The association between personality and depressive symptoms among Mexicans aged 50 and older with pain

Older adults with pain are at risk for developing depression. Although personality traits, including internal locus of control (LOC) and conscientiousness, are linked to fewer depressive symptoms, their potential protective role among Mexican adults aged 50 and older with pain is not well understood.

We used data from the Mexican Health and Aging Study (2015 and 2018) and included participants who reported frequent pain at both waves (n = 2274). LOC and conscientiousness were measured continuously in 2015, with higher scores indicating a more internal LOC or conscientious personality. We combined depressive symptoms from 2015 and 2018 to create four-level outcome: stable low/no depression (<5/<5), recently remitted (5+/<5), recent onset (<5/5+), and recurrently high (5+/5+). We used multinomial logistic regression models to assess the association between personality and depressive symptoms.

A more internal LOC was associated with a lower risk of recurrently high depressive symptoms [relative risk ratio (RRR): 0.81, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.72, 0.92). Greater conscientiousness was associated with lower risk of recent-onset [(RRR: 0.87, 95% CI: 0.76, 0.998) and recurrently high depressive symptoms (RRR: 0.87, 95% CI: 0.77, 0.97).

Interventions to modify LOC and conscientiousness may be helpful in pain management by mitigating comorbid depressive symptoms.