Extraversion Moderates the Relationship Between the Stringency of COVID-19 Protective Measures and Depressive Symptoms

Abstract

From the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, psychologists are theorizing that, as compared to introverts, extraverts experience more profound negative social consequences from protective measures (e.g., travel restrictions and bans on public gatherings). As the empirical evidence for this claim is lacking, this study tested the hypothesis that extraversion moderates the relationship between the stringency of COVID-19 protective measures and depressive symptoms. Our results were based on survey data from 93,125 respondents collected in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic (March 20–April 6, 2020) across 47 countries and publicly available data on measure stringency. Findings demonstrate that extraversion moderates the relationship between measure stringency in the early days of the pandemic and depressive symptoms. For introverts, measure stringency has a negative effect on depressive symptoms, while for extraverts, it has a positive, but non-significant effect on depressive symptoms. This study suggests that, although stringent measures generally help people to worry less and feel safer, the lifestyle associated with such measures feels more natural to introverts than to extraverts.

Big Five traits as Predictors of Perceived Stressfulness of the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…It is important to point out that these effects were observed when controlling for other Big Five traits (i.e., conscientiousness, agreeableness, openness). Overall, these results are consistent with the differential reactivity model of personality and stress (Bolger & Zuckerman, 1995) and recent findings in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, suggesting that both extraversion (Nikčević et al, 2020;Wijngaards et al, 2020) and emotional stability (Kocjan et al, 2020;Kroencke et al, 2020;Lee & Crunk, 2020;Liu et al, 2020;Pradhan et al, 2020) relate to general levels of perceived stress, mental health, and subjective wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic.…”

“…participants from 47 countries found that the stringency of protective measures (e.g., travel restrictions, ban of public events) during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic (i.e., end of March to early April 2020) was associated with fewer depressive symptoms among less extraverted people, whereas there was no significant relationship among more extraverted people (Wijngaards et al, 2020). Another cross-sectional study found that extraversion was negatively related to health-and COVID-19-related anxiety and, in turn, depressive symptoms and generalized anxiety (Nikčević et al, 2020).…”

Mental Distress and Its Contributing Factors Among Young People During the First Wave of COVID-19: A Belgian Survey Study

“…It can be assumed that this subgroup of outgoing young people is characterized by high sensation-seeking, and that the lack of sensation causes distressing boredom. This idea is supported by research which found that the COVID-19 measures feel more unnatural for extravert people, leading to higher decreases in mental wellbeing and social connectedness as compared to introvert people (46,47).…”

How personality traits of neuroticism and extroversion predict the effects of the COVID-19 on the mental health of Canadians

“…One group of researchers claim that the lifestyle associated with social distancing during the pandemic might feel more unusual to extroverts than to people who score lower in extroversion, as individuals who score higher in extroversion trait are energized by crowds and social interactions, and seek the company of others when stressed [ 48 ]. Therefore, social isolation by inhibiting their need for social engagement might have more deleterious effects on the mental health of individuals who score higher in extroversion compared to people who score lower in extroversion, who continue to enjoy spending time in their solitude like the time before social distancing [ 49 ]. Many articles published on widely-visited popular websites such as Bloomberg (2020), Reuters (2020), The Conversation (2020) and the psychology website Psychology Today (2020) have introduced introversion as an asset for flourishing during social isolation related to COVID-19 [ 50 – 53 ].…”