Personality correlates of COVID-19 infection proclivity: Extraversion kills

Rolón, Vania; Geher, Glenn; Link, Jennifer K.; Mackiel, Alexander

doi:10.1016/j.paid.2021.110994

Cited by 12 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…Based on the findings of the present study, neuroticism and fearful attachment may be viewed as vulnerability traits because of their link with fear of infection and the associated higher risk of developing stress-related psychiatric conditions. However, it is worth noting that fear of infection evolved as an adaptation to reduce the risk of contracting deadly diseases and that bold personality traits and lack of fear can lead to underestimating the risk of COVID-19 infection and eluding containment measures [ 45 , 46 ]. It is likely that the most adaptive emotional response to infection risk is to experience intermediate levels of fear (neither too high nor too low).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fear of COVID-19 among Healthcare Workers: The Role of Neuroticism and Fearful Attachment

Troisi

Nanni²,

Riconi

et al. 2021

JCM

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Fear of becoming infected is an important factor of the complex suite of emotional reactions triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Among healthcare workers (HWs), fear of infection can put at risk their psychological well-being and occupational efficiency. The aim of this study was to analyze the role of personality (i.e., the big five traits) and adult attachment in predicting levels of fear (as measured by the FCV-19S) in 101 HWs employed in a COVID-19 university hospital. The three significant predictors retained by the stepwise regression model were age (beta = 0.26, t = 2.89, p < 0.01), emotional stability (i.e., the inverse of neuroticism) (beta = −0.26, t = −2.89, p < 0.01), and fearful attachment (beta = 0.25, t = 2.75, p < 0.01). Older HWs with higher levels of neuroticism and fearful attachment reported more intense fear of COVID-19. Our results can be useful to identify vulnerable subgroups of HWs and to implement selective programs of prevention based on counseling and psychological support.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fear of COVID-19 among Healthcare Workers: The Role of Neuroticism and Fearful Attachment

Troisi

Nanni²,

Riconi

et al. 2021

JCM

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show abstract

“…It cannot be excluded that this effect is spurious due to the sample size in Study 2. Nevertheless, this finding is intriguing, especially in the light of a very recent study suggesting that individuals who contracted COVID-19 were more extravert than participants who did not (Rolón et al, 2021). Also, extraverts are more likely to use social media and to have more Facebook friends than introverts (Amichai-Hamburger and Vinitzky, 2010; Ryan and Xenos, 2011;Wang, 2017).…”

Section: Limitations and Future Directionsmentioning

confidence: 98%

“Touch Me If You Can!”: Individual Differences in Disease Avoidance and Social Touch

et al. 2021

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The threat of diseases varies considerably among individuals, and it has been found to be linked to various proactive or reactive behaviors. In the present studies, we investigated the impact of individual differences in the perceived vulnerability to disease (PVD) on social touch before (Study 1) or during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic (Study 2). We also investigated the influence of personality traits in the covariation between these two dimensions. We found that people who are the most disease-avoidant are also the most reluctant to touching or being touched by others (and this relationship holds when personality traits are taken into account). Interestingly, the association between PVD and social touch increased during the COVID-19 pandemic compared with a few months before. By showing that the fear of contamination has an association with social touch, the findings provide further evidence for the behavioral immune system ( Schaller and Park, 2011 ), a psychological system acting as a first line of defense against pathogens.

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“…For instance, Germani et al ( 2020 ) revealed a positive link between collectivism and people's perceived risk of infection. However, other line of research suggests a negative link between collectivism and preventive health behaviors (e.g., Na et al, 2021 ; Rolón et al, 2021 ; Webster et al, 2021 ). For example, Rolón et al ( 2021 ) showed that the sociability sub‐dimension of extraversion, or the enjoyment of social activities and the preference for being with others over being alone, which is a defining aspect of collectivism (Triandis et al, 1986 ), is positively associated with the spread of COVID‐19.…”

Section: Theoretical Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, other line of research suggests a negative link between collectivism and preventive health behaviors (e.g., Na et al, 2021 ; Rolón et al, 2021 ; Webster et al, 2021 ). For example, Rolón et al ( 2021 ) showed that the sociability sub‐dimension of extraversion, or the enjoyment of social activities and the preference for being with others over being alone, which is a defining aspect of collectivism (Triandis et al, 1986 ), is positively associated with the spread of COVID‐19. Also, more collectivistic U.S. states show substantially higher COVID‐19 case counts—an effect that emerges due to the higher percentage of disadvantaged groups (i.e., non‐Whites) in these states (Webster et al, 2021 ).…”

Section: Theoretical Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Collectivism fosters preventive behaviors to contain the spread of COVID‐19: Implications for social marketing in public health

Cho

Guo

Torelli

2021

Psychology and Marketing

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Apart from personal‐ and societal‐level factors, we propose that collectivism also plays a role in the spread of COVID‐19. Results from six studies using both secondary datasets and laboratory experiments conducted in two different countries demonstrate that collectivism is: (a) negatively associated with the spread of COVID‐19 and (b) positively associated with the self‐importance/expectation to engage in widely publicized behaviors to prevent the spread of the disease, as well as with greater likelihood to vaccinate against COVID‐19. Finally, the higher likelihood of people high (vs. low) in collectivism to engage in preventive behaviors is driven by their belief that others consider it important to engage in such behaviors. The effects were robust and emerged by measuring collectivism both at the country level and at the individual level. We conclude by proposing features of public health campaigns likely to elicit compliance behavior to control the spread of COVID‐19.

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Personality correlates of COVID-19 infection proclivity: Extraversion kills

Cited by 12 publications

References 43 publications

Fear of COVID-19 among Healthcare Workers: The Role of Neuroticism and Fearful Attachment

Fear of COVID-19 among Healthcare Workers: The Role of Neuroticism and Fearful Attachment

“Touch Me If You Can!”: Individual Differences in Disease Avoidance and Social Touch

Collectivism fosters preventive behaviors to contain the spread of COVID‐19: Implications for social marketing in public health

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