TY - JOUR
T1 - Personality Predictors of Cognitive Dispersion
T2 - A Coordinated Analysis of Data From Seven International Studies of Older Adults
AU - Yoneda, Tomiko
AU - Marroig, Alejandra
AU - Graham, Eileen K.
AU - Willroth, Emily C.
AU - Watermeyer, Tamlyn
AU - Beck, Emorie D.
AU - Zelinski, Elizabeth M.
AU - Reynolds, Chandra A.
AU - Pedersen, Nancy L.
AU - Hofer, Scott M.
AU - Mroczek, Daniel K.
AU - Muniz-Terrera, Graciela
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021. American Psychological Association
PY - 2022
Y1 - 2022
N2 - Objectives: Dispersion in cognitive test performance within a single testing session is proposed as an early marker of poor brain health. Existing research, however, has not investigated factors that may explain individual differences in cognitive dispersion. We investigate the extent to which the Big Five personality traits are associated with cognitive dispersion in older adulthood. Method: To promote transparency and reliability, we applied preregistration and conceptual replication via coordinated analysis. Drawing data from seven longitudinal studies of aging (Ntotal = 33,581; Mage range = 56.4–71.2), cognitive dispersion scores were derived from cognitive test results. Independent linear regression models were fit in each study to examine personality traits as predictors of dispersion scores, adjusting for mean cognitive performance and sociodemographics (age, sex, education). Results from individual studies were synthesized using random effects meta-analyses. Results: Synthesized results revealed that openness was positively associated with cognitive dispersion, 0.028, 95% CI [0.003, 0.054]. There was minimal evidence for associations between cognitive dispersion and the other personality traits in independent analyses or meta-analyses. Mean cognitive scores were negatively associated with cognitive dispersion across the majority of studies, while sociodemographic variables were not consistently associated with cognitive dispersion. Conclusion: Higher levels of openness were associated with greater cognitive dispersion across seven independent samples, indicating that individuals higher in openness had more dispersion across cognitive tests. Further research is needed to investigate mechanisms that may help to explain the link between openness and cognitive dispersion, as well as to identify additional individual factors, beyond personality traits, that may be associated with cognitive dispersion.
AB - Objectives: Dispersion in cognitive test performance within a single testing session is proposed as an early marker of poor brain health. Existing research, however, has not investigated factors that may explain individual differences in cognitive dispersion. We investigate the extent to which the Big Five personality traits are associated with cognitive dispersion in older adulthood. Method: To promote transparency and reliability, we applied preregistration and conceptual replication via coordinated analysis. Drawing data from seven longitudinal studies of aging (Ntotal = 33,581; Mage range = 56.4–71.2), cognitive dispersion scores were derived from cognitive test results. Independent linear regression models were fit in each study to examine personality traits as predictors of dispersion scores, adjusting for mean cognitive performance and sociodemographics (age, sex, education). Results from individual studies were synthesized using random effects meta-analyses. Results: Synthesized results revealed that openness was positively associated with cognitive dispersion, 0.028, 95% CI [0.003, 0.054]. There was minimal evidence for associations between cognitive dispersion and the other personality traits in independent analyses or meta-analyses. Mean cognitive scores were negatively associated with cognitive dispersion across the majority of studies, while sociodemographic variables were not consistently associated with cognitive dispersion. Conclusion: Higher levels of openness were associated with greater cognitive dispersion across seven independent samples, indicating that individuals higher in openness had more dispersion across cognitive tests. Further research is needed to investigate mechanisms that may help to explain the link between openness and cognitive dispersion, as well as to identify additional individual factors, beyond personality traits, that may be associated with cognitive dispersion.
KW - Coordinated analysis
KW - Intravisit cognitive variability
KW - Older adults
KW - Personality
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U2 - 10.1037/neu0000782
DO - 10.1037/neu0000782
M3 - Article
C2 - 34807640
AN - SCOPUS:85120862067
SN - 0894-4105
VL - 36
SP - 103
EP - 115
JO - Neuropsychology
JF - Neuropsychology
IS - 2
ER -