Open Access

Anne Blawert

• Background: A large body of research indicates that the cognitions individuals have about their own age and aging, so called self-perceptions of aging (SPA), predict health and wellbeing in later life. However, much less is known about associations of SPA with developmental correlates such as personality. Some initial studies have found cross-sectional and longitudinal associations of the Big Five traits (openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism) with SPA. Building on these findings, this thesis aimed at advancing knowledge on associations of personality with SPA. To this end, cross-sectional associations of the meta-traits of agency, i.e., a focus on the self, and communion, i.e., a focus on others, with SPA were examined in study 1, and longitudinal associations of agentic and communal personal values with SPA were examined in study 2. Study 3 aimed at expanding findings of previous studies on associations of SPA with selfreported physical function to an objective indicator of physical function, namely, gait pattern. In all studies, SPA were treated as a multidimensional construct comprising gains and losses. Methods: Study 1 was based on data of 154 adults aged 75 and older that were recruited in hospital. Data was collected one month after recruitment. In regression analyses, associations of agentic and communal traits with SPA beyond health were examined. Study 2 was based on data of 6,089 adults aged 40 and older enrolled in the German Ageing Survey (DEAS). Multiple regression analyses were used to test whether personal value priority predicted change in SPA over three years beyond age stereotypes. For study 3, latent profile analysis was employed to detect gait patterns based on data of 150 adults aged 70 and older collected via an automated walkway at participants’ regular speed and individual maximum speed. In a next step, associations of SPA with gait patterns beyond personality traits were investigated in binary logistic regressions. Results: Agentic and communal personality traits were associated with gain-, but not loss-related SPA when controlling for health (study 1). In study 2, the value priority of openness to change (self-direction, stimulation) predicted more gain-related SPA three years later, while the value priority of conservation (tradition, security) was negatively associated with gain-related SPA. The value priority of self-enhancement (achievement, power) was associated with more loss-related SPA three years later. Finally, the value priority of selftranscendence (universalism, benevolence), i.e. a concern for the well-being of others, was associated with more gain- and less loss-related SPA at follow-up. In study 3, latent profile analyses distinguished two groups with different gait patterns in both gait speed conditions. One group exhibited a slower and less well-coordinated gait pattern, which reflected functional limitations. The other group exhibited a faster and well-coordinated gait pattern, which reflected better physical function. More loss-, but not gain-related SPA were associated with higher likelihood to exhibit a functionally limited gait pattern at regular speed. Conversely, gain- but not loss-related SPA were associated with higher likelihood to exhibit a fit gait pattern at individual maximum speed. Conclusion: Results of this thesis have three main implications for research on SPA. First, agency and communion may constitute useful dimensions for further investigating SPA domains, as both were associated with SPA in study 1. Second, findings of study 2 point to the role of motivation for SPA that needs to be further explored. Third, findings of study 3 indicate that SPA are not only associated with self-reported, but also objectively measured physical function, which stresses the importance of SPA for health in later life. As a practical implication, the findings presented here suggest that interventions on SPA should consider participants’ personality, both on the level of traits and values.