Is Healthy Neuroticism Associated with Longevity? A Coordinated Integrative Data Analysis

Abstract

Individual differences in the Big Five personality traits have emerged as predictors of health and longevity. Although there are robust protective effects for higher levels of conscientiousness, results are mixed for other personality traits. In particular, higher levels of neuroticism have significantly predicted an increased risk of mortality, no-risk at all, and even a reduced risk of dying. The current study hypothesizes that one potential reason for the discrepancy in these findings for neuroticism is that interactions among neuroticism and other key personality traits have largely been ignored. Thus, in the current study we focus on testing whether the personality traits neuroticism and conscientiousness interact to predict mortality. Specifically, we borrow from recent evidence of "healthy neuroticism" to explore whether higher levels of neuroticism are only a risk factor for increased mortality risk when conscientiousness levels are low. We conducted a preregistered integrative data analysis using 12 different cohort studies (total N = 44,702). Although a consistent pattern emerged of higher levels of conscientiousness predicting a reduced hazard of dying, neuroticism did not show a consistent pattern of prediction. Moreover, no study provided statistical evidence of a neuroticism by conscientiousness interaction. The current findings do not support the idea that the combination of high conscientiousness and high neuroticism can be protective for longevity. Future work is needed to explore different protective factors that may buffer the negative effects of higher levels of neuroticism on health, as well as other behaviors and outcomes that may support the construct of healthy neuroticism.

Internalizing psychopathology and all‐cause mortality: a comparison of transdiagnostic vs. diagnosis‐based risk prediction

“…It was especially notable to find the insignificant association between neuroticism residual variance and mortality risk, after the common variance was saturated by the internalizing fac- tor. While a number of prior studies have reported a significant connection between neuroticism and mortality risk 15,16,28 , our findings indicate that such significant effects may be largely accounted for by the common variance that neuroticism shares with other internalizing pathologies, and that neuroticism itself may not be a consistent predictor of mortality risk 63 .…”

Factors Predicting Trial Engagement, Treatment Satisfaction, and Health-Related Quality of Life During a Web-Based Treatment and Social Networking Trial for Binge Drinking and Depression in Young Adults: Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Controlled Trial

“…Previous studies demonstrated that neuroticism could indeed be beneficial for performance because of individuals' increased tolerance for negative affect [50], which may have played a supportive role in participants' willingness to complete self-assessments in this study. These findings resemble what previous researchers have coined healthy neuroticism, where a combination of neurotic self-awareness and conscientious decision making indicates engaging in favorable health behaviors such as increased doctor visits and fewer risky behaviors such as alcohol consumption and smoking [51][52][53][54]. Importantly, Weston and Jackson [52] found that healthy neurotics were more successful than other personality types in implementing effective behavior change after disease onset, suggesting that awareness of a chronic condition facilitated healthful actions particularly well in this group.…”

Personality traits and BMI trends over three years in Japanese university students

“…On the other hand, it should not be overlooked that some studies have suggested that neuroticism may be protective against mortality. These studies have examined the possibility that certain aspects of neuroticism may be relevant as protective factors [ 31 ] or may have protective effects on health through interaction with other personality traits [ 32 ], based on Friedman’s idea of healthy neuroticism [ 33 ]. Neuroticism is positively associated with one factor of body vigilance: sensation awareness belief.…”