"Surrounded, detached": the relationship between defensive peripersonal space and personality

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Neuroscience
• Personality Science

Background:

• Personality influences interactions with the environment.
• Defensive peripersonal space (DPPS) is a protective body-environment interface.
• DPPS variability is linked to anxiety, and may relate to personality traits.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between personality traits and DPPS in healthy individuals.
• To explore if personality dimensions correlate with the extension of DPPS.

Main Methods:

• Fifty-five healthy participants completed the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5)-Adult.
• Defensive peripersonal space (DPPS) was assessed using the Hand Blink Reflex (HBR) task.
• Bayesian multilevel models and network analysis were used to analyze HBR data and personality correlations.

Main Results:

• The Hand Blink Reflex (HBR) was modeled using piecewise linear regression.
• Network analysis revealed a positive correlation between the proximal slope of HBR and the detachment personality trait.
• Higher detachment scores were associated with increased HBR modulation, indicating a larger DPPS.

Conclusions:

• DPPS may be a characteristic feature of maladaptive personality traits.
• The detachment trait, characterized by interpersonal avoidance and restricted affectivity, correlated with an extended DPPS.
• DPPS could serve as a biomarker or a target for therapeutic interventions in personality-related conditions.