Modeling Intraindividual Change in Personality Traits: Findings From the Normative Aging Study

To advance an intraindividual life-span approach to the issue of stability and change, we studied personality trait trajectories in adulthood. Growth curves for extraversion and neuroticism were estimated for over 1,600 men (initially aged 43–91) in the Normative Aging Study, who were followed over...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences Psychological sciences and social sciences, 2003-05, Vol.58 (3), p.P153-P165
Main Authors: Mroczek, Daniel K., Spiro, Avron
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Adult. Elderly
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Aging
Aging - psychology
Biological and medical sciences
Cohort Studies
Developmental psychology
Extraversion (Psychology)
Female
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Humans
Individuality
Life Change Events
Linear Models
Longitudinal Studies
Male
Memory
Middle Aged
Neurotic Disorders - diagnosis
Neurotic Disorders - psychology
Personality
Personality Development
Personality Inventory - statistics & numerical data
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Psychometrics
United States
Veterans - psychology
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Summary:To advance an intraindividual life-span approach to the issue of stability and change, we studied personality trait trajectories in adulthood. Growth curves for extraversion and neuroticism were estimated for over 1,600 men (initially aged 43–91) in the Normative Aging Study, who were followed over 12 years. We found significant individual differences in intraindividual change for both traits, as well as different trajectories for extraversion and neuroticism. The overall extraversion trajectory was best defined by a linear model, but neuroticism was characterized by quadratic decline with age. We then considered several variables as predictors of individual differences around these overall trajectories. Birth cohort, marriage or remarriage, death of spouse, and memory complaints were all significant predictors, explaining variability in both level and rate of personality trait change. These findings suggest that there is a good deal of variability in personality trajectories, and that some of this variability can be explained by birth cohort as well as by age-graded life events.
ISSN:1079-5014
1758-5368
DOI:10.1093/geronb/58.3.P153