000094561 001__ 94561 000094561 005__ 20210902121746.0 000094561 0247_ $$2doi$$a10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00983 000094561 0248_ $$2sideral$$a118636 000094561 037__ $$aART-2020-118636 000094561 041__ $$aeng 000094561 100__ $$aMontoliu, Teresa 000094561 245__ $$aPersonality and Hypothalamic–Pituitary–Adrenal Axis in Older Men and Women 000094561 260__ $$c2020 000094561 5060_ $$aAccess copy available to the general public$$fUnrestricted 000094561 5203_ $$aPersonality has been related to health and mortality risk, which has created interest in the biological pathways that could explain this relationship. Although a dysregulation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis has been associated with health outcomes and aging, few studies have explored the association between personality and HPA axis functioning in older adults. In addition, it has been suggested that sex could moderate the relationship between personality and HPA axis functioning. Thus, our aim was to analyze the relationship between the big five personality traits and the diurnal cortisol pattern in older adults, as well as sex differences in this relationship. To do so, 79 older people (40 men and 39 women) from 59 to 81 years old (M = 69.19, SD = 4.60) completed the NEO-Five-Factor Inventory (FFI) to measure neuroticism, conscientiousness, extraversion, openness, and agreeableness. Saliva samples were provided on three consecutive days (awakening; 15, 30, and 45 min post-awakening; and bedtime) in order to analyze the diurnal cortisol pattern and, specifically, two cortisol indexes: the cortisol awakening response (CAR) and the diurnal cortisol slope (DCS). Results showed that neuroticism and conscientiousness moderated the diurnal cortisol pattern. Thus, individuals with higher neuroticism and lower conscientiousness scores showed higher bedtime cortisol levels, suggesting a less healthy diurnal cortisol pattern. Regarding the cortisol indexes, higher neuroticism and lower conscientiousness were related to greater CAR and DCS. Sex moderated the association between extraversion and the DCS. Specifically, higher extraversion was related to a lower DCS only in women. Openness and agreeableness were not related to the diurnal cortisol pattern. In conclusion, our results show that in older adults, neuroticism is a vulnerability factor for HPA axis dysregulation, with possible adverse effects on health. By contrast, conscientiousness, and extraversion only in women, appear to be protective factors of HPA axis functioning, with potential beneficial effects on health. 000094561 536__ $$9info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/DGA/S31-20D$$9info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/MEC/PSI2016-78763$$9info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/MINECO/PSI2013-46889 000094561 540__ $$9info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess$$aby$$uhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/es/ 000094561 590__ $$a2.99$$b2020 000094561 591__ $$aPSYCHOLOGY, MULTIDISCIPLINARY$$b42 / 139 = 0.302$$c2020$$dQ2$$eT1 000094561 592__ $$a0.946$$b2020 000094561 593__ $$aPsychology (miscellaneous)$$c2020$$dQ2 000094561 655_4 $$ainfo:eu-repo/semantics/article$$vinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion 000094561 700__ $$0(orcid)0000-0003-3920-1099$$aHidalgo, Vanesa$$uUniversidad de Zaragoza 000094561 700__ $$aSalvador, Alicia 000094561 7102_ $$14009$$2725$$aUniversidad de Zaragoza$$bDpto. Psicología y Sociología$$cÁrea Psicobiología 000094561 773__ $$g11 (2020), 983 1-10$$pFront. psychol.$$tFrontiers in Psychology$$x1664-1078 000094561 8564_ $$s358772$$uhttps://zaguan.unizar.es/record/94561/files/texto_completo.pdf$$yVersión publicada 000094561 8564_ $$s464869$$uhttps://zaguan.unizar.es/record/94561/files/texto_completo.jpg?subformat=icon$$xicon$$yVersión publicada 000094561 909CO $$ooai:zaguan.unizar.es:94561$$particulos$$pdriver 000094561 951__ $$a2021-09-02-09:46:58 000094561 980__ $$aARTICLE