Reactance and personality: assessing psychological reactance using a biopsychosocial and person-centered approach

Abstract

Reactance is a critical concept for understanding adolescents’ noncompliance and resistance to behavioral change. Traditionally, reactance has been conceptualized as a state comprising negative emotions and cognitions. However, research indicates that one’s proneness to reactance can be considered a personality trait. The present study aimed to develop a current understanding of individual differences in trait reactance from a biopsychosocial perspective. Adolescents (n = 1837) completed Cloninger’s Junior Temperament and Character Inventory and two validated measures of trait reactance. A person-centered analytical approach was used to assess how clusters of adolescents with distinct temperament profiles, character profiles (Latent Profile Analysis), and integrated temperament-character personality networks (Latent Class Analysis) differed in reactance. High reactance was characteristic of adolescents with temperament profiles involving high novelty seeking and low harm avoidance. High behavioral reactance was characteristic of adolescents with immature character profiles. Finally, high reactance was characteristic of adolescents with integrated personality networks reflecting emotional instability, immature intentionality, and low self-awareness.. This study expands current knowledge by showing how individual differences in trait reactance correspond to structural differences in personality. Specifically, our findings indicate that high trait reactance in adolescents is an expression of maladaptive organizations of biopsychosocial processes. This more nuanced understanding of trait reactance can aid the development of contexts (e.g. clinical, educational, society, communication) for promoting positive outcomes in adolescents will all types of personality.