Personality Correlates of Physical Activity in College Women

Commonly reported relationships of the broad personality traits of extraversion and neuroticism with self-reports of physical activity (PA) have not been elaborated within motivational theory that posits how functioning of the behavioral inhibition (BIS) and activation (BAS) systems can explain or modify the influence of personality on PA. Whether personality predicts physical activity when it is measured objectively has not been established. Purpose The study was aimed to test direct, indirect, and interactive relations between extraversion, neuroticism, BIS and BAS, and PA measured by validated self-report and accelerometry. Methods Two samples of female undergraduates completed personality questionnaires. Sample 2 also completed three PA self-reports and wore an accelerometer for 7 d. Factor structure and measurement equivalence of personality measures, structural equivalence of relationships between personality factors, and multivariate prediction of self-reported and objectively measured PA by personality were tested using structural equation modeling. Results Equivalence between samples for personality models was confirmed. Behavioral activation system predicted self-reported PA. Neuroticism and BIS predicted objectively measured PA. Conclusions The relationship between personality and PA may differ according to method used to measure PA. Behavioral inhibition system seems to protect against inactivity among young women high in neuroticism.