Associations between major domains of personality and health behavior

Broad personality traits may be important predictors of health behavior patterns. Two studies are reported which examined the associations between five major personality dimensions and four major health behavior dimensions. Prior associations between health behaviors and neurotic and extraverted personality tendencies generally were replicated. However, Conscientiousness and Agreeableness, two domains of personality that have received little research attention, emerged as important personality predictors of health behaviors. The results indicate that personality is a reliable predictor of health behavior patterns. It is suggested that the importance of personality has been underestimated in past research by the failure to consider appropriate health behavior criteria and the omission of important personality dimensions, such as Conscientiousness and Agreeableness, when studying health behavior patterns.