title: Associations between repression, general maladjustment, body weight, and body shape in older males: the Normative Aging Study.
abstract: We examined relationships between repression, general maladjustment, body mass index (BMI), and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR). The participants were 1,081 healthy older men from the Normative Aging Study. Repression and General Maladjustment Scales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory were composite measures of personality. Repression was associated with lower BMI and WHR, and maladjustment with higher BMI and WHR. However, associations between WHR and personality dimensions were no longer significant when controlling for BMI, but associations between BMI and personality dimensions remained significant when controlling for WHR. These effects were explained by differing relationships between WHR, repression, and maladjustment for normal weight, overweight, and obese individuals. Specifically, associations between repression, maladjustment, and body shape were significant for normal weight and overweight individuals, but not for obese individuals. Health behaviors including smoking did not mediate relationships between repression, maladjustment, and body shape, but might be considered in future studies as mechanisms underlying links between personality and body shape.
authors.affiliation: Centers for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine, Brown Medical School and the Miriam Hospital, Providence, RI 02903, USA. Raymond_Niaura@brown.edu
authors.forename: Raymond S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Niaura
authors.forename: Laura R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Stroud
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Todaro
authors.forename: Kenneth D
authors.initials: KD
authors.lastname: Ward
authors.forename: Avron
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Spiro
authors.forename: Carolyn
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Aldwin
authors.forename: Lewis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Landsberg
authors.forename: Scott T
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Weiss
mesh_terms: D000275:Adjustment Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D001828:Body Image; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D008950:MMPI; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010554:Personality Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012094:Repression, Psychology