Prospective Associations of Adolescent Conscientiousness With Psychological Resources and Metabolic Syndrome in Black and White Men

• NCJ Number: 254362
• Journal: Psychosomatic Medicine Volume: 81 Issue: 4 Dated: 2019 Pages: 341-351
• Author(s): Katherine A. Duggan; Richard J. Jennings; Karen A Matthews
• Date Published: 2019
• Length: 11 pages
• Grant Number(s): 96-MU-FX-0012
• Sponsoring Agency: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP)
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical); Report (Study/Research); Report (Grant Sponsored); Program/Project Description
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study is the first to test two competing hypotheses for prospective associations between adolescent conscientiousness and adult psychological resources and lower metabolic syndrome (MetS).

Abstract

Conscientiousness predicts better psychological resources, as well as lower cardiovascular mortality and lower metabolic syndrome (MetS) risk; however, the benefits of conscientiousness might be amplified, disabled, or reversed in disadvantaged groups. In examining these competing hypotheses, the current study involved 220 men (54.6 percent Black) from the Pittsburgh Youth Study. Adolescent conscientiousness (M [SD] age = 16 [1]) was rated by participants and their parents. Adult (M [SD] age = 32 [1]) socioeconomic status (SES; occupation and education), psychological resources (composite of positive affect, purpose in life, optimism, self-mastery, and self-esteem), and MetS scores (glucose, lipids, waist circumference, and blood pressure) were measured. Hierarchical regressions were used to assess the association of conscientiousness with adult psychological resources and MetS scores, with testing of moderation by race and SES. Self-reported and parent-reported conscientiousness were associated with better psychological resources (s = 0.23-0.29, ps .015), with no moderation by race or socioeconomic status. In the full sample, a three-way interaction of self-reported conscientiousness, race, and SES was obtained for MetS ( = 0.12, p = .093). Subgroup analysis indicated that self-reported conscientiousness was related to higher MetS scores in low SES Black men (int = 0.22, p = .022), but there was no comparable linear (s ; 0.08, ps .50) or interaction (s 4; 0.13 ps .25) pattern in White men. The study concluded that adolescent conscientiousness was beneficial for adult psychological resources, regardless of race or SES; however, there may be physiological costs of conscientiousness for Black men from disadvantaged backgrounds. (publisher abstract modified)