RELATION BETWEEN THE LONGITUDINAL DEVELOPMENT OF PERSONALITY-CHARACTERISTICS AND BIOLOGICAL AND LIFE-STYLE RISK-FACTORS FOR CORONARY HEART-DISEASE

Objective: This study was undertaken to assess the stability of person ality characteristics tie, inadequacy, rigidity, dominance, self-suffi ciency, and social inadequacy) over a 15-year period covering adolesce nce and young adulthood and to analyze the longitudinal relationships between personality characteristics and both biological tie, lipoprote ins, blood pressure, and body fatness) and lifestyle tie, physical act ivity, dietary intake, smoking, and alcohol consumption) risk factors for coronary heart disease (CHD). Methods: The data were derived from the Amsterdam Growth and Health Study, an observational longitudinal s tudy in which, over a period from 13 to 27 years of age, six repeated measurements were performed on 181 subjects. Both the stability analys is and the analysis of the longitudinal relationships were performed b y generalized estimating equations (GEE). This method is suitable for both continuous and dichotomous outcome variables, by using all availa ble longitudinal data. Results: Stability coefficients for the persona lity characteristics varied between 0.39 for self-sufficiency and domi nance and 0.53 for social inadequacy. Self-sufficiency was inversely r elated to total serum cholesterol (only male subjects) and body fatnes s; inadequacy was inversely related to systolic blood pressure. Domina nce (female subjects) was positively related to body fatness and socia l inadequacy (male subjects) was positively related to total serum cho lesterol. Furthermore, inadequacy was positively related to smoking be havior. Social inadequacy and rigidity were inversely related to smoki ng behavior. Self-sufficiency was inversely related to alcohol consump tion. Conclusions: Over a period of 15 years, personality characterist ics showed marginal stability. Weak relationships were found between p ersonality characteristics and both biological and lifestyle CHD risk factors.