Loneliness and the Big Five Personality Traits: A Meta–Analysis

Buecker, Susanne; Maes, Marlies; Denissen, Jaap J. A.; Luhmann, Maike

doi:10.1002/per.2229

Cited by 241 publications

(249 citation statements)

References 176 publications

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“…One possible interpretation-assuming a causal relation between personality and wellbeing-is that extraversion loses some of its protective value for mental health during phases of drastic and imposed public and social life restrictions. This is in line with previous research suggesting that extraverts have higher well-being because they seek the company of others, engage in social activities, and interact with others for support (Buecker et al 2020)activities which became temporarily less available both in private life (meeting friends and family) and in the work context (talking to colleagues). Consequently, extraverts may have felt more burdened and lonelier than usual, decreasing the overall association between extraversion and psychological well-being.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…These results are in contrast to the high negative meta-analytic correlation between extraversion and loneliness even after controlling for other personality traits (Buecker et al 2020) and the moderate to high positive meta-analytic correlation between extraversion and well-being (Steel et al 2008;DeNeve and Cooper 1998). However, they are compatible with a recent Covid-19 study in which higher extraversion was related to greater health-and economy-related concerns during the pandemic (Aschwanden et al 2020).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 72%

“…Differences in long-term levels of loneliness and well-being are strongly associated with and predicted by stable personality traits (Buecker et al 2020;Modersitzki et al 2020;Ozer and Benet-Martinez 2006). From the perspective of the five-factor model of personality (FFM; Costa and McCrae 1980), the most consistent relationships with loneliness and well-being were found for neuroticism and extraversion (Buecker et al 2020;DeNeve and Cooper 1998;Diener et al 2003;Modersitzki et al 2020;Steel et al 2008). Neuroticism is characterized by a vulnerability to negative feelings and greater distress in changing life situations (Buecker et al 2020;Kroencke et al 2020;Liu et al 2021;Suls and Martin 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Loneliness and Well-Being During the Covid-19 Pandemic: Associations with Personality and Emotion Regulation

et al. 2020

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The present study examined how neuroticism, extraversion, and emotion regulation were related to loneliness and well-being during 6 weeks of major public life restrictions in the Covid-19 pandemic in Switzerland. Cross-sectional results from 466 participants showed that neuroticism and emotion regulation strategies were associated with higher loneliness and lower well-being. However, in contrast to prior research, associations of extraversion with loneliness and well-being were weak and were qualified by interactions with emotion regulation. For introverts, maladaptive cognitive strategies such as rumination or catastrophizing were related to higher levels of loneliness. For extraverts, emotion suppression was related to lower levels of affective well-being. Individuals with low maladaptive regulation reported higher well-being the longer the public life restrictions were in place at the time of study participation. These findings suggest that first, extraversion may lose some of its protective value for loneliness and well-being when opportunities to engage in social activities are limited; second, that loneliness and well-being do not decrease over 6 weeks of public life restrictions; and third, that future studies should further investigate the moderating role of emotion regulation on the link between personality, loneliness, and well-being.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 72%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Loneliness and Well-Being During the Covid-19 Pandemic: Associations with Personality and Emotion Regulation

et al. 2020

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“…Results are in accordance with a cross-sectional study showing that both communion and agency were related to lower levels of loneliness (Zarbatany et al, 2004). The results are also in line with empirical research on similar personality constructs of social relevance, such as agreeableness and extraversion, where similar cross-sectional relationships with loneliness were found (Buecker, Maes, Denissen, & Luhmann, 2020).…”

Section: Predictors Of Loneliness Trajectories Across Adolescence Andsupporting

confidence: 90%

The development of loneliness through adolescence and young adulthood: Its nature, correlates, and midlife outcomes.

Soest¹,

Luhmann²,

Gerstorf³

2020

Developmental Psychology

Self Cite

133

125

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Adolescence and young adulthood are characterized by substantial sociodemographic, family, social, and personality changes that may influence loneliness. Although loneliness is a public health challenge, we know little about how loneliness develops during these periods. Our study addresses this lacuna by using four-wave longitudinal data from 3,116 Norwegians aged 13 to 31 years, making use of questionnaire (key facets and correlates of loneliness) and register linkage information (midlife outcomes). Analyses revealed that when asking directly about feeling lonely and for emotional facets, loneliness increased from early adolescence to age mid-20s, whereas social facets of loneliness declined gradually and plateaued when people had reached their mid-20s. Several predictors operated consistently across loneliness facets, whereas others operated in facet-specific ways. To illustrate, perceiving one's parents as caring, having close friends, not leaving the parental home before age 18, and reporting more agency were each associated with less loneliness across assessment modes. In contrast, when asked directly, women reported more loneliness than men at all ages, whereas men reported more social loneliness. Finally, adolescents and young adults who reported feeling lonely and/or increased in loneliness were consistently at higher risk for disability and lower income in midlife, whereas other important midlife outcomes including education, labor market inclusion, and prescriptions of antidepressants exhibited facet-specific associations. Our study is the first to provide a comprehensive picture of loneliness development throughout the second and third decade of life and highlights the multidimensionality and multidirectionality of loneliness trajectories and correlates across adolescence and early adulthood.

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“…Previous experiences of loneliness may be one predictor which leads to a cyclical pattern of behaviors which results in additional feelings of loneliness over time ( Cacioppo and Hawkley, 2009 ). Personality influences social relationships and these relatively fixed characteristics may contribute to the cycle of loneliness, particularly characteristics indicating neuroticism ( Buecker et al., 2020 ). Nonetheless, other research has found that levels of neuroticism decrease over the life course ( Ormel et al., 2012 ), which is promising as older adults who experience elevated levels of neuroticism earlier in the life course may be able to seek and maintain the relationships they desire in order to reduce loneliness.…”

Section: Differing Dimensions Based On Social Relationsmentioning

confidence: 99%