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Relationship between cortisol responses to stress and personality
Lynn M Oswald1, Peter Zandi, Gerald Nestadt
1Department of Psychiatry, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
Summary
Personality traits influence cortisol stress responses. Lower Openness correlated with reduced cortisol, while Neuroticism in women and Extraversion in men showed gender-specific links to blunted stress reactions.
Area of Science:
- Psychoneuroendocrinology
- Personality Psychology
- Stress Research
Background:
- Growing evidence links cortisol stress response and personality.
- Mechanisms underlying these associations require further study.
Purpose of the Study:
- Examine associations between personality traits and cortisol responses to stress.
- Utilize the Revised NEO Personality Inventory five-factor model.
Main Methods:
- 68 healthy adults (18-30 years) completed personality assessment.
- Participants underwent a laboratory psychological stress test (speech and mental arithmetic).
Main Results:
- Lower Openness associated with lower cortisol responses in the general sample.
- Gender-specific findings: higher Neuroticism linked to blunted cortisol in women; lower Extraversion linked to blunted cortisol in men.
Conclusions:
- Personality traits are associated with Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis responses to stress.
- Traits linked to psychopathology may also correlate with blunted HPA axis activity.