Dispositional Tendency Research Articles

Coping With Anxiety: Brain Structural Correlates of Vigilance and Cognitive Avoidance.

BackgroundIndividuals differ in their dispositional coping behavior when they are confronted with anxiety-provoking situations. Cognitive avoidance is characterized by a withdrawal from threatening information, whereas vigilance denotes the intensive search for threat-related information. Functional neuroimaging studies indicate alterations in brain responsivity to emotional stimuli as a function of cognitive avoidant and vigilant coping, but findings are partially discrepant. Studies on structural correlates of coping styles are scarce.Materials and MethodsBy using structural magnetic resonance imaging, the present study examined the relationship between brain gray matter volume and coping strategies in 114 healthy individuals. Individual differences in vigilance and cognitive avoidance were measured by the Mainz Coping Inventory.ResultsExploratory whole-brain analyses were conducted. Cognitive avoidant coping significantly predicted reduced gray matter volume in the bilateral thalamus, whereas vigilant coping was associated with volumetric increases in the bilateral thalamus. These relationships remained significant when controlling for a potential influence of age, sex, depressive symptoms, and trait anxiety.DiscussionOur findings indicate that dispositional strategies to deal with anxiety-provoking situations are related to volumetric alterations in the thalamus, a brain structure that has been implicated in the mediation of attentional processes and alertness, and the anticipation of harm. The dispositional tendency to monitor the environment for potential threats (i.e., vigilance), appears to be associated with volumetric increases in the thalamus, whereas the dispositional inclination to divert one’s attention away from distressing stimuli (i.e., cognitive avoidance) seems to go along with reductions in thalamic gray matter density.

The dark triad and online self-presentation styles and beliefs

Specific affordances of online spaces allow people to experiment with their self-presentation. Whereas some use these affordances for self-discovery, others may use them to behave malevolently. This study examined the Dark Triad – Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and narcissism – in relation to self-presentation style and beliefs about the benefits of self-presenting in online environments. A sample of 322 adult participants completed a cross-sectional survey assessing both Dark Triad traits and online self-presentation styles and beliefs. Both Machiavellianism and psychopathy were associated with adaptable and inauthentic self-presentation. Machiavellianism was additionally associated with beliefs that online environments allow for freedom in self-presentation. Finally, those high in narcissism presented an authentic self-online and believed that online environments are not beneficial to self-presentation. We conclude that the affordances of the online world appeal to individuals differently, depending on their dispositional tendencies.

Differential Associations between Guilt and Shame Proneness and Religious Coping Styles in a Diverse Sample of Young Adults.

Positive religious coping is linked with better mental health outcomes following physical and sexual abuse while negative religious coping is associated with poorer outcomes. Religious coping styles may be linked with dispositional tendencies to experience guilt or shame. This study compared the associations between guilt and shame proneness and religious coping styles and tested whether abuse history moderated these relationships. We conducted a cross-sectional study with 425 college students (n = 145 with physical and/or sexual abuse history, n = 280 with no abuse history). Participants completed questionnaires assessing positive and negative religious coping style, as well as two dimensions of guilt proneness and shame proneness. Structural equation models were fitted to examine associations between guilt proneness and shame proneness, and positive and negative religious coping, respectively, accounting for abuse history as a binary moderator. Across the full sample, positive religious coping was positively associated with guilt repair (i.e., the tendency to engage in reparative behaviors following one's wrongdoing), guilt negative behavior evaluation (i.e., the tendency to feel bad about how one acted in a given scenario), and shame withdrawal (i.e., the tendency to try and avoid unpleasant situations in which one has done something wrong), and negatively associated with shame negative self-evaluation (i.e., the tendency to make internal, negative self-attributions about one's wrongdoing). Negative religious coping was positively associated with shame withdrawal and, for participants with no abuse history, shame negative self-evaluation. Results suggest that positive religious coping is more closely related to guilt proneness, and negative religious coping to shame proneness. Additional research with longitudinal designs and more defined abuse history subgroups is needed.

Assessment of Fear of Failure Among Medical Students at King Saud University.

BackgroundFear of failure (FoF) is described as a “dispositional tendency to avoid failure in achievement settings.” It may potentially and adversely affect students’ ability to perform well in their educational activities.ObjectivesTo measure FoF among medical students at King Saud University, FoF between men and women, academic levels, grade point average (GPA), and other factors among medical students were compared.MethodA cross-sectional observational study was carried out using a stratified random sampling method. A total of 455 medical students completed “the Performance Failure Appraisal Inventory” during the academic year 2019–2020 at King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.ResultsThe results showed that the mean of FoF was −0.3117. Moreover, higher levels of fear of devaluing one’s self-estimate were seen in women, and higher levels of fear of important others losing interest were seen in men. A significant relation was seen between different academic levels and fear of shame and embarrassment, fear of upsetting important others, as well as FoF. Higher levels of FoF were seen in those who had a GPA below 3.5 and a GPA greater than 4.9. Also, it was high in students who were not interested in studying medicine. The Cronbach’s α value of 0.93 of all items indicates good internal consistency, and the factor analysis confirms five items of an instrument.ConclusionThe overall level of FoF was low among medical students at King Saud University. However, the domains and levels of FoF differed significantly according to gender, academic level, GPA, and interest in studying medicine.

Trait dialectical thinking is associated with the strength of functional coupling between the dACC and the default mode network.

Dialectical thinking is an overarching and sophisticated thinking style that involves accepting and resolving contradictions. The current study examined whether the dispositional tendency of dialectical thinking is mediated by organizational patterns of intrinsic brain networks. Based on previous theoretical and empirical works, we hypothesized that the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC), the hub for conflict processing, shows increased couplings with nodes in the default mode network (DMN). A sample of 380 young and healthy participants completed a self-reported measure of dialectical thinking and underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging scanning. Results of seed-based correlational ROI and whole-brain analyses supported our hypothesis that trait dialectical thinking was positively correlated with the strength of the dACC-DMN couplings. These findings demonstrate the possibility of identifying network-level neural representations of sociocultural orientations.

The personality of male prisoners: Moving towards an integrated temperament-and-character-based theory of criminal and antisocial behavior

PurposeRobust evidence suggests that a full understanding of human functioning requires a model of personality that acknowledges the dynamic nonlinear interactions between developmentally and functionally distinct emotional and sociocognitive processes (i.e. between temperament and character). The purpose of the current study is to provide the first description of prisoner personality acknowledging these interactions. MethodsPersonality was assessed in 184 Portuguese adult male prisoners using the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI). ResultsPrisoners were high in novelty seeking (impulsive and rule-breaking) and harm avoidance (pessimistic), and low in self-directedness (helpless and blaming) and cooperativeness (revengeful and opportunistic). Temperament profiles reflecting emotional dysregulation and immature character profiles were observed to be typical of prisoners. ConclusionsThe observed personality features indicate that criminal and antisocial behavior is a manifestation of personality incoherence where dispositional tendencies for emotional reactivity are weakly regulated by higher order cognitive processes. The study highlights the need for theories of crime to incorporate nonlinear interactions between temperament and character. These results have implications for understanding why people behave antisocially, for identifying those at higher risk of becoming involved in the criminal justice system, and for informing interventions for those already incarcerated.

The tangled webs we wreak: Examining the structure of aggressive personality using psychometric networks.

Trait aggression is a prominent construct in the psychological literature, yet little work has sought to situate trait aggression among broader frameworks of personality. Initial evidence suggests that trait aggression may be best couched within the nomological network of the Five-Factor Model (FFM). The current work sought to locate the most appropriate home for trait aggression among the FFM. We applied a preregistered regimen of psychometric network analyses to three datasets (combined N=2927) that contained self-reports of trait aggression and the FFM traits. Trait aggression was highly central in the factor-level networks, which contained associations consistent with the conceptualization of this construct as a lower-order component of low agreeableness. The facet-level networks revealed that the behavioral facets of trait aggression reflected low agreeableness, but that the anger and hostility facets reflected high neuroticism. The item-level network suggested that the intent to initiate aggressive encounters was the primary bridge that empirically linked trait aggression to agreeableness. Our results indicate that trait aggression is primarily a lower-order facet of agreeableness, advance our understanding of trait aggression, integrate it with broader frameworks of personality, and suggest future directions to refine this complex dispositional tendency.

Receptiveness to Opposing Views: Conceptualization and Integrative Review

The present article reviews a growing body of research on receptiveness to opposing views—the willingness to access, consider, and evaluate contradictory opinions in a relatively impartial manner. First, we describe the construct of receptiveness and consider how it can be measured and studied at the individual level. Next, we extend our theorizing to the interpersonal level, arguing that receptiveness in the course of any given interaction is mutually constituted by the dispositional tendencies and observable behaviors of the parties involved. We advance the argument that receptiveness should be conceptualized and studied as an interpersonal construct that emerges dynamically over the course of an interaction and is powerfully influenced by counterpart behavior. This interpersonal conceptualization of receptiveness has important implications for intervention design and raises a suite of novel research questions.

Psychosocial and behavioral correlates of weight loss 12 to 15 years after bariatric surgery.

While significant weight loss occurs post-bariatric surgery, partial weight regain is common. Psychological and dispositional variables have been examined as predictors of weight change, but most studies have focused on the relationship of preoperative constructs to shorter-term postoperative outcomes. The goal of the current study was to examine associations between weight loss and postoperative psychosocial and behavioral factors up to an average of 13.7years after surgery. The current study was conducted at a large bariatric center in a Midwestern U.S. city. The sample was comprised of 125 adult patients who participated in the second wave of a long-term bariatric surgery outcome study, examining weight history, physical activity, and psychological health and functioning. Correlations between percent total weight loss (%TWL) and psychosocial and behavioral variables were examined. The variables that had significant correlations with %TWL were used in stepwise linear regressions to determine their contribution to %TWL. These same variables were tested to determine differences among those in the highest and lowest weight loss quartiles. Life satisfaction, conscientiousness, positive affect, and regular exercise were positively associated with weight loss in the entire sample and were significantly higher among those in the highest versus the lowest weight-loss quartile. Experiencing a stressful event and food addiction symptoms were negatively associated with weight loss. Positive affect, fewer food addiction symptoms, and regular exercise significantly predicted weight loss, accounting for 23% of the variance in %TWL. Long-term weight loss maintenance after bariatric surgery may be related to positive affect, conscientiousness, regular physical activity, and an addictive-type relationship with food. Future studies should explore these relationships and develop approaches to deal with the interaction between dispositional tendencies and lifestyle factors.

When Motivated Responses to Threat Backfire: Risky Socializing During the COVID-19 Health Crisis

This research examined the relationship between psychological processes that help individuals cope with challenging circumstances and their failure to act to reduce the likelihood and severity of the challenge itself. In two cross-sectional studies of U.S. residents (N = 621) conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, individuals’ motivated responses to threat predicted their noncompliance with directives prohibiting risky socializing: Those who perceived the disease to be a threat to their health were more likely to engage in risky socializing if they avoided information about the pandemic or they exhibited a dispositional tendency to join with other people when stressed. Several alternative causal sequences can account for these findings, but one suggests that the risky socializing during the COVID-19 pandemic was due, in part, to people’s psychological reaction to threat; as people responded to minimize their distress, they inadvertently increased their risk of contracting the illness.

Narrative and choice effects on learning outcomes

ABSTRACT In a 2 (choice) X 2 (message format) study (N = 283), participants were randomly assigned to either have a choice or no choice in message format and to read either a narrative or a non-narrative. They then completed a quiz on the material. We examined whether dispositional tendency to become transported into a narrative (transportability) would increase learning from narrative material, and whether manipulations would affect quiz scores, satisfaction, or performance self-esteem. Choice led to higher quiz scores but did not improve satisfaction or performance self-esteem. Transportability did not predict participants’ choice in material, but it was correlated with higher quiz scores for narrative readers. Findings suggest some educational benefit from choice and matching to narrative-relevant personality traits.

Validation and psychometric properties of the Brazilian-Portuguese dispositional flow scale 2 (DFS-BR).

Flow state is a psychological concept used to describe the optimal engagement in different activities. Therefore, the DFS-2 has been developed as an instrument to measure an individual's dispositional tendency to flow state as a personality trait. Aiming to obtain an adapted version of the DFS-2 for the Brazilian-Portuguese language (DFS-BR) and for general activities, we performed its forward- and backward-translation, and we validated it. After gathering answers from 681 Brazilian participants, we performed: (1) the construct validity of the DFS-BR; and (2) the psychometric item quality analysis. the Confirmatory Factorial Analysis (CFA) indicates the best fit for the gathered data is a nine multi-correlated factorial model (χ2/df = 4.23, CFI = 0.94, TLI = 0.93 and RMSEA = 0.069). Reliability tests performed in this structure indicates excellent internal consistency for the DFS-BR. The item quality analysis indicates that its difficulty and discriminating parameters have a good endorsement to estimate the dispositional flow state. Additionally, we proposed and validated a short version of the DFS-BR (composed of only nine items). The validation results indicates good fit (χ2/df = 2.94, CFI = 0.98, TLI = 0.97 and RMSEA = 0.053) and good internal consistency. The Test Information Curve of the short version indicates that it is very informative in the estimation of individual dispositional flow state. In view of these results, we conclude that the DFS-BR showed good evidence of its validity to be used with Brazilian people. We also suggest the use of a short version when we need only measure the person's flow state based on the principle of Occam's razor. This principle is supported by the analysis presented in this article.

Excluded but not alone. Does social exclusion prevent the occurrence of a Joint Simon Effect (JSE)?

The Joint Simon Effect (JSE) is known to reflect the natural and spontaneous tendency to integrate actions from another individual into our own action system during joint action. This tendency to co-represent others' actions positively correlates with the dispositional tendency to take others' perspective. However, a quick episode of social exclusion has been shown to erase the tendency to co-represent others' actions. From a theoretical viewpoint, excluded individuals should still show signs of co-representation as ostracism tends to increase attention paid to others and Perspective Taking. In this context, this study challenges the idea that social exclusion eliminates all forms of co-representation (or JSE) by using an in-person version of the Task. We also intend to replicate findings on a positive link between Perspective Taking and the size of the JSE. To this end, participants played either an inclusive or exclusive version of the Cyberball game, then performed a joint go-nogo Simon Task. Perspective Taking was measured by using the Interpersonal Reactivity Index. By contrast to previous results, our results revealed that excluded individuals co-represented others' actions as much as included ones. However, a positive correlation between Perspective Taking and the JSE was limited to included participants. We discuss these findings in terms of methodological differences and in the light of the social exclusion literature.

Towards a better understanding of adolescent obsessive-compulsive personality traits and obsessive-compulsive symptoms from growth trajectories of perfectionism.

Although there is increasing attention for the interrelationship between obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD) and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), their shared characteristics in terms of childhood trait antecedents remain understudied. Perfectionism may be a viable candidate trait antecedent, given its role in the clinical manifestation of both OCPD and OCD in adulthood, and the evidence that perfectionism reflects a dispositional tendency observable from childhood onwards. However, little is known about childhood trajectories of perfectionism with prospective links to later OCPD versus OCD. Using latent growth curve modeling, this study explored the baseline and growth of childhood perfectionism in 485 community and referred children (55.5% girls, 7.17-14.78 years old, Mage = 10.74, SD = 1.50) across three waves. Adolescent OCPD traits and OCD symptoms were measured in Wave 4. An overall decreasing trend of perfectionism from childhood through adolescence appeared, without inter-individual differences in growth. Individual differences in baseline levels of childhood perfectionism were significant, and equally predicting adolescent OCPD and OCD outcomes. At a more specific level, childhood perfectionism predicted most strongly the rigid perfectionism component of OCPD, and the orderliness/cleanliness/perfectionism and obsession domain of OCD. This demonstrates the value of childhood perfectionism for understanding differential outcomes of adolescent OCPD traits and OCD symptoms.

Self-Consciousness in Online Shopping Behavior

Self-consciousness can be considered as the internal disposition to direct attention to oneself. This dispositional tendency can be focused on private aspects of the self, but also on public characteristics of the individual. We examine self-consciousness in online consumer behavior. This concept has been poorly investigated in consumer research. The main objective of this paper is to analyze the influence of the dimensions of self-consciousness in consumer adoption of online shopping. This study is based on a sample of 725 Spanish undergraduates. Findings indicated that public self-consciousness is a significant predictor of the adoption of online shopping, and inversely affects perceived ease of use and usefulness. These results may have important implications in the segmentation of users of self-service technologies.

Autistic traits and loneliness in autism are associated with increased tendencies to anthropomorphise.

Anthropomorphism-the attribution of human qualities to non-human objects-is believed to be a natural tendency which may serve several adaptive functions. One possibility is that anthropomorphism provides an egocentric heuristic by which we can understand the world. It may also be a strategy for reducing our subjective sense of loneliness. However, not all humans exhibit the same propensity to anthropomorphise. Recent findings suggest that autistic individuals may be more likely to anthropomorphise than non-autistic individuals. In Study 1, we conducted a large-scale survey of autistic traits and dispositional anthropomorphism in the general population (n = 870). We found that individuals who reported having more autistic traits had an increased dispositional tendency to anthropomorphise non-human entities. In Study 2, we more closely examined variation in anthropomorphism tendencies in a sample of autistic adults (n = 90) to better understand what might drive increased anthropomorphism in this population. We found that those with greater anthropomorphism tendencies experienced greater levels of self-reported loneliness. We propose that increased anthropomorphism might reflect reduced opportunities for social connection for autistic people and those with more autistic traits.

The role of two emotion regulation tendencies across two waiting periods

The distress associated with uncertainty differs in important ways from distress over clear and present stressors. Emotion regulation (ER) tendencies—namely reappraisal and suppression—have received considerable empirical attention, but the stressful uncertainty of waiting for important news poses unique ER challenges. Two longitudinal studies examined the role of these dispositional ER tendencies in predicting well-being (e.g., emotions, worry, subjective health, expectation management efforts) during uncertain waiting periods. Study 1 surveyed undergraduate students awaiting their grade on a midterm exam (N = 137; a 5-day wait); Study 2 surveyed law graduates awaiting their result on the California bar exam (N = 230; a 4-month wait). Consistently with past research, reappraisal was generally associated with positive markers of well-being. However, suppression was largely unassociated with well-being, in contrast with previous evidence. Our findings confirm the unique context of uncertain waiting periods and suggest that suppression may not be as detrimental during these periods as in other stressful situations.

Reciprocal effects of personality and general distress: Neuroticism vulnerability is stronger than scarring.

Internalizing (anxiety and depressive) disorders, and the symptoms that comprise them, are known for being chronic and recurrent. Neuroticism, reflecting dispositional tendencies toward negative affect, is a personality trait that bears durable cross-sectional and prospective associations with internalizing symptoms. There are also indications that extraversion, consisting of tendencies such as the heightened experience of positive emotion, is associated with these symptoms. Some investigators have posited that the experience of internalizing symptoms leaves residual effects, or scars, on personality traits, with the effect of raising risk of symptom reexacerbation. In the present study, we compare vulnerability and scar effects in a sample of older adolescents (N = 606) at risk for the development of internalizing disorders. Anxiety and depressive symptoms were assessed annually, as were neuroticism, extraversion, and other trait-like cognitive vulnerabilities. Cross-lagged panel models compared the relative strength of vulnerability and scar effects, revealing support for vulnerability effects but little evidence of scar effects. The results also showed that whatever scar effects might be present are weaker than vulnerability effects in the case of neuroticism. These findings underscore the importance of personality vulnerability for internalizing symptom risk by suggesting that neuroticism vulnerability is stronger than any lasting scars the experience of internalizing symptoms produce. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Need for Cognition Partially Mediates the Relationship Between Cognition and Subjective Well-Being

Aspects of cognitive functioning have been linked to measures of subjective well-being both cross-sectionally (Jones et al., 2003) and over time (Enkvist et al., 2013) but the mechanisms underlying this relationship remain unclear. One potential mechanism may be individuals’ need for cognition, or the dispositional tendency to enjoy and engage in effortful cognitive activities (Cacioppo & Petty, 1982). Analyses were conducted to examine need for cognition as a mediator of the relationship between five domains of cognition (episodic memory, processing speed, reasoning, spatial visualization, and vocabulary) and four dimensions of subjective well-being (life satisfaction, positive affect, negative affect, and depressive symptomatology) cross-sectionally in a large sample of healthy adults between the ages of 18-99. Results indicate that need for cognition partially mediates the relationship between all five domains of cognition and life satisfaction, negative affect, and depressive symptomatology, but does not mediate the relationship between cognition and positive affect.

Interactions between the neural correlates of dispositional internally directed thought and visual imagery.

Cognition is not always directed to the events in the here and now and we often self-generate thoughts and images in imagination. Important aspects of these self-generated experiences are associated with various dispositional traits. In this study, we explored whether these psychological associations relate to a common underlying neurocognitive mechanism. We acquired resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging data from a large cohort of participants and asked them to retrospectively report their experience during the scan. Participants also completed questionnaires reflecting a range of dispositional traits. We found thoughts emphasizing visual imagery at rest were associated with dispositional tendency towards internally directed attention (self-consciousness and attentional problems) and linked to a stronger correlation between a posterior parietal network and a lateral fronto-temporal network. Furthermore, decoupling between the brainstem and a lateral visual network was associated with dispositional internally directed attention. Critically, these brain-cognition associations were related: the correlation between parietal-frontal regions and reports of visual imagery was stronger for individuals with increased connectivity between brainstem and visual cortex. Our results highlight neural mechanisms linked to the dispositional basis for patterns of self-generated thought, and suggest that accounting for dispositional traits is important when exploring the neural substrates of self-generated experience (and vice versa). This article is part of the theme issue 'Offline perception: voluntary and spontaneous perceptual experiences without matching external stimulation'.