Associations and Interactions Between Neuroticism, Adverse Life Events and Health Anxiety: Results From a Large Representative Cohort

TL;DR

This study shows that neuroticism and adverse life events are linked to health anxiety, with illness/death events interacting slightly with neuroticism.

Contribution

The study reveals a small interaction between neuroticism and illness/death-related adversity in relation to health anxiety.

Findings

Both adverse life events and neuroticism are positively associated with health anxiety.

No difference in association with health anxiety was found between illness/death and other adverse events.

Neuroticism interacts slightly with illness/death-related adversity in relation to health anxiety.

Abstract

Adverse life events and neuroticism have been shown to be associated with health anxiety (HA), but their interaction has not been studied. This study aimed to examine the separate associations as well as the possible interaction effect of neuroticism and adverse life events with HA.

Cross-sectional self-report data originated from a representative Danish population cohort (DanFunD) (N = 7,493, 18-72 years, 53% females). Primary measures were HA (Whiteley Index 6 revised), neuroticism (NEO personality Inventory Revised short form), and adverse life events (Cumulative Lifetime Adversity Measure, CLAM). The CLAM was split into illness/death related life events (IDE) and other adverse life events (OAE) to test the specificity of IDEs.

Adjusted ordinal logistic regression models showed positive associations with HA for IDEs (OR = 1.05, CI [1.03, 1.08]), OAEs (OR = 1.05, CI [1.03, 1.07]) and neuroticism (OR = 1.08, CI [1.07, 1.09]). A Wald's test revealed no difference in association with HA for IDEs and OAEs (p = .82). Adjusted models showed an interaction effect for neuroticism*IDEs (OR = 1.002, CI [1.000, 1.004]), but not for neuroticism*OAEs (OR = 0.999, CI [0.996, 1.002]).

Associations with HA were found for both adverse life events and neuroticism. Size of association did not differ for IDEs and OAEs. Only IDEs interacted with neuroticism.

Neuroticism and adverse life events are associated with health anxiety.No difference in effect size between illness/death and other types of adversity was found.Illness/death related adversity interact with neuroticism in their association with health anxiety.Interaction between Illness/death related adversity and neuroticism was small.

Neuroticism and adverse life events are associated with health anxiety.

No difference in effect size between illness/death and other types of adversity was found.

Illness/death related adversity interact with neuroticism in their association with health anxiety.

Interaction between Illness/death related adversity and neuroticism was small.