Personality profiles among normal aged individuals as measured by the NEO-PI-R

The revised Neuroticism (N), Extraversion (E), Openness (O) to experience Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R) is a multidimensional measure of normal personality traits that is intended to assess five major personality dimensions or domains-N, E, O, Agreeableness (A), and Conscientiousness (C). Although several studies have been conducted examining N, E, and O factors in people 65 through to 85 years old, there has been little research examining all five-core domains of personality in individuals 85 and older. We compared the NEO-PI-R domains and facet traits in the middle-aged/young-old versus old-old normal subjects. Thirty-eight community-dwelling subjects (22 women, 16 men) free from major neuropsychiatric disorders were given the NEO-PI-R, a self-administered 240-item personality inventory, assessing 30 facet traits within the five domains. We compared the scores of 21 middle-aged and young-old (age 50-84) individuals, to those of 17 old-old (age 85-100) subjects. The personality profiles of the two groups were similar except that the old-old group had lower scores on Extraversion, and four of the 30 facet traits (warmth, positive emotions, impulsiveness, and order) compared to the middle-aged/young-old group. These results were limited by the cross-sectional design and small sample size. Nonetheless, the findings suggest that the middle-aged/young-old and the old-old normal subjects have fairly similar personality traits.