Subscribe
The latest psychology and neuroscience discoveries.
My Account
  • Mental Health
  • Social Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Psychopharmacology
  • Neuroscience
  • About
No Result
View All Result
PsyPost
PsyPost
No Result
View All Result
Home Exclusive Social Psychology

Older adults reflect less on their personality traits than younger adults, study finds

by Mane Kara-Yakoubian
May 4, 2025
in Social Psychology
[Adobe Stock]

[Adobe Stock]

Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
Follow PsyPost on Google News

Older adults reflect less on their personality traits than younger adults, and people with lower emotional stability or extraversion tend to reflect more on these traits, according to new findings published in Self & Identity.

Self-reflection helps individuals understand their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors and plays a critical role in personality development. While personality traits evolve throughout life, this development slows with age. One proposed reason is that older adults may reflect less frequently on their behaviors and traits.

Previous research has examined general self-reflections, like philosophical musings or repetitive brooding, but has rarely focused on trait-specific reflections such as comparing oneself to others or to one’s past self. These specific reflections may better explain how personality changes over time, particularly for traits closely linked to mental health, such as extraversion and emotional stability.

Drawing on large lifespan samples from both Germany and the U.S., Gabriela Küchler and colleagues sought to clarify how people of different ages and personalities reflect on traits like extraversion and emotional stability, and how this behavior might support or inhibit personality development over time.

The researchers recruited a diverse sample of 615 adults from Germany (n = 313) and the United States (n = 304), between ages 18-84. Participants were recruited using Clickworker, an online crowdsourcing platform, and were required to be fluent in English or German, have computer access, and be at least 18 years old. The final sample was balanced across five age groups and genders, with quotas ensuring demographic heterogeneity.

General self-reflections were assessed using a validated scale that distinguished between explorative reflections (thoughtful, philosophical introspection) and ruminative reflections (negative, repetitive thinking). Trait-specific self-reflections focused on how often participants compared themselves to others or their past selves in terms of two personality traits, namely extraversion and emotional stability. These comparisons were measured using specific items tailored to capture social and temporal self-assessment. To assess personality, participants completed the Big Five Inventory-2, which measured levels of open-mindedness, emotional stability, and extraversion.

The researchers found that people who scored higher in open-mindedness reported engaging more in explorative self-reflection, suggesting that curiosity and a desire for self-understanding drive this form of introspection. Meanwhile, those with higher emotional stability, meaning those who experienced less anxiety and emotional volatility, reported lower levels of ruminative reflection, indicating they were less likely to dwell on negative experiences.

When it came to trait-specific reflections, individuals with lower levels of emotional stability or extraversion were more likely to compare themselves to others or to their past selves in these same traits. Interestingly, extraversion was linked primarily to social comparisons, whereas emotional stability was linked to both social and past-temporal comparisons.

Age also played a significant role in shaping self-reflection. Older adults were generally less likely to engage in both ruminative and trait-specific reflections, with these patterns holding even after accounting for their personality trait levels. However, the expected weakening of the link between personality traits and self-reflection with age did not hold.

In fact, in some cases, the associations grew stronger in older adults. For instance, older adults who were more extraverted were much less likely to compare themselves to their past selves than their less extraverted peers. Similarly, older adults who were emotionally stable were especially unlikely to compare themselves to others. These findings suggest that while younger adults may engage in more self-reflection overall, older adults’ reflection behaviors are more tightly linked to their actual personality traits.

This study only examined reflections related to two traits—extraversion and emotional stability—thus, the findings may not generalize to other personality traits.

The study, “Self-reflections across the adult lifespan: associations with personality traits in a binational sample,” was authored by Gabriela Küchler, Kira S. A. Borgdorf, Corina Aguilar-Raab, and Cornelia Wrzus.

TweetSendScanShareSendPinShareShareShareShareShare

RELATED

Some dark personality traits may help buffer against depression, new psychology research suggests
COVID-19

COVID-19 coverage linked to rise in anti-Asian sentiment, especially among Trump supporters

June 17, 2025

Americans became less favorable toward Asians as COVID-19 spread and news coverage intensified, according to a new study. The drop was strongest among Trump supporters, highlighting how political rhetoric and fear shaped public opinion during the pandemic.

Read moreDetails
Some dark personality traits may help buffer against depression, new psychology research suggests
Dark Triad

Some dark personality traits may help buffer against depression, new psychology research suggests

June 17, 2025

Dark traits like narcissism and psychopathy are often associated with dysfunction, but new findings reveal that certain facets—especially Machiavellian agency—might help people manage stress and depression more effectively through adaptive coping strategies.

Read moreDetails
Dark personality traits and specific humor styles are linked to online trolling, study finds
Artificial Intelligence

Memes can serve as strong indicators of coming mass violence

June 15, 2025

A new study finds that surges in visual propaganda—like memes and doctored images—often precede political violence. By combining AI with expert analysis, researchers tracked manipulated content leading up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, revealing early warning signs of instability.

Read moreDetails
Evolutionary scholars worry political trends are impeding progress in evolutionary psychology, according to new study
Social Psychology

Scientists uncover surprisingly consistent pattern of scholarly curiosity throughout history

June 15, 2025

A sweeping new study of thousands of historical scholars suggests that human curiosity may follow a universal blueprint. Across centuries and civilizations, intellectual interests appear to cluster in surprisingly consistent ways—hinting at deep patterns in how we seek knowledge.

Read moreDetails
Poor sleep may shrink brain regions vulnerable to Alzheimer’s disease, study suggests
Political Psychology

Christian nationalists tend to imagine God as benevolent, angry over sins, and engaged

June 14, 2025

Christians who believe God is benevolent, engaged, and angered by sin are more likely to support religious nationalism, according to a new study. This worldview was also associated with conspiracy mentality and xenophobic attitudes.

Read moreDetails
Researchers unveil core traits of malignant narcissism, highlighting its antagonistic nature
Narcissism

Narcissists perceive inequity because they overestimate their contributions, study suggests

June 13, 2025

A new study highlights how narcissism can distort workplace fairness. Researchers found that narcissistic individuals often feel entitled and perceive inequity, suggesting that inflated self-views may skew how people judge their contributions and the rewards they receive.

Read moreDetails
Fear predicts authoritarian attitudes across cultures, with conservatives most affected
Authoritarianism

Fear predicts authoritarian attitudes across cultures, with conservatives most affected

June 13, 2025

A sweeping study of over 84,000 people across 59 countries found that individuals who feel threatened by crime, poverty, or instability are more likely to support authoritarian governance—especially in Western nations and among politically right-leaning individuals.

Read moreDetails
New research links certain types of narcissism to anti-immigrant attitudes
Narcissism

New research links certain types of narcissism to anti-immigrant attitudes

June 13, 2025

New research published in Behavioral Sciences shows that certain narcissistic traits are linked to anti-immigrant attitudes through competitive worldviews and ideological beliefs, highlighting the role of personality in shaping how people view immigrants and social hierarchies.

Read moreDetails

SUBSCRIBE

Go Ad-Free! Click here to subscribe to PsyPost and support independent science journalism!

STAY CONNECTED

LATEST

Frequent pornography use linked to altered brain connectivity and impaired cognitive performance

Childhood trauma linked to changes in brain structure and connectivity, study finds

Psilocybin-assisted therapy linked to reduced depression in people with bipolar disorder, small study finds

COVID-19 coverage linked to rise in anti-Asian sentiment, especially among Trump supporters

Some dark personality traits may help buffer against depression, new psychology research suggests

Dementia risk begins in childhood, not old age, scientists warn

Millennials are abandoning organized religion. A new study provides insight into why

Sleep regularity might be protective of adolescents’ mental health, study suggests

         
       
  • Contact us
  • Privacy policy
  • Terms and Conditions
[Do not sell my information]

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

Subscribe
  • My Account
  • Cognitive Science Research
  • Mental Health Research
  • Social Psychology Research
  • Drug Research
  • Relationship Research
  • About PsyPost
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy