined personality pathology in adolescence to truly represent dimensional thinking. CONCLUSION: These results point to the importance of early identification of the level of severity of personality pathology at large and its co-occurrence with Major Depression for the management of suicidal risk in adolescence.

Dimensional personality pathology and disordered eating in young adults: measuring the DSM-5 alternative model using the PID-5.

Introduction: The Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5) is a self-report measure of personality pathology designed to measure pathological personality traits outlined in the DSM-5 alternative model of personality disorders. Within the extensive literature exploring the relationship between personality and disordered eating, there are few that explore the relationship between the PID-5 and disordered eating behaviours in a non-clinical sample of males and females: restrictive eating, binge eating, purging, chewing and spitting, excessive exercising and muscle building. Methods: An online survey assessed disordered eating, PID-5 traits and general psychopathology and was completed by 394 female and 167 male participants aged 16-30. Simultaneous equations path models were systematically generated for each disordered eating behaviour to identify how the PID-5 scales, body dissatisfaction and age predicted behaviour. Results: The results indicated that each of the six disordered behaviours were associated with a unique pattern of maladaptive personality traits. The statistical models differed between males and females indicating possible differences in how dimensional personality pathology and disordered eating relate. Discussion: It was concluded that understanding disordered eating behaviour in the context of personality pathology may assist formulating potentially risky behaviour.

Five-Factor Personality Dimensions Mediated the Relationship between Parents' Parenting Style Differences and Mental Health among Medical University Students.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have identified the relationships between parental parenting style, personality, and mental health. However, the interactive influences between mother's and father's parenting styles on personality have been examined less often. To fill the gaps, the first aim of this study was to build the relationships between parental parenting style differences (PDs) and five-factor personality dimensions. The second aim was to test the mediating effect of five-factor personality dimensions on the relationships between parental parenting style differences and mental health. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study conducted among medical university students, and 2583 valid participants were analyzed. Mental health was measured by the Kessler-10 scale. The Chinese Big Five Personality Inventory brief version (CBF-PI-B) was used to access five-factor personality dimensions. PD was calculated by the short form of Egna Minnen av Barndoms Uppfostran. Linear regressions were conducted to analyze the associations between PD and five-factor personality dimensions. The SPSS macros program (PROCESS v3.3) was performed to test the mediating effect of five-factor personality dimensions on the associations between PD and mental health. RESULTS: Linear regressions found that worse mental health was positively associated with PD (ß = 0.15, p < 0.001), higher neuroticism (ß = 0.61, p < 0.001), lower conscientiousness (ß = -0.11, p < 0.001), lower agreeableness (ß = -0.10, p < 0.01), and lower openness (ß = -0.05, p < 0.05). The results also supported that PD was positively associated with lower conscientiousness (ß = -0.15, p < 0.01), lower agreeableness (ß = -0.09, p < 0.001), lower openness (ß = -0.15, p < 0.001), and lower extraversion (ß = -0.08, p < 0.001), respectively. The mediating effect of agreeableness or openness was supported for the relationships between PD and mental health. CONCLUSION: These findings remind us of the importance of consistent parenting styles between mother and father, and they also can be translated into practices to improve mental health among medical university students.

Examining the effect of patient personality types and coping styles on outcomes of genetic counseling.

Both empirical data and genetic counselors' clinical experience suggest that patients differ in the extent to which they benefit from genetic counseling (GC). Understanding the origins of these differences could help adapt services to ensure that all patients benefit fully, and potentially inform triage. Although patient personality dimensions and coping styles have been shown to influence outcomes of other psychological interventions, they have remained largely unexplored in relation to GC outcomes. We conducted an exploratory, descriptive study to assess relationships between patient personality dimensions, coping styles, and outcomes of GC. We recruited patients from a psychiatric genetics clinic who had - in the prior 7 years - completed the GC Outcomes Scale (GCOS, a measure of empowerment) immediately prior to, and approximately one month after their appointment, and asked them to complete validated measures of personality and coping style. Interactions between each personality dimension or coping style and GCOS score were assessed using mixed-effects linear regression models. Among the 169 participants, GCOS score increased by an average of 16.48 points (SD = 12.59). Though extraversion, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and all three coping styles significantly predicted GCOS score (p < 0.02), there was no relationship between these variables and time. For example, though a high score on conscientiousness predicted higher GCOS scores, it did not predict greater change in GCOS - people with higher scores on this dimension of personality had higher GCOS scores both pre- and post- GC. These preliminary data suggest that genetic counseling may increase empowerment regardless of personality dimensions and coping styles.

First impressions: Integrating faces and bodies in personality trait perception.

Faces and bodies spontaneously elicit personality trait judgments (e.g., trustworthy, dominant, lazy). We examined how trait information from the face and body combine to form first impressions of the whole person and whether trait judgments from the face and body are affected by seeing the whole person. Consistent with the trait-dependence hypothesis, Experiment 1 showed that the relative contribution of the face and body to whole-person perception varied with the trait judged. Agreeableness traits (e.g., warm, aggressive, sympathetic, trustworthy) were inferred primarily from the face, conscientiousness traits (e.g., dependable, careless) from the body, and extraversion traits (e.g., dominant, quiet, confident) from the whole person. A control experiment showed that both clothing and body shape contributed to whole-person judgments. In Experiment 2, we found that a face (body) rated in the whole person elicited a different rating than when it was rated in isolation. Specifically, when trait ratings differed for an isolated face and body of the same identity, the whole-person context biased in-context ratings of the faces and bodies towards the ratings of the context. These results showed that face and body trait perception interact more than previously assumed. We combine current and established findings to propose a novel framework to account for face-body integration in trait perception. This framework incorporates basic elements such as perceptual determinants, nonperceptual determinants, trait formation, and integration, as well as predictive factors such as the rater, the person rated, and the situation.

The Swedish version of the multidimensional inventory for religious/spiritual well-being - Part II: Development of a four-field typology.

Background: In the field of mental health, religiosity and spirituality have gained particular attention in recent decades. However, only a few studies to date have investigated the effects of different types of religiosity and spirituality. In association with the recent introduction of a Swedish version of the multidimensional inventory of religious/spiritual well-being (MI-RSWB-S), the present study aimed to identify possible types of Religious/Spiritual Well-Being by using cluster analyses and to examine the extracted groups for differences in the sense of coherence (SOC), the Big Five personality factors, and central aspects of religiosity. Additionally, the study design was intended to further contribute to the validation of the MI-RSWB-S. Methods: Based on a convenience sample of Swedish students (N = 1,011), initially obtained for the development of the MI-RSWB-S, the study included the MI-RSWB-S, the 13-items sense of coherence scale, the 10-item personality inventory, and the centrality of religiosity scale. For the statistical analysis, cluster analyses and one-way analyses of variance (ANOVAs) were conducted. Results: The cluster analyses yielded the following four groups: Religiosity and spirituality high (n = 124), religiously oriented (n = 200), spiritually oriented (n = 149), and religiosity and spirituality low (n = 538). The groups differed in most aspects of well-being, in the personality dimensions agreeableness and openness to experience, as well as in central aspects of religiosity. In contrast, no differences were found for SOC, extraversion, conscientiousness, and emotional instability. Conclusion: Our results suggest that different types of religious/spiritual well-being are associated with mental health and personality dimensions in substantially different ways, thus offering an interesting potential for future research.

The Role of Personality Dimensions in the Etiopathogenesis of Primary Hypertension.

Background: Although hypertension is the most important cardiovascular risk factor, we still do not understand all the factors that contribute to the disease onset. The aim of this study was to examine the association between personality dimensions and primary hypertension. Methods: In total, 310 participants were recruited in a case-control design. The association of personality dimensions with primary hypertension was examined in normotensive (n = 156) and hypertensive (n = 120) patients following assessment of the 5 personality dimensions with the DECAS Personality Inventory. A binary logistic regression model was used to assess the predictive value of personality traits for hypertension, controlling for recognized confounders such as age, gender, obesity, smoking history, parental history of hypertension, and education. Results: Low or very low emotional stability was almost twice as frequent in the hypertensive group (71.7%) as in the normotensive study population (43.5%). The binary logistic regression model showed that low emotional stability is a significant predictor for hypertension, the risk of being hypertensive decreasing by 7% with each point increase on the emotional stability score. Very low or low emotional stability increased the odds of being hypertensive by 3.55 times (odds ratio: 3.55, 95% CI: 2.18-9.35, P < .001). No association between the severity of hypertension and personality traits was found. Conclusions: People with low emotional stability/high neuroticism have more than 3-fold increased odds of developing primary hypertension. The assessment of personality traits could be used as a tool to identify individuals at risk to develop primary hypertension as well as patients with primary hypertension where psychotherapy could be of potential value. This study highlights the need for further research, in order to establish effective, patient-oriented prevention strategies and treatment options.

Individual Dispositions and Situational Stressors in Competitive Sport: The Role of Stress Mindset in the Cognitive Appraisals Processes.

Personality has widely been documented to play an important role in the cognitive appraisal and stress processes. Emerging studies highlight the stress mindset as a new concept that could add to the understanding of individual differences in stress experiences. This study aimed to examine the relative contribution of Big Five personality dimensions and stress mindset in accounting for measures of cognitive appraisals of stress among the competing athletes. The study was conducted on a sample of 125 collegiate athletes of both genders who actively compete in sport. All the participants were regular undergraduate or graduate students at the Faculty of Kinesiology of the University of Zagreb. A questionnaire including demographic information about athletes and their sport career, stress mindset measure (SMM), situation-specific cognitive appraisal scale, sources of stress scale, and personality scale measured by IPIP-50 was administered in an online form using the Google Forms platform. Multivariate hierarchical regression procedures resulted in somewhat different predictor structures accounting for cognitive appraisals of threat, loss, and challenge, used as criterion variables. The set of Big Five personality dimensions and stress mindset measure proved to have a significant additive contribution to the explanation of each of the three cognitive appraisal criterion variances. The study results support the current body of literature suggesting a unique role of the stress mindset construct in explaining individual differences in cognitive stress appraisal among athletes above and beyond general personality dimensions.

Impact of personality functioning and pathological traits on mental wellbeing of older patients with personality disorders.

BACKGROUND: Although personality disorders are common and consequential, they are largely ignored in geriatric mental healthcare. We examined the relative contributions of different aspects of personality disorders and comorbid mental disorders to the impairment of mental wellbeing in older adults. METHODS: Baseline data were used of 138 patients who participated in a randomized controlled trial on schema therapy for geriatric mental health outpatients with a full or subthreshold cluster B or C personality disorder. Personality was assessed according to both the categorical and dimensional model of DSM-5. Aspects of mental wellbeing assessed were; psychological distress, positive mental health, subjective health, and life satisfaction. The current study uses baseline data of the RCT to examine the associations between different aspects of personality pathology and mental wellbeing by multivariate regression analysis, controlling for age, sex, level of education, and number of chronic somatic illnesses. RESULTS: The vast majority of patients (79.0%) had one or more mental disorders in addition to personality disorder. Personality pathology was responsible for the core of the mental health burden experienced by patients, and negated the influence of co-occurring mental disorders when entered subsequently in multivariate analysis. Personality dimensions proved to be highly predictive of mental wellbeing, and this contrasted with absence of influence of personality disorder diagnosis. Although the personality functioning dimensions - and in particular Identity integration (large effect size with partial eta-squared = 0.36) - were the primary predictors of mental wellbeing, personality trait dimensions added significant predictive value to that (Disinhibition 0.25 and Negative affect 0.24). CONCLUSIONS: Personality disorders seriously affect the mental wellbeing of patients, and this overshadows the impact of comorbid mental disorders. In particular personality functioning and pathological traits of the Alternative Model of Personality Disorders (AMPD) of DSM-5 contribute to this impact on mental wellbeing. Alertness for and treatment of personality disorders in geriatric mental healthcare seems warranted.

Courage: A Potential Mediator of the Relationship Between Personality and Social Anxiety.

Social anxiety is one of the most prevalent and chronic mental-health conditions in young adults. To date, no studies have been conducted about the relationships between the Big Five personality dimensions, courage, and social anxiety among Malaysian undergraduate students. Therefore, this study was designed to examine courage as a potential mediator of the association between the Big Five personality dimensions and social anxiety among Malaysian Undergraduates. In this study, 500 Malaysian undergraduate students (205 males and 295 females) completed a series of questionnaires. Structural equation modelling (AMOS-SEM) revealed that, of the Big Five, neuroticism and social anxiety were positively correlated. Extraversion, conscientiousness, openness to experience, and agreeableness, as well as courage, were negatively correlated with social anxiety. Courage mediated the relationship between the Big Five personality dimensions and social anxiety. The main contribution of the present research is to show how the Big Five personality dimensions may contribute to social anxiety. The findings of this study also could be implicated for counselling practice for undergraduate students in Malaysia as a collectivist setting and other collectivist settings around the world.

Associations Between Outcome Resilience and Sociodemographic Factors, Childhood Trauma, Personality Dimensions and Self-Rated Health in Middle-Aged Adults.

BACKGROUND: We examined how sociodemographic factors, childhood trauma, personality dimensions, and self-rated health were associated with outcome resilience and how different stressors influenced depressive symptoms. METHODS: An outcome resilience score for 213 adults was derived by means of a residualization approach. Associations between outcome resilience and sociodemographic and personality factors were evaluated using linear regression. In addition, associations between log-transformed depressive symptoms and the stressors were analyzed using multiple linear regression. A Pearson correlation coefficient between self-rated health and outcome resilience was also computed. RESULTS: Higher neuroticism was negatively and higher conscientiousness was positively associated with outcome resilience. Better self-rated health was associated with higher outcome resilience. Somatic disease events and onset of chronic mental disorders were associated with more depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Outcome resilience was significantly related to neuroticism, conscientiousness, and self-rated health. Strong associations between depressive symptoms and the stressors somatic disease event, and chronic mental disorder were observed.

The relationship between personality dimensions with resiliency and sense of coherence with respect to the role of spiritual health in the patients' candidate for eye surgery.

Introduction: This research aimed to determine the relationship between personality dimensions with the rate of resiliency and internal cohesion regarding the intermediary role of spiritual health in candidate patients for eye surgery. Methods: The method used in this is of correlation type, and statistical population in this project included all eye patients chosen for eye surgery who were examined at technical eye clinics in Tehran. The statistical sample included 200 patients from the statistical population who were chosen through a targeted sampling method. The data collection tools were Conner and Davidson's tolerance questionnaire (2003), Maccary and Costa's personality questionnaire (1985), Antonowski's internal cohesion scale (1970), and Politzin and Elison's spiritual health questionnaire (1982). The research hypotheses were examined through regression analysis, Pearson's correlation, and path analysis. Results: The results showed that the calculated fit indices of the structural model of the research were correlated with the five dimensions of personality and internal cohesion of patients undergoing eye surgery with respect to the mediator role of spiritual health with 88% confidence. Investigation of path analysis coefficients showed a significant relationship between exogenous and intermediary variables on resiliency and internal cohesion (P value = 0.00). Conclusion: According to the results of the research, the spiritual health variable plays a significant mediating role for exogenous and endogenous variables in this model. Therefore, personality traits not only directly influence resilience and internal cohesion but also indirectly influence spiritual well-being.

The mediating role of substance use motives in the relationship between personality dimensions and alcohol and drug use in adolescents and young adults with mild intellectual disabilities.

Adolescents and young adults with mild intellectual disabilities or borderline intellectual functioning (MID-BIF) are a high-risk group for developing substance use disorders. The aim of this study was to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms that underlie substance use in this particular population. We tested the mediating role of substance use motives in the relationship between personality dimensions and substance use-related outcomes. Self-reported data on substance use risk personality dimensions (i.e., sensation seeking, impulsivity, anxiety sensitivity, and negative thinking), substance use motives (i.e., social, enhancement, coping, and conformity motives), and substance use were obtained from 163 individuals with MID-BIF (mean age 18.9 years). Results show that coping motives played a main role in the associations between personality dimensions and substance use in adolescents and young adults with MID-BIF, with significant relationships between impulsivity and negative thinking and severity of alcohol use or drug use via coping motives. Moreover, findings indicated a relatively high risk for several substance use motives and associated substance use (disorder) in individuals high on impulsivity. Results show significant relationships between impulsivity and severity of alcohol use or drug use via social, enhancement, and coping motives. No mediating associations were found for conformity motives, nor did we find any mediation associations in individuals with high levels of anxiety sensitivity. These insights provide the possibility of tailoring interventions to specific motives that underlie substance use in different types of users with MID-BIF based on personality dimensions.

Do Emotion Dysregulation, Alexithymia and Personality Dimensions Explain the Association Between Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Binge Eating Among Bariatric Surgery Candidates?

Background: Addictive-like eating and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are both common among persons seeking treatment for severe obesity. Given that ADHD and addictive-like eating, especially binge eating (BE) and food addiction (FA), are both strongly associated with personality dimensions and emotion dysregulation, it is possible emotional and personality characteristics contribute to the link between addictive-like eating behaviors and ADHD in people with severe obesity. This study aimed to investigate the psychological factors associated with BE and FA in bariatric surgery candidates, and to explore the mediational role of emotional factors (emotion dysregulation and alexithymia) and personality dimensions in the association between ADHD and BE. Method: Two hundred and eighty-two (n = 282) bariatric surgery candidates were recruited during the systematic preoperative psychiatric assessment (University Hospital of Tours, France). We assessed significant BE (Binge Eating Scale), probable adult ADHD (Wender Utah Render Scale and Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale), FA (Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0, YFAS 2.0), emotion dysregulation (Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale-16), alexithymia (Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20) and personality dimensions (Big Five Inventory). Mediation analyses were performed using the PROCESS macro for IBM SPSS Statistics 22. Results: Prevalence of probable adult ADHD, significant BE and FA were 8.2, 19.1, and 26.6%, respectively. Participants who screened positive for addictive-like eating showed higher prevalence of probable adult ADHD, as well as higher scores on adult and childhood ADHD symptoms. They also reported lower conscientiousness, but higher emotion dysregulation, higher alexithymia, and higher neuroticism. Only BE (as opposed to FA) was also associated with lower scores on agreeableness and openness. Analysis of the association between adult ADHD and BE suggests that emotion dysregulation, conscientiousness, agreeableness, and neuroticism are total mediators and alexithymia a partial mediator. Conclusion: Our findings suggest a significant association between ADHD and addictive-like eating among bariatric surgery candidates, and also suggest a significant role of emotion dysregulation and personality dimensions in this association. For individuals with ADHD and obesity, eating may be a way to cope with negative emotions, potentially increasing the risk for addictive-like eating behavior.

Relation between personality dimensions and symptomatology of depression in skin cancer patients.

BACKGROUND: Environmental psychological factors such as mood states can modify and trigger an organic response; depressive disorder is considered a risk factor for oncological development, leading to alterations both in the genesis and in the progression of the disease. Some authors have identified that personality relates to mood since a high score in neuroticism is associated with intense and long-lasting emotions of stress and therefore with the development of depressive behaviors. The objective of this study was to analyze the relationship between personality and depression in skin cancer patients. METHODS: A total of forty-seven clinically and histopathologically diagnosed patients were scheduled for an hour-long interview, during which they provided informed consent and sociodemographic information. The psychological questionnaires applied were the revised Eysenck Personality Questionnaire and the clinical questionnaire for the diagnosis of the depressive syndrome. RESULTS: The patient's mean age was 66.5 years (SD ± 12.4) and the majority were diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma (70.2%). The frequency of anxious/depressive symptoms was 42.5%, with an increase in depression scores in the female gender (p < 0.001). Furthermore, a difference was found in the neuroticism dimension related to gender, with higher values in women (p = 0.002). Depressive symptomatologic portraits were correlated with the dimensions of neuroticism (p < 0.001, r = 0.705), psychoticism (p = 0.003, r = 0.422) and lying (p = 0.028, r = - 0.321). CONCLUSIONS: Our results support the hypothesis that personality dimensions are related to the presence of anxiety/depressive symptomatology in patients with skin cancer, especially in the female gender. Highlighting the need for future research that delves into the implications at the psychological level, the quality of life, and the biological mechanisms that link personality and depressive symptoms in the development and evolution of skin cancer.

[Selected personality dimensions and occupational burnout in the group of professional and volunteer firefighters]. / Wybrane wymiary osobowosci a wypalenie zawodowe w grupie strazaków zawodowych i ochotników.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this research was to examine the relationships between selected personality dimensions and occupational burnout among professional and volunteer firefighters. Difficult conditions are the cause of loss of not only health but also life. Such working conditions may cause occupational burnout consisting of employee's exhaustion. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The group under examination consisted of 164 firefighters, including 76 volunteers aged 19-61 years (M = 32.49, SD = 9.21) and 88 professional firefighters aged 20-49 years (M = 33.85, SD = 10.05). This research employed the Maslach Burnout Inventory and Gough and Heilburn's Adjective Check List along with the Personality and Axiological Model (MOA) (competences, relations, autonomy). RESULTS: The results of the conducted research indicate differences between the examined groups of firefighters in personality dimensions (Ord: t = -2.739, p = 0.006; Mls: t = -2.159, p = 0.032; competences t = -2.390, p = 0.017). The research also enabled assessing the correlations with occupational burnout. The greatest relationship with occupational burnout in the group of volunteer firefighters concerns succorance (Suc) and total occupational burnout, and the greatest relationship with occupational burnout in the group of professional firefighters pertains to the competence dimension from the MOA model. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the conducted research should be related to the cognitive aspect (the application of the new MOA model in this professional group) and attention should be paid to the personality differences between the groups of volunteer and professional firefighters. The application value for more effective work of psychologists with this professional group is also important in terms of the results obtained. Med Pr. 2021;72(5):509-19.

What Psychological Factors Make Individuals Believe They Are Infected by Coronavirus 2019?

Background: We previously showed, by means of an online-based survey, that the belief of being infected by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) acted as a nocebo and predicted higher perception of symptoms similar to COVID-19 symptoms. However, there is little known about the psychological mechanisms that give rise to beliefs such as certainty of being infected by COVID-19, and this was investigated in the present study. Objective: Using the same data from the previous online survey with the same research team, we further investigated whether certainty of being infected by COVID-19 is associated with age, sex, health anxiety, and/or personality traits. Methods: Respondents (N = 375) filled out an online survey with 57 questions about symptoms similar to COVID-19, certainty of being infected by COVID-19, anxiety, stress, health anxiety, and personality dimensions (based on the five-factor model of personality). Results: Higher levels of conscientiousness and health anxiety were independently associated with certainty of being infected by COVID-19. The model predicted 29% of the variance in certainty of being infected by COVID-19. Conclusion: Being conscientious and worried about health issues were associated with the belief of being infected by COVID-19. Such finding may have implications for health care personnel who provide COVID-19 testing or consulting services to general population, as individuals high in these traits may over-report COVID-like symptoms. Theoretically, these findings point to psychological factors that may increase nocebo and possibly placebo effects. Clinically, the findings suggest that individuals high in conscientiousness and health anxiety may be more likely to over-report their bodily experiences.

Differences in the Psychological Profiles of Elite and Non-elite Athletes.

One of the main goals of sport psychology is to identify those psychological factors that are relevant for sport performance as well as possibilities of their development. The aim of the study was to determine whether the set of specific psychological characteristics [generalized self-efficacy, time perspective, emotional intelligence (EI), general achievement motivation, and personality dimensions] makes the distinction between athletes based on their (non)-participation in the senior national team, that is, their belonging to the subsample of elite or non-elite athletes depending on this criterion. According to the group centroids it can be said that elite athletes are characterized by a positive high score in self-efficacy, emotionality, present fatalistic time perspective, past positive time perspective, and openness to experience. They are also characterized by low past negative time perspective, emotional competence, and future time perspective. Non-elite athletes have the opposite traits. The results have been discussed in the context of their application in the process of talent selection and development in sport as well as the development of life skills in athletes.