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Association of personality with physical, social, and mental activities across the lifespan: Findings from US and F rench samples
Author(s) -
Stephan Yannick,
Boiché Julie,
Canada Brice,
Terracciano Antonio
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
british journal of psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.536
H-Index - 92
eISSN - 2044-8295
pISSN - 0007-1269
DOI - 10.1111/bjop.12056
Subject(s) - openness to experience , psychology , extraversion and introversion , personality , big five personality traits , cognition , association (psychology) , developmental psychology , clinical psychology , social psychology , psychiatry , psychotherapist
Despite evidence for its health‐related benefits, little is known on the psychological predictors of the participation in leisure activities across the lifespan. Therefore, this study aimed to identify whether personality is associated with a variety of different types of activities, involving physical, cognitive, and social components. The samples included individuals from the second wave of the National Study of Midlife in the United States ( N = 3,396) and community‐dwelling French individuals ( N = 2,917) aged between 30 and 84. Both samples completed measures of the five‐factor model of personality. To create an activity index, we combined the physical, social, and cognitive (games and developmental) activities performed at least once a month. In both samples, individuals who scored higher on extraversion and openness were more likely to engage in a variety of activity types. The findings were consistent across two samples from different western societies and suggest that extraversion and openness contribute to social, cognitive, and physical functioning across the lifespan.