title: Association of Type D personality with cognitive functioning in individuals with and without cardiovascular disease - The Gutenberg Health Study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Distressed ('Type D') personality is associated with adverse health outcomes in patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD). While personality traits from the Five-Factor Model are related to cognitive functioning, neither Type D personality nor its underlying traits negative affectivity (NA) and social inhibition (SI) have been investigated regarding cognition. We therefore compared the predictive value of Type D classification and its subcomponents NA and SI on planning performance in individuals with and without CVD.
  
  
  METHODS
  Type D personality traits (DS14) were determined in a population-based sample of 4026 participants (including 549 with CVD) aged 40-80years from the Gutenberg Health Study (GHS) and related to planning performance as assessed with the Tower of London task. Current depression and anxiety were controlled as state variables.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Type D personality status was negatively associated with planning performance in the CVD patient group only (p<0.001) but had no impact in the non-CVD group (p=0.40). In the overall sample, NA was negatively and SI positively associated with planning performance. No differential effect on planning between groups was found for depression and anxiety.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  While the subcomponents NA and SI in the population-based sample confirm and extend previous research on personality traits and cognition, Type D personality classification in combination with CVD emerged as a risk factor for decreased cognitive functioning, independent of depression and anxiety. These findings implicate the need to early focus on individual differences in cognitive functioning in patients with CVD.
authors.affiliation: Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany. Electronic address: unterrai@uni-mainz.de.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Unterrainer
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Michal
authors.affiliation: Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rahm
authors.affiliation: Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hadzibegovic
authors.affiliation: Preventive Cardiology and Preventive Medicine, Department of Medicine II, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany; Center for Thrombosis and Hemostasis, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany; German Center for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK), partner site Hamburg/Kiel/Lübeck, Hamburg, Germany; German Center for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK), partner site RhineMain, Mainz, Germany.
authors.forename: P S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Wild
authors.affiliation: Preventive Cardiology and Preventive Medicine, Department of Medicine II, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Schulz
authors.affiliation: German Center for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK), partner site RhineMain, Mainz, Germany; Department of Medicine II, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Münzel
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medical Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Informatics, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Blettner
authors.affiliation: Institute of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Lackner
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Pfeiffer
authors.affiliation: German Center for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK), partner site Hamburg/Kiel/Lübeck, Hamburg, Germany; Department of General and Interventional Cardiology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Blankenberg
authors.affiliation: CoRPS, Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology, Tilburg University, Tilburg, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Denollet
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
authors.forename: M E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Beutel
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000523:psychology*; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012307:Risk Factors; D064415:Type D Personality
keywords: Cardiovascular disease; Gutenberg Health Study (GHS); Negative affectivity; Social inhibition; Tower of London; Type D personality