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The present study aimed to explore whether the tendency to compare one’s abilities and opinions to those of others (social comparison orientation) could longitudinally mediate the association between narcissism and problematic SNS use. A total of 1,196 college students were assessed at three time points over 22 months. The results showed that narcissism at time 1 was positively related to problematic SNS use at time 3 and that ability comparison at time 2 longitudinally mediated the association between narcissism at time 1 and problematic SNS use at time 3, whereas the longitudinal mediating effect of opinion comparison at time 2 was not significant. These findings suggest that narcissism more distally and ability comparison more proximally may be risk factors for engaging in problematic SNS use, and it is important to distinguish between types of social comparisons in problematic SNS use behaviors.

Background: This study aimed to examine the relationship between the timing of physical activity and within-individual differences in depressive symptoms, positive affect, and negative affect in individuals with different baseline levels of depressive symptoms.Methods: Experience sampling methodology (ESM) was used to measure real-time depressive symptoms, positive affect, and negative affect in a convenience sample of 78 healthy adults (aged M = 25.46 years, SD = 6.18; 57 females) five times per day for 14 days. We measured physical activity throughout the 14 days by using activity sensors. Baseline levels of depressive symptoms were assessed with the PHQ-9 to build subgroups with low vs. mild-moderate depressive symptoms.Results: Physical activity predicted decreased depressive symptom levels, negative affect, and increased positive affect. Associations were stronger for individuals with higher baseline levels of depressive symptoms and for physical activity between 0 and 30 min compared to physical activity between 30 and 180 min before the mood rating. Conversely, levels of depressive symptoms, positive and negative affect did not predict physical activity.Limitations: The convenience sample may not have been representative of the general population or people with depression. Accelerometers may not have detected some types of physical activities such as bicycling. Causality could not be inferred because of the observational study design.Conclusion: Individuals with higher levels of depressive symptoms may benefit from physical activity. While the effects were strongest for physical activity immediately before the mood ratings, the effects were in the same direction for up to 3 h before the mood ratings.

We replicated a meta-analysis showing that individual NEO-PI-R items – and their residuals after controlling for higher-order facets and domains – demonstrate sine qua non empirical properties of personality traits, hence representing personality nuances. Using the HEXACO-PI-R, we meta-analysed single-item cross-rater agreement, heritability, rank-order stability, and associations with age and sex in six countries (N = 9, 226), also correcting the estimates for short-term test-retest reliability. Median cross-rater agreement, heritability, and stability were, respectively, 0.30, 0.30, and 0.57 for raw item scores and 0.10 and 0.16, and 0.43 for their residuals ; these estimates increased to levels similar to domains after correction for measurement error. Moreover, 63% and 72% of raw items and 39% and 50% of their residuals, respectively, were significantly associated with age and sex. These findings were strikingly similar to those found in the previous meta-analysis, and provide further evidence that items index a unique level of the personality hierarchy.

Objective: Various personality traits are known to correlate with body mass index (BMI). However, this index of adiposity conflates adiposity with lean body mass and may therefore lead to biased estimates of correlations. Yet, rarely have studies looked beyond BMI to understand how adiposity and other physiological characteristics relate to these psychological traits. Methods: We calculated an improved measure of adiposity (relative fat mass, RFM), as well as basal metabolic rate (BMR); explored their associations with various personality traits; and assessed how personality traits’ associations with RFM differ from their associations with BMI. In a subsample of the Estonian Biobank (N = 3,535), we compared the five domains and 30 facets of NEO Personality Inventory-3 in how they correlated with RFM, BMI, and BMR. Results: Various traits, notably Openness to Experience and its facets, associated with RFM above and beyond BMI. An exception was Assertiveness which correlated more strongly with BMI, and also correlated consistently with BMR. BMI–personality trait correlations appeared to conflate personality traits’ associations with fat mass and lean mass.Conclusions: Because Openness correlates with healthier diet, this trait may link with lower adiposity through eating habits. The correlation between Assertiveness and BMR mirrors associations with conceptually similar traits in non-human animals and is consistent with the idea of personality traits being based in biological pocesses. Although the use of BMI can lead to both attenuated and inflated estimates of personality trait–adiposity associations, more correlations seemed to be underestimated than overestimated when using BMI.

Environment-friendly behaviors may be desirable in helping to solve worldwide ecological issues. This has sparked interest in the associations of such behaviors with established psychological constructs such as the Five-Factor Model personality traits. Of these, Openness has been most consistently linked with proenvironmental behavior; yet, the extent of causality in this association is unclear. Using a sample of 168 individuals, including 84 sibling pairs, the present study replicated the association while controlling for factors in which families differ (environmental factors that siblings share and a proportion of genetic variance). Proenvironmental behavior was correlated with Openness ( r = .51) and the association could be observed both between ( r = .57) and within families ( r = .29), with adjustments for various demographic variables. These findings indicate that more open individuals tend to engage in proenvironmental behaviors, even when controlling for possibly confounding factors shared and not shared between siblings.

Among the main topics of individual differences research is the associations of personality traits with life outcomes. Relying on recent advances of personality conceptualizations and drawing parallels with genetics, we propose that representing these associations with individual questionnaire items (markers of personality “nuances”) can provide incremental value for predicting and explaining them—often even without further data collection. For illustration, we show that item-based models trained to predict ten outcomes out-predicted models based on Five-Factor Model (FFM) domains or facets in independent participants, with median proportions of explained variance being 9.7% (item-based models), 4.2% (domain-based models) and 5.9% (facet-based models). This was not due to item-outcome overlap. Instead, personality-outcome associations are often driven by dozens of specific characteristics, nuances. Outlining item-level correlations helps to better understand why personality is linked with particular outcomes and opens entirely new research avenues—at almost no additional cost.

The chapter argues that individuals are dynamic systems that continually transact with their situational experiences. Computational modeling may provide a useful set of tools for generating and refining hypotheses regarding general principles of such person-situation transactions. Building computational models encourages conceptual rigor and allows proof-of-principle testing of hypotheses, even though the models do not provide empirical evidence. It has been previously hypothesized that person-environment transactions (systematic situational influences on personality) tend to increase, whereas random influences may decrease the magnitude of individual differences. The chapter introduces a framework (personality space framework; PSF) for building computational models that play through such scenarios. The models suggested that any kind of accumulating situational experiences may tend to make people more alike until variance reaches a plateau, regardless of whether the experiences are random or systematically tied to pre-existing trait levels. The simulations also suggested that person-environment transactions may contribute to the emergence of personality “factor(s)”.

Rauthmann et al. offer a welcome attempt to put situation-sensitive personality research on a firmer conceptual and empirical basis. We suggest a clearer distinction between momentary or current or unique situations and more stable or typical components of situations, and describe a methodology that we are developing that would represent within-individual processes and individual differences as well as interactions between individuals and interactions between individuals and their non-social environments in a single framework. We believe that this can optimally be accomplished by measuring situations and people using the same characteristics.

Väitekirja elektrooniline versioon ei sisalda publikatsioone, Aastakümneid on püütud tuvastada kehakaalu psühholoogilisi korrelaate. Suur osa sellest uurimistööst on olnud ajendatud eesmärgist leida ülekaalu muudetavaid, sekkumisele alluvaid põhjuseid. Kehakaalu mõjutavate tegurite hulka võivad kuuluda ka isiksusejooned: kuna mitmed isiksusejoontega seotud käitumised võivad mõjutada kalorite tarbimist või kulutamist, peaksid nende käitumiste mõjud ajapikku kuhjuma ja kehakaalus peegelduma. Kuigi isiksusejoonte ja kehakaalu seoseid on juba omajagu uuritud, ei ole põhjuslikkust nende vahel siiski veel piisavalt testitud. Käesoleva doktoritöö esimeseks põhieesmärgiks oli testida põhjuslikkust isiksusejoonte ja kehakaalu vahel. Põhjuslike seoste olemasolu ja suuna väljaselgitamiseks kasutati kaksikute, geeni- ja longituudandmeid. Vastupidiselt levinud arvamusele ei leidnud isiksusejoonte mõju kehakaalule selget kinnitust, kuigi tulemused ei välista, et isiksusejoonte tahtlik muutmine mõjutab kehakaalu, mida käesolevas doktoritöö raames ei uuritud. Seevastu näitasid kolme analüüsi tulemused, et kehakaal mõjutab isiksust: geneetiliste analüüside põhjal võib kehakaal mõjutada mitmeid kitsaid isiksusejooni ning longituudandmed näitasid kehakaalu võimalikke mõjusid meelekindlusele, sotsiaalsusele ning mitmele spetsiifilisemale isiksusejoonele. Seoseid võivad vahendada nii kehakaaluga seotud sotsiaalne tagasiside, füüsilised piirangud kui füsioloogilised protsessid. Doktoritöö teiseks põhieesmärgiks oli kehakaalu ja isiksusejoonte seoste senisest täpsem kirjeldamine, mis võimaldab edaspidi ka põhjuslikkuse kohta täpsemaid hüpoteese püstitada ning neid testida. Kaks kirjeldavat uuringut pakkusid kinnitust mitmetele varem kirjeldatud seostele (näiteks aktiivsuse, korralikkuse ja vihaga), tõid välja uusi seoseid (näiteks altruismi, kuulekuse, konventsionaalsuse ja tuttava eelistamisega) ning näitasid, et kehtestavuse ja kehamassiindeksi korrelatsiooni aluseks võib eeskätt olla seos rasvavaba, mitte rasvamassiga, nagu varem arvatud., Motivated by the objective to identify modifiable causes of excess weight, several decades of research has explored psychological correlates of body weight. For instance, body weight is commonly believed to be influenced by personality traits: if some trait-related behaviours affect energy intake or expenditure, their effects on weight should accumulate as they are repeated. However, tests of causality between them have been scarce and inconclusive. One of the two objectives of the dissertation was to test causality in personality trait–body weight associations. Across two studies, molecular genetic, twin, and longitudinal data were employed. Contrary to widespread beliefs, no robust effects from personality traits to body weight were found, although this does not preclude deliberate trait change affecting body weight—a question left for future studies. Instead, both studies indicated that causality may predominantly flow from body weight to personality traits. While the two genetic analyses suggested that body weight may influence numerous narrow traits, longitudinal analyses identified influences on agreeableness, conscientiousness, and several finer-grained traits. Several mechanisms could plausibly account for these links, including social feedback, physical limitations, and physiological processes like inflammation. The other objective of the dissertation was to provide more accurate descriptions of trait–body weight correlations, which could also provide input for novel (causal) hypothesis and further empirical investigations. The two studies devoted to this objective replicated several well-known associations (with traits like activity, organization, and anger), but also identified novel associations (with traits including altruism, obedience, conventionality, and preference for the familiar), besides indicating that the oft-reported link between BMI and assertiveness is more likely driven by lean mass than fat mass., https://www.ester.ee/record=b5561169

Examinations of the relationship between individuals’ personal characteristics and the social positions that individuals receive in everyday peer networks have often found an association between extraversion and popularity. This thesis assesses the conditions (when) and mechanisms (why) of this association. Four research questions focus on when the link between extraversion and popularity is present. The study examines whether extraversion is already associated with popularity among seven- to eight-year-olds (Study I), if extraversion is associated with popularity in a less talkative and more stereotypically introverted culture as well (i.e. in Finland; Studies I and II), whether the association is more reflective of the popularity of extraverts or the unpopularity of introverts (Studies II and III), and if the size of the surrounding social ecology is an important precondition of this association (Study III). In addition, the study considers two why research questions. Studies II and III examine if dyadic combinations of extraversion could serve as popularity particles that would explain why extraverts are ultimately more popular in the group, whereas Study I evaluates the mediating role of oral fluency between extraversion and popularity among children. The association between extraversion and popularity is found to be highly generalizable, as it is present among young and adult Finns as well as in social networks of varying sizes. In addition, the association is linear and unilateral: introverts are unpopular as much as extraverts are popular, and dyadic combinations of extraversion are not significant in explaining this phenomenon. Finally, the higher oral fluency of extraverts partially explains their popularity in middle childhood. The discussion focuses on the causality of this association and engages with the ontological status of trait extraversion throughout the thesis. The research also highlights the role of popularity and social networks in accounting for the coalescence of extraversion. Yksilön persoonallisuuden ominaisuuksien ja sosiaalisten verkostojen välisten yhteyksien tutkimuksessa on usein havaittu yhteys ulospäinsuuntautuneisuuden (ekstroversio) ja vertaissuosion välillä. Tämä väitöskirja tarkasteli, milloin ja miksi tämä yhteys ilmenee. Väitöskirjassa selvitettiin neljän tutkimuskysymyksen kautta, milloin yhteys ekstroversion ja suosion välillä havaitaan: havaitaanko yhteys jo 7-8 -vuotiailla (Tutkimus I), onko se olemassa myös vähemmän puheliaassa ja stereotyyppisesti sisäänpäin suuntautuneemmassa (introversio) suomalaisessa kulttuurissa (Tutkimukset I ja II), vaikuttaako ympäröivän sosiaalisen verkoston koko yhteyteen (Tutkimus III), ja osoittaako yhteys ekstroverttien korkeaa vai introverttien matalaa suosiota (Tutkimukset II ja III)? Lisäksi tämän yhteyden syitä tarkasteltiin kahden tutkimuskysymyksen avulla. Tutkimuksissa II ja III tarkasteltiin, vaikuttaako muiden introversio tai ekstraversio siihen, että ekstrovertit ovat suositumpia? Lisäksi selvitettiin, onko puheen sujuvuus lapsilla yksi selittäjä tälle yhteydelle (Tutkimus I). Yhteys ekstroversion ja suosion välillä havaittiin hyvin yleistyväksi – se havaittiin suomalaisilla lapsilla ja aikuisilla ja riippumatta verkoston koosta. Lisäksi yhteys ilmensi niin ekstroverttien suosiota kuin introverttien matalaa suosiota, eivätkä nämä yhteydet selittyneet sillä, että ekstrovertit suosisivat toisiaan tai introvertit suosisivat ekstroverttejä. Ekstroverttien sujuvampi puhe kuitenkin osittain selitti tätä yhteyttä 7-8 -vuotiailla. Pohdinnassa perehdytään tämän yhteyden mahdollisiin syysuhteisiin. Lisäksi piirteiden ontologista statusta pohditaan läpi koko väitöskirjan. Tämän ohella perehdytään siihen, voivatko suosio ja vertaisverkostot selittää, miksi piirteet kuten itsevarmuus, sosiaalisuus ja positiivinen emotionaalisuus usein ilmenevät yhdessä, jonka seurauksena ekstroversio-faktori myös havaitaan.

Patoloogilise hasartmängimise levimuse sõelumiseks ja hindamiseks üldpopulatsioonis on äärmiselt oluline kasutada usaldusväärseid ja tõepäraseid sõelteste. Käesoleva magistritöö empiiriline põhiülesanne oli hinnata Eesti valimil Eesti hasartmängusõltuvuse levimusuuringutes seni ainsana kasutusel olevat sõeltesti South Oaks Gambling Screen-i (SOGS) (Lesieur & Blume, 1987; Laansoo, 2005) psühhomeetrilisi omadusi ja faktorstruktuuri. Uurimuses on kasutatud 2010. aastal läbi viidud probleemse mängusõltuvuse uuringu “Eesti elanike kokkupuuted hasart- ja õnnemängudega” juhuvalimi andmeid (n = 3530). Teise valimi moodustasid kasiinode külastajad ja hasartmängudega kokkupuutuvad isikud (n = 289). Kõik uurimuses osalejad täitsid sõeltesti SOGS. Küsimustiku faktorstruktuuri hinnati uuriva ja kinnitava faktoranalüüsiga kahel erineval andmestikul. Tulemused soovitavad SOGS-ile kahefaktorilist lahendit üldpopulatsiooni ja hasartmängijate valimil. Kvantitatiivse ja kvalitatiivse analüüsi põhjal leiti, et praeguse eestikeelse SOGS-i kasutamise jätkamist levimusuuringutes tasub tõsiselt kaaluda.

It has been argued that facets do not represent the bottom of the personality hierarchy— even more specific personality characteristics, nuances, could be useful for describing and understanding individuals and their differences. Combining 2 samples of German twins, we assessed the consensual validity (correlations across different observers), rank-order stability, and heritability of nuances. Personality nuances were operationalized as the 240 items of the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R).Their attributes were examined by analyzing item residuals, controlling for the variance of the facet the item had been assigned to and all other facets. Most nuances demonstrated significant (pp

This study investigates the structure of self reported daily behaviours and their relations to personality traits measured by SNAP-2 in a sample consisting of university students and community dwelling adults, as well as in a psychiatric patient sample. In addition, the behaviour structure is studied separately in participants who score low or high on SNAP personality disorder scales. The results suggests that individual behavioural items form relatively coherent scales that are related to negative emotion expression, socializing, assertive behaviours, rule following, and avoidance behaviours. These scales show somewhat differential correlation patterns with SNAP trait and temperament scales. While behaviour reports in this study add no additional value to personality scales in predicting patient status, they are strongly related to predicting high scorers on personality disorder scales., http://www.ester.ee/record=b4510859*est

Käesoleva magistritöö eesmärgiks oli uurida tegureid, mis mõjutavad Eesti krooniliselt haigete laste emade toimetulekut. Teema on oluline, kuna haigete laste arv Eestis kasvab, vanema füüsiline ja vaimne tervis mõjutavad lapse ravirežiimi järgimist ning hetkel on Eesti sotsiaalsüsteemi poolt vanematele pakutav abi ebaregulaarne ja -efektiivne. Uuringusse kaasati 156 ema (31 pervasiivse arenguhäire, 41 diabeedi, 36 astma diagnoosi ja 48 terve lapsega), kes täitsid 4 küsimustikku – toimetulekustrateegiate küsimustiku COPE (N=146), Beck’i depressiooniküsimustiku (N=124), isiksuseküsimustiku EE.PIP-NEO (N=124) ja autori poolt koostatud taustaküsimustiku (N=156), mis hindas sotsiaaldemograafilisi ja lapse haigusega seotud tegureid. Tulemused näitasid, et depressiooniskoor oli oluliselt kõrgem krooniliselt haigete laste emadel (M = 12.96, SD = 10.03), võrreldes tervete laste emadega (M =7.59, SD =6.57). Krooniliselt haigete laste emadel oli depressiooniskoor positiivselt korreleeritud tegevusetuse ja tunnete väljaelamise/-näitamise strateegiatega ning negatiivselt aktiivse toimetulekuga ja probleemi lahendamise faktoriga. Kogu valimil ilmnes, et toimetulekustrateegia valikut mõjutavad haridustase ja sissetulek ning krooniliselt haigete laste emadel lapse seisund ja haigusega seotud tugigrupis osalemine. Kõigil viiel isiksuseomadusel olid statistiliselt olulised ja tõlgendatavad seosed toimetulekustrateegiatega, näiteks ilmnesid olulised positiivsed korrelatsioonid neurootilisusel vältimise faktori ja tunnete väljaelamise/-näitamise strateegiatega ning meelekindlusel probleemi lahendamise faktoriga. Saadud tulemused on kooskõlas varasemate uuringutega ning näitavad, et on oluline pakkuda krooniliselt haigete laste emadele psühholoogilist toetust, hinnata nende toimetulekustrateegiate repertuaari ning vajadusel õpetada probleemi lahendamisele suunatud strateegiate kasutamist., http://www.ester.ee/record=b4427072~S1*est, toimetulek, isiksuseomadused, depressioon, lapsed, autism, Aspergeri sündroom, diabeet, astma

http://tartu.ester.ee/record=b2678319~S1*est

Current study examined multivariate relationships between impulsivity, time perception, gambling behavior and co-variates as age, gender, education and nationality. Impulsivity, time perception and risk for pathological gambling (PG) was assessed in 3500 participants aged between 15 and 74 years (1506 men and 2024 woman, 2455 Estonians and 1075 non-Estonian residents of Estonia) with different educational and socio-economical background. Participants completed the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) and the modified Impulsive Behavior Scale (mUPPS). Time Production Task (TPT) was presented to all participants. As the result, impulsive subjects tend to perceive time intervals as shorter and they under produce time intervals more than self-controlled subjects. Impulsivity was associated with PG to the extent that this association can be interpreted as causal but it is not mediated by time perception as was hypothesized., http://tartu.ester.ee/record=b2656689~S1*est