Ana Butković

Reciprocal Associations between Parenting Challenges and Parents' Personality Development in Young and Middle Adulthood

Having children affects many aspects of peoples lives. However, it remains unclear to what degree the challenges that come along with having children are associated with parents’ personality development. We addressed this question in two studies by investigating the relationship between parenting challenges and personality development in mothers of newborns (Study 1, N = 556) and the reciprocal associations between (mastering) parenting challenges and personality development in parents of adolescents (Study 2, N = 548 mothers and 460 fathers). In Study 1, we found the stress of having a newborn baby to be associated with declines in maternal Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Emotional Stability. Parenting challenges were also related to personality development in parents of adolescent children in Study 2, with parent–child conflict being reciprocally associated with decreases in Conscientiousness and Emotional Stability. Mastering parenting challenges in the form of high parenting self–efficacy, on the other hand, was found to be associated with increases in Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Emotional Stability, and vice versa. In sum, our results suggest that mastering the challenges associated with the social role of parenthood is one of the mechanisms underlying personality development in young and middle adulthood. Copyright

Generation and sex differences in sensation seeking: Results of the family study.

Previous research regarding sex and age differences for sensation seeking in English, American, Canadian, and Australian samples showed clear sex differences and a decline of sensation seeking across ages. The 1978 Form V of the Sensation Seeking Scale was administered to a Croatian sample of 151 high school students and their 226 parents. Analysis showed that parents had lower mean scores than their children, consistent with the hypothesis that sensation seeking declines with age. Male subjects scored higher on the total Sensation Seeking, and Thrill and Adventure Seeking, Disinhibition, and Boredom Susceptibility subscales than female subjects, while there was no difference between male and female subjects on the Experience Seeking scale. Also, several sex-by-generation interactions were significant.

Sleep duration and personality in Croatian twins

The objective of this study was to examine which genetic and environmental influences contribute to individual differences in sleep duration in a sample of Croatian adolescent/early adult twins, as well as to investigate the relationship between personality and sleep duration. Participants included 339 twin pairs (105 monozygotic and 234 dizygotic) aged between 15 and 22 years. They reported on their average sleep duration and personality. The broad heritability estimate (additive and non‐additive genetic influences) for sleep duration was 0.63, while personality estimates ranged between 0.47 and 0.62. Significant negative phenotypic associations with neuroticism and openness were mainly genetically mediated 100 and 80%, respectively. Only 6% of the sleep duration variance was explained by genetic influences shared with neuroticism and openness. In regression analysis, age, gender and five personality traits explained 5% of sleep duration variance, with neuroticism and openness as significant predictors. Comparison of short, moderate and long sleepers showed that participants in the short sleepers group had significantly higher neuroticism scores than groups of moderate and long sleepers, as well as a significantly higher openness score than the group of long sleepers. This indicates that personality traits of neuroticism and openness contribute to the prediction of sleep duration due to overlapping genetic influences that contribute to both these personality traits and sleep duration. However, as phenotypic overlap of personality and sleep duration is relatively weak, heritability of sleep duration is not only related to individual differences in personality traits, so future research needs to examine other phenotypic correlates of sleep duration.

Personality traits and alcohol consumption of classical and heavy metal musicians

The purpose of this study was to compare personality traits using the Big Five personality taxonomy and alcohol consumption of classical and heavy metal musicians. Also, we compared personality traits of classical and heavy metal musicians with norms for the Croatian population, and data on alcohol consumption with a representative sample of the general Croatian population. Participants in the study were men (N = 249) playing either classical (N = 113) or heavy metal music (N = 136). Personality was measured with the IPIP-50 personality questionnaire and participants answered several questions about alcohol consumption. We found no significant differences in personality traits between classical and heavy metal musicians, but both classical and heavy metal musicians differed significantly in personality from the norms, having higher scores on extraversion, agreeableness, and especially intellect. Belonging to a heavy metal musicians group was associated with consuming alcohol more often. Also, frequency of alcohol consumption was statistically higher for heavy metal musicians than in the general population.

Sensation Seeking and Spatial Ability in Athletes: an Evolutionary Account

Sensation Seeking and Spatial Ability in Athletes: an Evolutionary Account The aim of this study was threefold: (a) to examine sex differences in sensation seeking and spatial abilities in a sample of athlete students, (b) to explore whether measures of sensation seeking and spatial ability can be used to distinguish between athletes engaging in sports of different levels of risk, and (c) to explore the relationship between sensation seeking and spatial abilities in a sample of athlete students. A total of 201 students athletes engaged in sports of different levels of risk completed the Spatial relations test, Mental rotation test, and Zuckermans Sensation Seeking Scale-V. Men scored higher than women in both measures of spatial abilities and on DIS, while women scored higher than men on ES. High-risk group had higher SSS and TAS scores than low- and medium- risk groups, and low-risk group had lower DIS scores than medium- and high-risk group, but there were no differences in spatial ability among athletes engaged in sports of different levels of risk. Spatial ability correlated with sensation seeking measures in men only. The results are discussed in terms of possible common biological background of these two sex-dimorphic traits.

Can flow experiences be protective of work-related depressive symptoms and burnout? A genetically informative approach

BACKGROUND Genetic research on depression and burnout has focused mostly on adverse factors, although various aspects in daily life related to positive coping and well-being have been shown to potentially be protective. Using a large genetically informative sample, we aim to explore the potential relationship between flow proneness and work-related depressive symptoms and burnout. METHODS About 10,000 Swedish twins filled in the Swedish Flow Proneness Questionnaire, a subscale of the Hopkins Symptom Checklist (SCL) depression scale, and the Emotional Exhaustion subscale of the Maslach Burnout Inventory-General Survey. A higher score indicated more flow, less emotional exhaustion and less depression. The classical twin design and co-twin control analyses were applied. RESULTS Phenotypic correlations were .43 between depressive symptoms and flow proneness, .34 between burnout and flow proneness, and .62 between depressive symptoms and burnout. Broad-sense heritabilities (G) ranged between 33-35% for the three variables. Associations between the variables were due to significant genetic as well as non-shared environmental influences. Co-twin control analyses showed that associations remained significant when controlling for all genetic and shared familial factors, in line with a causal relationship. LIMITATIONS Although the co-twin control design can test for consistency of associations with a causal relationship, it cannot unequivocally establish causality. CONCLUSIONS Genetic liability has a substantial influence on associations between flow proneness and emotional problems at work (depression, burnout). However, the presence of significant environmental correlations is in line with a (partly) causal relationship between flow and work related depression and burnout, which in turn may suggest that interventions which increase flow could potentially reduce emotional problems at work.

Physical activity and personality : A behaviour genetic analysis

Objectives: The aim of this study was to obtain a heritability estimate of exercise behaviour in twins and to examine the genetic and environmental contributions to phenotypic associations between personality and exercise behaviour. Design: Twin study was used, the sample including 339 twin pairs (105 MZ and 234 DZ), between 15 and 22 years of age (M = 18.6, SD = 2.31). Method: The participants filled in a NEO‐FFI personality inventory and answered two questions about the frequency (FPE) and intensity (IPE) of physical exercise. We also calculated the composite physical exercise score (CS) representing a combination of FPE and IPE items. Results: The broad heritability estimates of three physical exercise variables (FPE, IPE, CS) were significant, with results in the 0.55 to 0.69 range. We found significant phenotypic associations with neuroticism and extraversion. Contrary to our expectations, correlations with conscientiousness were not significant. People scoring higher on extraversion and lower on neuroticism reported exercising more often and more intensely. Phenotypic association between personality traits and physical exercise variables were due to overlapping genetic influences. Conclusions: Our results indicate that the genetic factors contributing to an active lifestyle overlap with those contributing to personality traits extraversion and neuroticism, in line with the “nature” hypothesis which infers the presence of biological differences in predisposition for regular physical activity. Highlights339 twin pairs (105 MZ) filled in personality and physical exercise measures.Broad heritability estimates for physical exercise were in the 0.55 to 0.69 range.There were significant phenotypic associations with neuroticism and extraversion.These phenotypic associations were due to overlapping genetic influences.