A-12 Neuroticism and Extraversion are Related to Dual Task Postural Stability in Healthy Young Adults

Abstract

Abstract Objective The relation between personality and postural stability has received little attention. This study addressed whether neuroticism and extraversion are related to changes in postural stability and cognitive functioning during a standing balance task. Method Thirty-two healthy young adults completed a personality measure and two cognitive tasks, a 2-back task and a weather prediction task (WPT), both while seated and in tandem stance on a foam mat. Sway was quantified via normalized path lengths, and correlation coefficients were calculated between neuroticism, extraversion and dual task changes in postural stability and cognitive functioning. Results Consistent with predictions, higher neuroticism was related to increased dual task sway during the 2-back task, r = 0.40, p = 0.023, and lower extraversion was related to increased dual task sway during the WPT, r = -0.43, p = 0.013. Conclusions The results suggest that personality is related to postural stability in healthy young adults and that personality should be considered in the prediction of individuals at risk for falling or in the treatment of individuals with balance difficulties. The task-specific nature of the relation is discussed and may be due to differences in anxiety or underlying brain mechanisms between high neuroticism and low extraversion.