Intolerance of Uncertainty and Neuroticism: Transdiagnostic Vulnerabilities and War-Related Safety Preparatory Behavior

Abstract

The aim of the study was to understand the role of transdiagnostic vulnerabilities, namely intolerance of uncertainty (IU) and neuroticism, in initiating safety-seeking preparatory behaviors under the threat of an imminent war. A sample of N = 1460 adults were recruited via convenience sampling in March 2022, after the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war from nearing countries. Due to the lack of suitable measures in the literature to cover the phenomenon, first a short inventory for measuring these safety actions, the War-Related Preparatory Safety-Seeking Inventory (W-PRESS) was elaborated and validated via Item Response Theory. Next, a transdiagnostic cognitive behavioral framework was proposed for the determinants of W-PRESS: IU (IUS-12), fear of war (FoW), neuroticism (Big-Five), and anxiety (DASS). The SEM results confirmed the proposed model. A strong positive relationship was found of both IU and neuroticism with anxiety, FoW, and W-PRESS. Higher neuroticism was associated with higher W-PRESS, fully mediated by IU. IU also partially mediated the relationship of neuroticism with anxiety and FoW, respectively. In contextual uncertainty evoked by the outbreak of the nearby war, dispositional vulnerabilities, like IU and neuroticism may enhance the individual level of crisis management in the sense of preparing for and dealing with emerging risks.