Personality, Interpersonal Problems, and Anxiety Among Older Adults

Introduction: This study examined relationships between personality disorder (PD) features, Big Five personality traits, and interpersonal problems with anxiety. Method: Older adults ( N = 130) completed the Geriatric Anxiety Scale, Coolidge Axis Two Inventory, Big Five Inventory-2, and Circumplex Scales of Interpersonal Problems. Pearson correlation analyses were used to assess simple relationships between anxiety with PD features (CATI scales), Big Five personality domains (BFI-2 scales), and interpersonal problems (CSIP scales). Multiple linear regression analyses were performed to determine the extent to which the PD scales of the CATI, the personality scales of the BFI-2, and the scales of the CSIP explained variance in anxiety. Results: Anxiety was positively correlated with 13 of 14 PD scales, ranging from .23 (Narcissistic) to .61 (Depressive). Regarding Big Five personality traits, anxiety was negatively associated with Agreeableness (−.23), Conscientiousness (−.30), and Extraversion (−.31) but was positively associated with Negative Emotionality (.56). Regarding interpersonal problems, anxiety was positively related to all eight CSIP scales, ranging from Self-sacrificing (.30) to Distant/Cold (.62). Regression analyses indicated that PD features accounted for the most variance in anxiety symptoms (53%), followed by interpersonal problems (46%), and Big Five personality traits (33%). Discussion: Anxiety appears to be meaningfully associated with PD features, several aspects of Big Five personality traits, and interpersonal problems, suggesting that these variables may play important roles in the development and maintenance of anxiety, or vice versa. Our findings especially speak to the growing awareness of the deleterious impact of PD features on clinical syndromes in later life, as evidenced by strong comorbidities with anxiety.

Impact of Personality Features and Interpersonal Problems on Anxiety Among Older Adults

Introduction Anxiety is a significant mental health problem among older adults and is associated with multiple other mental disorders, poor psychosocial functioning, and reduced quality of life. Personality traits and disorders, along with interpersonal problems, may play a significant role in anxiety, but these relationships are not well understood among older adults. This study examined relationships between anxiety with normative personality traits, personality disorder (PD) features, and interpersonal problems. Method: Community-dwelling older adults (N = 130) completed the Geriatric Anxiety Scale (GAS), Coolidge Axis Two Inventory (CATI), Big Five Inventory-2 (BFI-2), and Circumplex Scales of Interpersonal Problems (CSIP). Results Anxiety was positively correlated with 13 of 14 CATI PD scales, ranging from .23 (Narcissistic) to .61 (Depressive). Regarding normative personality, anxiety was associated with Agreeableness (-.23), Conscientiousness (-.30), Extraversion (-.31), and Negative Emotionality (.56). Regarding interpersonal problems, anxiety was positively related to all eight CSIP scales: Self-Sacrificing (.30), Domineering (.31), Exploitable (.40), Intrusive (.41), Self-centered (.47), Nonassertive (.50), Socially Inhibited (.60), and Distant/Cold (.62). Regression analyses indicated that PD features accounted for the most variance in anxiety (53%), followed by interpersonal problems, (46%) and normative personality traits (33%). Discussion Anxiety appears to be meaningfully associated with PD features, several aspects of normative personality, and interpersonal problems, suggesting that these variables may play a role in the development of anxiety, or vice versa. Our findings especially speak to the growing awareness of the deleterious impact of PD features on clinical syndromes in later life, as evidenced by strong comorbidities with anxiety.

Pathological Traits and Interpersonal Difficulties in Depressed Older Adults: Clinical versus Community Sampling

Personality pathology, represented by high neuroticism and low agreeableness in the Five Factor Model of Personality, has been identified as a predictor of depression in mixed-age samples and preliminary studies of older adults. Research on older people, however, has not examined the differential impact of pathological personality traits and processes on depression or examined them across treatment settings. This secondary analysis examined personality traits and processes as predictors of depression, evaluated the moderating effect of interpersonal problems, and assessed stratification of these personality variables across community and clinical settings. Older adults (N=395) ranging in age from 55 to 99 (M = 72.06; SD = 10.10) from inpatient psychiatric, outpatient medical, and community settings completed self-report measures of personality traits (NEO-FFI Agreeableness and Neuroticism), processes (Inventory of Interpersonal Problems), and depression (GDS-30). Higher neuroticism predicted worsened depressive symptoms (β = .765, p < .001), as did lower agreeableness (β = -.163, p = .002) and more interpersonal problems (β = .459, p < .001). Findings partially supported the stratification of personality traits and processes by setting. Interpersonal problems moderated neither the neuroticism-depression or agreeableness-depression relationships. Personality traits and processes predict depression in older adults across care settings but do not significantly interact. Levels of pathological traits and processes vary across community and clinical settings.

A Cross-Lagged Prospective Network Analysis of Common Mental Health and Cognitive Functioning Components in Midlife Community Adult Women

Background: The scar theory proposes that heightened depression and anxiety precede and predict worse cognitive functioning outcomes, whereas the vulnerability model posits the opposite pathway. However, most investigations on this topic have been cross-sectional, which precludes causal inferences. Thus, our study used both contemporaneous and temporal cross-lagged panel network analysis to facilitate causal inferences in understanding the relations between psychopathology components and cognitive functioning. Methods: Racially-diverse midlife women (n = 3,302) participated in the Study of Women's Health Across the Nation across two time-points, spanning one year apart. Five psychopathology (anxiety symptoms, depressed mood, somatic symptoms, positive affect, interpersonal problems) and cognitive functioning nodes (working memory (WM), processing speed (PS), visual memory (VSM), auditory memory (ARM)) were assessed. Results: Contemporaneous networks yielded notable inverse between-node relations (edges) for interpersonal problems and reduced VSM and PS, and between depressed mood or anxiety symptoms and VSM, ARM, or PS. Moreover, nodes that had the highest likelihood to bridge psychopathology and cognitive functioning constructs were positive affect, anxiety symptoms, WM, and ARM. Temporal networks produced edges inconsistent with the vulnerability theory. Higher depressed mood and somatic symptoms and lower positive affect were related to reduced future PS, WM, and/or VSM. Likewise, greater interpersonal issues and anxiety symptoms were linked to poorer future ARM and WM. Also, positive affect had the strongest effect on future nodes. Conclusions: These results provide stronger support for the scar theory than the vulnerability theory.