Associations Between Big-Five Personality Traits and Attitudes and Perception Towards Health Behaviours

Despite efforts to promote exercise and healthy diets, global prevalence of obesity continues to rise. This pervasiveness of obesity is alarming as it is a key contributing factor of ischemic heart disease, a leading cause of death worldwide. The issue of obesity is exacerbated in Malaysia, where 50.1% of all adults were considered obese in 2020. Given the severity of the issue, the identification of alternative factors to promote exercise becomes necessary. The current study examined how personality traits are related to perceptions and behaviours towards health. A total of 401 Malaysian university students completed questionnaires which assessed their demographics, health perceptions, and health behaviours. Additionally, the Big-Five Inventory was administered to examine personality traits. Regarding personality traits and their associations to behaviours: Conscientiousness was positively associated with Exercise Adherence and Healthy Diet but negatively with Fears Related to Exercise; Neuroticism had a positive relation with Perceived Lack of Resources and Fears Related to Exercise but a negative relationship with Adherence to Exercise; Extraversion only had a negative association with Healthy Diet; Agreeableness was negatively associated with Substance Use; and lastly, Openness had a positive relationship with Adherence to Exercise but a negative association with Perceived Lack of Resources. Further exploration on the impacts of attitudes and perspectives towards exercise and healthy diets would be beneficial in identifying alternative and potentially more effective approaches in promoting healthy behaviours.