NEUROBIOLOGICAL FACTORS IN PERSONALITY AND DEPRESSION

There is very little empirical work that directly assesses the neurobi ological association of personality superfactors with the liability to depression. Therefore, as a means of providing a framework for future research, this article outlines the putative neurobiological foundati on of three major personality superfactors: positive emotionality or e xtraversion, constraint or psychoticism, and negative emotionality or neuroticism. The neurobiology of these superfactors, particularly the central dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine projection systems, re spectively, is derived largely from animal biobehavioral research, alt hough human work is discussed where available. In an attempt to explor e the association of this framework to depression, extreme quantitativ e variation in the resulting neurobiological systems, alone and in int eraction with each other, is discussed in terms of different forms of depression and of modification of the phenotype and course of depressi on. The effects of experience on neurobiological functioning is briefl y considered as a therapeutic approach, in lieu of, or in interaction with, pharmacological modulation of behavior.