Extraversion: A "Hidden" PersonaUty

Factor In Coping?

James H. Amlrkhan, Rhonda T. Rislngor,

and Rhonda J. Swickort
California State University, Long Beach

ABSTRACT Recent evidence suggests a larger role for personality determi-

nants of the coping response than has been traditionally held. In the two studies
presented here, we examined the influence of personality on the use of social
support and other coping strategies in samples of undergraduate students. The
first study surveyed a range of coping responses to naturally occurring stressors
and found that Extraversion was related to social support seeking, optimism
(identified as germane to coping in prior research) was related to problem
solving, and both dispositions were negatively related to avoidance. The sec-
ond study used an experimental approach and multiple personality measures
to correct for possible methodological problems in the first. Extraversion
again proved to be associated with help seeking; moreover, this relationship
accounted for that of another disposition, self-esteem—a construct consid-
ered crucial in the literature. The utility of personality variables, particularly
Extraversion, in predicting and explaining the choice of a coping strategy is
discussed.

In the early stages of coping research, when researchers were unable to

find strong and reliable personality correlates of coping behavior, they
looked to situational factors as the primary determinants of responses
(see, for example. Sidle, Moos, Adams, & Cady, 1969). Situational-

The authors wish to thank Bernard Weiner, Lisa Farwell, Janna Juvonen, and the
Attribution Elders for their time, effort, and helpful suggestions. Portions of this re-
search have been presented at meetings of the American Psychological Association
and the Westem Psychological Association. Correspondence should be addressed to
James Amirkhan, Department of Psychology, California State University, Long Beach,
CA 90840.

Journal of Personality 63:2, June 1995. Copyright © 1995 by Duke University Press.
CCC 0022-3506/95/$!.50
190 Amirkhan et al.

ism continues to characterize the coping literature as the perspective

shared by some of the seminal contributors to the field (e.g., Cohen,
1987; Folkman & Lazarus, 1980; Holahan & Moos, 1987;Ilfeld, 1980).
Indeed it seems generally accepted that "stimulus-bound" factors—
whether objective characteristics of the stressor or subjective appraisal
of the stressor by the individual—dictate the form of the coping re-
sponse.
While this perspective has proven useful in explaining coping choices
made in a given context, one is left wondering if there is not more
continuity to coping behavior. That is, it seems unlikely that people
are bom anew in every crisis they encounter; they must carry "person-
bound" factors with them from stressor to stressor, factors that also
influence the choice of a coping strategy. Whether these are personality
dispositions, motivational or affective tendencies, or even accumulated
coping resources, they should produce some consistency in responses
across stressful situations. If such factors could be identified, it might
be possible to predict the nature of a coping effort even in circumstances
where stimulus-bound specifics are unknown. Clearly, the explanatory
power of such variables could not match that of fully interactional
models, but to the extent that they would allow educated guesses about
the likely nature of a future response and help elucidate the reasons
for that response choice, the search for person-bound factors seems
worthwhile.
In recent years, there has in fact been something of a retum to con-
sideration of person-related influences on coping behavior. This enter-
prise has been aided by improvements in the reliability and validity
of coping measures, both in terms of the introduction of new scales
and the modification of existing ones. It is perhaps by virtue of these
psychometric advances that more consistent and meaningful relation-
ships between personality and coping are emerging today than have
emerged in the past.
Several studies have used factor analysis to derive reliable scales from
existing measures of coping. Parkes (1986) used this method to exam-
ine the coping of first-year nursing students and found personality to
exert a significant influence on responses across a broad variety of stres-
sors. In rather complex interactions, both Neuroticism and Extraversion
were found to be linked to "direct coping" (i.e., attempts to change
the stressful situation) and "suppression" (attempts to ignore the situa-
tion). Rim (1987) used scales derived from two coping instruments to
assess coping in a sample of students, their friends, and their relatives.
Extraversion 191

Again, Extraversion and Neuroticism emerged as significant predictors,

the former relating to active and direct coping (such as seeking infor-
mation or support), the latter to more passive and avoidant styles (such
as suppression and blame). These relationships held over a wide range
of reported stressors, although some effects were specific to population
(e.g., gender) groups.
A new measure, composed of 27 scales derived from the literature,
was used in a fine-grained analysis of coping in a community sample
(McCrae & Costa, 1986). Stressors varied between participants, with
different respondents reporting different life events, and also within
participants, in that some respondents stated they were coping with
more than one stressor. Factor analysis of these responses yielded two
principal strategies: "neurotic coping" (avoidant, hostile, and passive
reactions) and "mature coping" (rational, perseverant, adaptive, and
positive responses). Neuroticism was consistently found to be related to
the former mode of coping, and Extraversion to the latter. That these re-
lationships held across such a broad array of stressful situations led the
authors to conclude that "it would appear that the most pervasive and
replicable factors in coping are closely related to the major personaUty
dimensions of neuroticism and extraversion" (p. 394).
Evidence of personality influences on coping has been emerging in
our own research, as well. For example, as an adjunct to a reliability
study of a new coping measure, participants were asked to describe
their coping with two categorically different stressors at two assess-
ment points, 4 weeks apart (Amirkhan, 1989). Despite the variation in
time and stressor type, test-retest correlations averaged .56—a quite
respectable degree of stability by the standards of personality research.
Moreover, we are finding that these pattems relate consistently and sig-
nificantly to personality traits, of which, as in the research cited above,
Extraversion seems particularly influential.
Two such studies are presented here, both of which revealed Extra-
version to be a significant "behind-the-scenes" factor in determining
responses to stressful situations. The first of these used a survey for-
mat, asking participants to report how they coped with the stressors of
their daily lives. In this way, Extraversion's influence over a variety of
coping strategies and across a range of naturally occurring stressors was
examined. A particularly robust finding provided the impetus and focus
for the second study which, by controlling for possible methodological
problems in the first, provided a more rigorous test of that result. In
both investigations, Extraversion was pitted against other personality
192 Amirkhan et al.

constructs accepted as critical in the literature; nevertheless, in both

cases it emerged as a significant influence on the nature of the coping
response.

Study 1
Indicative of the renewed interest in personality determinants of coping,
several researchers have proposed dispositional optimism to be a con-
struct of critical importance. It has been suggested that optimism not
only results in more positive perceptions of stressful situations, but also
produces more effective coping responses (Taylor & Brown, 1988). Em-
pirical evidence for the most part (e.g., Scheier, Weintraub, & Carver,
1986) has supported these suppositions, linking optimism to more posi-
tive appraisals of stressors, as well as greater use of problem-solving
strategies and greater utilization of social supports. Pessimism, on the
other hand, has been shown to relate to avoidant forms of coping, such
as denial, distancing, and disengagement from the stressful situation. In
a study of men at risk for AIDS (Taylor et al., 1992), optimism was
found to mitigate distress specifically by promoting more active and less
avoidant forms of coping.
The pattern of influences found for optimism parallels that reported
for Extraversion. As mentioned above, extraverts have been shown to
use more direct and problem-focused modes of coping (McCrae &
Costa, 1986; Parkes, 1986; Rim, 1987), as well as more support seeking
(Parkes, 1986; Rim, 1986). Furthermore, optimism may constitute one
of the many facets of Extraversion. Research has indicated that extra-
verts tend to report fewer problems in their lives (Arnold & Jensen,
1984) and lower levels of psychological strain (Duckitt & Broil, 1982).
While these studies did not control for the actual number and intensity
of stressors experienced, they do imply that extraverts enjoy a rosier
view of life than their introverted counterparts. Taken together, this evi-
dence clearly suggests that the relationships reported between optimism
and coping may simply be proximal manifestations of the more distal
influence of Extraversion.
The primary goal of the first study was to examine this premise.
Specifically, it was suspected that the avenue for Extraversion's effect on
coping might be through coloring perceptions of stressfulness: Extra-
verts, tending to view their problems optimistically, might see them as
manageable through the use of problem solving or the rallying of social
supports. Introverts, on the other hand, being prone to pessimistic ap-
Eztraversion 193

praisals, might perceive their problems as insurmountable and tum to

avoidant modes of coping.
A second goal was to test the extent of Extraversion's influence across
a range of both coping strategies and stressors. Use of the Coping
Strategy Indicator (CSI; Amirkhan, 1990) permitted this multiplicity
of strategies and situations. The CSI requires respondents to select any
event from their own lives, constrained only in terms of recency and
intensity, thus guaranteeing that a variety of stressful situations will be
sampled. Furthermore, it measures three dimensions of coping, prob-
lem solving (an instrumental approach involving direct action, or plans
of action, aimed at problem resolution), avoidance (responses that con-
stitute a physical or psychological escape from the problem), and seek-
ing social support (approaching others for such intangible reasons as
the comfort found in numbers).
Finally, in light of the evidence that Extraversion relates to coping
differently for men and women (Rim, 1986, 1987), the first study also
tested the influence of Extraversion across gender groups.

METHOD
Participants
One hundred introductory psychology students, balanced in terms of gen-
der, were offered extra course credit for their participation. The 50 men and
50 women who agreed to participate averaged 19.2 years in age and, due
to the demographic diversity typical of southern California state universities,
represented a wide range of socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds.

Materials
The CSI, which indicates self-reported preferences among the three aforemen-
tioned strategies, was used to assess coping. Respondents were instructed first
to describe a personal problem occurring within the past 6 months and then
to use 3-point Likert scales to indicate the extent to which 33 specific coping
responses had been used to deal with that specific stressor. Problem solving
is reflected in items such as "formed a plan of action in your mind," seeking
social support in items such as "sought reassurance from those who know
you best," and avoidance in items such as "fantasized about how things could
have been different." Scoring is multidimensional, allowing that an individual
might show a preference for one, two, or all three strategies rather than being
pigeonholed according to one or another. The scales have, in fact, proven to
194 Amirkhan et al.

be nearly perfectly orthogonal, which makes them particularly well suited to

correlational analyses. In terms of psychometric properties, the measure has
proven superior to other coping indices in regard to both intemal consistency
and test-retest reliability. Moreover, validity has been demonstrated in terms
of the measure's (a) significant and meaningful covariation with indices of
coping, personality, and pathology, (b) independence from measures of social
desirability, and (c) ability to discriminate groups of copers both in laboratory
experiments and in the real world (Amirkhan, 1994).
Extraversion was measured by a scale taken from the NEO Personality In-
ventory (NEO-PI; Costa & McCrae, 1989), Form S. This scale consists of 181
statements (e.g., "I prefer small parties to large ones"), to which individu-
als respond using 5-point scales anchored at "strongly agree" and "strongly
disagree." Alpha coeflftcients indicate generally good intemal consistency for
the NEO-PI, and test-retest correlations reveal excellent stability for some
of the scales—including Extraversion (Costa & McCrae, 1985). Validity has
been demonstrated in terms of correlations between scale scores and indepen-
dent peer-, spouse-, and self-ratings of the traits; results indicate overall good
sensitivity and discriminability.
The Optimism and Pessimism Scale (Dember, Martin, Hummer, Howe, &
Melton, 1989) was used to indicate how positively and negatively participants
viewed their lives. The measure consists of 36 short statements (plus fillers)
to which individuals indicate their degree of agreement using 4-point scales.
Responses are summed to yield separate scores for optimism and pessimism;
the subscales are not, however, independent (average intercorrelation = - .55).
Good intemal consistency and adequate test-retest reliability have been re-
ported; validity has been demonstrated in terms of significant covariation with
such indices as self-ratings of optimism and pessimism, expected grade-point
averages, and belief in the likelihood of a nuclear war.
In addition to standardized measures, four items were written to assess
the perceived stressfulness of the event described on the CSI. These took the
form of short statements (e.g., "1 feel this problem caused me to worry") to
which the respondents expressed their degree of agreement using 5-point Lik-
ert scales. Responses were summed to form a Perceived Stressfulness index.
Demographic items were also written to assess gender and age.
To minimize order effects, the standardized measures in the assessment
packet were counterbalanced. On the other hand, items created for the study
occupied fixed positions in the protocol: Demographic items were always first,
and items concerning the perceived stressfulness of the problem by necessity
followed the CSI (in which the problem was described).

Procedure
Student volunteers completed assessment packets at various sites on campus,
typically in groups of 5 to 10, and usually within 40 minutes. Protocols were
Extraversion 195

identified only with numeric codes and were returned to "ballot boxes" in
order to guarantee anonymity.
Instructions to the participants dictated the type of stressful event they were
to report. That is, they were randomly assigned one of four event categories
from which they could choose a problem to describe. The four-category tax-
onomy had proven useful in prior work (Amirkhan, 1990) and consisted of
achievement-related events (failures occurring on the job or at school), inter-
personal conflicts (usually with friends, lovers, or relatives), personal changes
(in health or financial or spiritual status, for example), and fate events (such
as fires, certain auto accidents, or "acts of God"). This procedure was meant
to control the differential reporting of events, a potential confound. That is,
if extraverts were to systematically report one type of stressor and introverts
another, it would be unclear whether personological or situational variables
affected their choice of coping strategy. By the same logic, we tried to con-
trol for the differential intensity of the events reported by participants. All of
the problems were rated independently by two judges, using 10-point scales
anchored at "not stressful" and "extremely stressful." If a problem was con-
sidered either atypically trivial (a rating of 2 or lower) or intense (9 or above),
that participant was eliminated from the sample. This system proved reliable,
with the judges' ratings correlating .86.

RESULTS
Four participants (two females and two males) were excluded from
analyses because they reported events judged to be at the extremes
of intensity. Among the remaining participants (n - 96), no signifi-
cant differences in the judges' ratings of stressor intensity were found,
either across gender groups, or across groups of introverts and extra-
verts (as defined by a median split on the NEO-PI). As a manipulation
check, judges were also asked to classify the reported events according
to the four-category taxonomy. Again no differences across gender or
Extraversion groups were found.
Descriptive statistics for the study's primary variables, and correla-
tions among them, are presented in Table 1. Means and standard devia-
tions for the Extraversion, Optimism, and Pessimism scales proved to be
nearly identical to norms established within college populations (Costa
&McCrae, 1989; Dember et al., 1989). Coping scale scores were simi-
lar to norms derived from the general population (Amirkhan, 1990),
with nonsignificant elevations in both problem solving and avoidance.
Zero-order correlations appeared generally supportive of hypothe-
sized relationships: Extraversion proved to be significantly related to
optimism and pessimism, which in turn were tied to coping strate-
196 Amiikhan et al.

Tablet
Conelations and Descriptive Statistics foi Study 1 Variables
Variables 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
1. Extraversion
2. Optimism .36**
3. Pessimism - . 3 8 * * -.52**
4. Stressfulness -.14 -.03 1 C

5. Problem
solving .11 .41** -.32** .19*
6. Seeking
support .27** .22* -.15 .31** .17
7. Avoidance -.24* - . 2 1 * .38** .35** -.08 .11
Mean 114.67 53.45 39.81 16.94 26.35 24.26 20.62
SD 19.75 6.07 7.55 2.60 4.47 5.75 4.68
Note, n = 96.
*p < .05
**p < .01.

gies, with all relationships in the anticipated directions. Contrary to

expectations, however, the perceived stressfulness of the problem did
not appear to mediate between optimism/pessimism and the choice of
a coping strategy. Consistent with Rim's (1986) findings, somewhat
different correlations were found for men and women, although these
differences were a matter of degree rather than direction. For example,
a negative relationship between Extraversion and avoidance coping was
found for both women and men, but achieved significance only for
women (r = — .36, p < .05), not for men (r = -.08).
It is difficult to interpret these correlations, however, given the con-
siderable degree of multicolinearity revealed among the independent
variables. In order to disentangle these effects, multiple regression
analyses were used. Each of the three coping scales served as dependent
variables. Independent variables were stepped into hierarchical regres-
sion equations one at a time, according to their hypothesized proximity
to the actual choice of a coping strategy. Thus, perceptions of the im-
mediate situation (perceived stressfulness) preceded the dispositions of
optiniism and pessimism, which in tum preceded the more distal in-
fluence of Extraversion. Gender was stepped in first, and a Gender
X Extraversion interaction last, to test the significance of male-female
differences in pattems of intercorrelation among the variables. This se-
Eztraversion 197

Tabl*2
Results of Hierarchical Regression Analyses: Study 1
Dependent variable Predictors F(Effect) P<
Problem solving Gender .01 1.79 ns
Stressfulness .03 3.36 ns
Optimism .15 9.95 .001
Pessimism .01 1.58 ns
Extraversion .01 1.87 ns
Gender x Extraversion .00 .71 ns
All Predictors Combined .21 3.83 .001
Sfeeicmg support Gender .02 2.26 ns
Stressfulness .05 3.40 ns
Optimism .03 3.39 ns
Pessimism .00 1.27 ns
Extraversion .08 5.21 .03
Gender x Extraversion .00 1.34 ns
All Predictors Combined .01 3.34 .005
Avoidance Gender .01 .78 ns
Stressfulness .12 8.03 .01
Optimism .04 3.58 ns
Pessimism .17 10.07 .001
Extraversion .05 3.89 .06
Gender x Extraversion .00 1.30 ns
All Predictors Combined .39 9.48 .0001
Note. PTedictors are listed in order of entry. For each effect, df = 1,94; for full equa-
tions, d/ = 6,89.

quence was believed to be a conservative one, in that effects involving

Extraversion were deliberately entered at a step where they could not
benefit from the variance shared with other predictors. An altemative
sequence, stepping in optimism and pessimism after Extraversion to
determine their influence over and above that of the more distal factor,
was also tested. However, since differences between the two sequences
proved negligible, only the results of the more conservative test are
presented in Table 2.
As the table shows, a rather complicated pattem of findings emerged.
Extraversion proved to be a significant predictor of seeking social sup-
port, a marginally significant predictor of avoidance, and not at all
predictive of problem solving. Optimism, on the other hand, did predict
problem solving, while the related construct of pessimism was a power-
198 Amiikhan et al.

ful predictor of avoidance. These differing pattems of relationships, in

conjunction with the fact that switching the placement of Extraversion
and optimism/pessimism in the hierarchical procedure did not substan-
tially change results, suggested that the dispositions might be exerting
independent influences on coping.
Only in the case of avoidance did both dispositional and percep-
tual factors appear to be predictors; thus, it was only in this case that
the possibility of mediated influences existed. To test the hypothesis
that Extraversion influenced avoidance indirectly through intervening
perceptual processes, partial correlations were calculated among avoid-
ance, Extraversion, and pessimism (controlling for optimism). These
revealed a significant relationship between pessimism and avoidance
(partial r - .29, p < .01) and between Extraversion and pessimism
(partial r = ~.19, p = .05), but not between Extraversion and avoid-
ance (partial r — - . 1 1 , ns)—a pattern of results that seemed to sup-
port the mediation hypothesis. However, it was also true that (a) the
partial correlation between Extraversion and pessimism (which barely
achieved significance) was somewhat weaker than might be expected
from a model of mediated influences, (b) the relationship between
Extraversion and the other perception variable (perceived stressfulness,
itself linked to all three modes of coping) had proven nonsignificant,
cind (c) no evidence of mediated effects had been found for the other
two coping strategies. Thus, the finding in regard to avoidance would
appear anomalous, in that the bulk of evidence supported a model of
independent influences.
In sum, we found that immediate perceptions of the stressor, as well
as global tendencies to view the world optimistically or pessimistically,
did affect the choice of a coping strategy. However, it was also evi-
dent that, for the most part, these perceptions did not operate in the
service of Extraversion, which exerted its own influence on coping de-
cisions. Results also showed that gender, by itself or in interactions with
Extraversion, did not significantly alter this pattern of findings.
Additional regression analyses were performed to weigh the influence
of situational characteristics relative to that of the person-bound factors.
Four dichotomous variables were created, corresponding to the four-
category taxonomy used to classify the stressor types (achievement-
related, interpersonal conflict, personal change, or fate events). Thus, a
participant who had reported an academic failure was assigned a score
of " 1 " on the achievement-related variable and "0" on the other three.
The situational variables were stepped first into the equations, with the
 Eztraversion

person-bound factors following (in the order shown in Table 2). Inclu-
sion of situational variables did not produce meaningful changes in the
magnitude of the person-related effects already described. Together, the
four situational variables explained 5% of the variance in problem solv-
ing, 1% of the variance in seeking support, and 7% of the variance in
avoidance, with no single variable attaining significance as a predictor.

DISCUSSION
Across gender groups and across a variety of real-life stressors, Extra-
version proved to influence the choice of a coping strategy significantly,
predisposing people particularly toward support-seeking responses.
Extraversion was also related to optimistic and pessimistic "perceptual
styles"; however, these did not seem to mediate its effect on coping
(with the possible exception of coping by avoidance). Nor did situation-
specific perceptions of stressfulness appear to play this intervening role.
Thus, the study's hypothesis was both supported and contested: Extra-
version did emerge as a significant factor in coping decisions, but did
not seem to operate via the expected channels.
If not via perceptual mechanisms, how might Extraversion influence
coping? At least three possibilities seem reasonable: The behavioral
predilections associated with Extraversion might directly affect coping
responses, making the gregarious extraverts more likely to seek out
others, for example. (These behavioral tendencies might even be mag-
nified under stress.) Or the influence of Extraversion might be indirect,
operating through coping resources. Thus, the extravert might amass a
stockpile of social support in times of calm, to be called upon in times
of duress. Finally, Extraversion might affect coping by setting affective
priorities. That is, need states associated with Extraversion might dis-
pose individuals toward the coping avenue of greatest gratification. The
purported "stimulus hunger" of the extravert, for example, might lead
to the pursuit of social stimulation.
The first study, by merely exploring links between personality dis-
positions and coping, was able to shed some light on the nature of the
underlying mechanism. The second study took a more focused look
at the connection between Extraversion and seeking social support, in
hopes of not only validating but further elucidating that relationship.
In addition, it attempted to correct for some of the methodological
shortcomings of the first investigation. Among these was the problem
of significant covariation between Extraversion and other personality
200 Amirkhan et al.

traits (Costa & McCrae, 1989), including some that have been linked to
coping in the past (such as Neuroticism). It is possible that the present
findings for Extraversion may simply have masked the effects of some
other, correlated disposition. In addition, the attempts to equate the type
and intensity of reported stressors across the different personality groups
may have been less than adequate. Given the crudity of the situational
taxonomy, it is quite possible that sufficient variation in the stressors
remained between groups to at least partially account for the differences
found. But perhaps the greatest problem, endemic to self-report studies
of coping, is the possibility of response biases. The current data were
derived from recollections of past coping experiences—memories that
may well have been distorted by time, intervening stressors, or defense
mechanisms. Moreover, a desire to appear consistent may have moti-
vated respondents to endorse similar-sounding items on the personality
and coping measures (particularly the Extraversion and support-seeking
scales), creating spurious correlations.

Study 2
To redress these methodological problems, it was felt that a laboratory
analog of a stressful situation—which would allow for a more con-
trolled examination of the link between Extraversion and the seeking
of support—was needed. Specifically, such an analog would permit
(a) the standardization of the stressor across participants, eliminating
the need for matching, {b) a prospective time frame, avoiding reliance
on memory, and (c) a behavioral, rather than self-report, measure of
coping responses. In addition, multiple traits could be assessed in the
participants to tease out those factors actually responsible for support-
seeking responses.
The large social-psychological literature on help-seeking behavior
(e.g., DePaulo, 1982; Nadler, 1987; Nadler & Fisher, 1986; Rosen,
1983; Shapiro, 1983) suggested an appropriate and well-established
laboratory precedent. Furthermore, this literature helped identify the
other personality (as well as contextual) variables germane to the study
of support seeking.
Of the person-related factors mentioned in this research, self-esteem
was repeatedly emphasized as a variable of crucial importance. In fact,
"threat to self-esteem" models have been formalized (see Nadler, 1986)
which share the premise that while the receipt of aid can have objectively
positive consequences, it can also underscore the recipient's relative
inadequacy and dependency—a subjectively negative experience.
Eztraveision 201

Such models are interactional in that they stipulate that the rela-
tionship between self-esteem and help seeking does not hold across
situations, but is moderated by such stimulus-bound factors as the ego
relevance of the problem for which help is required (Nadler, 1987; Nad-
ler, Fisher, & Ben-Itzhak, 1983). Specifically, the relationship is said
to emerge only under circumstances in which the problem is perceived
as ego-central, so that its resolution has some bearing on conceptions
of self. If the problem is seen as ego-peripheral, help seeking loses its
negative implications, and differences between high versus low self-
esteem individuals are said to disappear. Thus, to predict help seeking
using threat-to-self-esteem models, one must have foreknowledge of
how the problem will be perceived by the individual. Once again, it
seems that theories have evolved with good explanatory power within
a given context, but with little cross-situational predictive ability.
Beyond the results of the prior study, there are reasons to suspect
that less situation-dependent predictors of help-seeking behavior might
be found. It has been suggested that self-esteem may not be a unique
construct, but rather a conglomeration of other, more fundamental per-
sonality dispositions (Wells & Marwell, 1976). In fact, principal compo-
nents analyses of self-esteem and personality scales have yielded similar
two-factor solutions, leading some (Bagley & Evan-Wong, 1975) to
question whether self-esteem does not simply reflect the underlying
dispositions of Extraversion and Neuroticism.
It seems beyond coincidence that the very traits identified as germane
to coping in the stress literature should also be implicated, albeit indi-
rectly, in the help-seeking literature. In addition, being among the "Big
Five" or most reliable of personality factors (Digman, 1990), Extra-
version and Neuroticism demonstrate the cross-temporal and cross-
situational stability required of good predictors. Furthermore, on the
basis of face validity, these dimensions appear logically linked to both
self-esteem and help seeking: Extraversion has been described in such
terms as sociable (as opposed to retiring), affectionate (vs. reserved),
and assertive (vs. passive)—with sociability, in particular, capturing
the essence of the disposition (McCrae & Costa, 1987). Neuroticism
has been said to comprise such tendencies as feeling uncomfortable
around others, being sensitive to ridicule, and having general feelings
of inferiority (McCrae & Costa, 1987), as well as being mistrustful of
others (Guilford, Zimmerman, & Guilford, 1976).
Another of the Big Five factors, which has not been empirically
linked to help seeking but which nevertheless seems germane, is Agree-
ableness—a general positive or negative orientation toward people.
202 Amirkhan et al.

Persons scoring high on this trait are described as cooperative, eager

to help others, and convinced that others are eager to help them. On
the other extreme are "antagonistic" individuals, said to be egocentric,
skeptical of others' intentions, "uncooperative, stubbom, and rude"
(McCrae & Costa, 1987, p. 87).
Interestingly, significant intercorrelation has been demonstrated
among the three traits, with Agreeableness relating to Neuroticism,
which in tum relates to Extraversion (Costa & McCrae, 1989). This
provides further rationale for including Agreeableness among the likely
personality predictors of coping, and suggests that any or all of them
might account for support-seeking tendencies.
The second study examined the three traits as potential person-bound
determinants of help seeking in a controlled laboratory setting, weigh-
ing their influence relative to one another and to self-esteem. In addi-
tion, an attempt was made to test the influence of these dispositions
across situations, specifically across problems of varied ego relevance.

METHOD
Participants
Introductory psychology students from a large, state university were offered
extra course credit for their participation. Although 111 volunteered, the sample
was restricted to 91, for reasons explained below. Of these, 20 (22%) were male
and 71 (78%) were female, with an average age of 18.7 years. No attempt was
made to balance for gender, since this variable had not affected personality-to-
coping relationships in Study 1. As a result of the diversity typical in southern
California public schools, a broad range of ethnic and socioeconomic back-
grounds were represented. Demographic data permitted a precise accounting
of the sample's ethnic composition: 39% were Asian, 32% Caucasian, 25%
Hispanic, 2% African American, and 2% Native American.

Materials
As part of an independent, ongoing effort to establish a psychology department
data archive, all introductory students are requested to complete a battery of
self-report personality measures. Their completed protocols are identified only
with student numbers, in order to protect confidentiality and thereby encour-
age honest responses. Variables used in the present study were taken from this
archive, from the measures described below.
Scores on the Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Agreeableness scales of the
NEO-PI, Form S, were used as indicators of the personality traits of inter-
Eztraversion 203

est. These scales have demonstrated considerable psychometric strength, as

described earlier.
Scores for the Coopersmith (1987) Self-Esteem Inventory (SEI) were used
to reflect degree of self-esteem. The SEI is also a well-established measure,
having been administered to tens of thousands of children and adults, and
has been the subject of over 100 psychometric studies (Coopersmith, 1987).
The Adult Form, used in the present research, consists of 25 statements (e.g.,
"I'm a lot of fun to be with") with response options of "like me" and "not
like me." In populations of college students, this measure has demonstrated
adequate intemal and good extemal reliability (Bedeian, Geagud, & Zmud,
1977). Validity has been established via a variety of methodologies, including
convergence with other measures, concurrent and predictive criterion-related
tests, and multitrait-multimethod approaches. In terms of college students
specifically, evidence for convergent validity has been reported (Bedeian &
Zmud, 1977).

Procedure
Students volunteered for a study ostensibly concemed with the relationship
between personality and problem-solving skills. The identification numbers of
these volunteers were checked against computer archives to insure that person-
ality data were available for each student. Ten students proved to have missing
or erroneous (i.e., out-of-bounds) scores, and were not included in the sample.
Students arrived at the laboratory in groups of six, and each group was ran-
domly assigned to one of two ego-relevance conditions. The experimental task
in both conditions was a set of 10 unsolvable anagrams (e.g., "LGAIPD"),
presented on a single page. Both the experimental manipulation and task mir-
rored, as closely as possible, well-established precedents in the help-seeking
literature.
The "ego-central" manipulation emphasized the relevance of performance
on the experimental task to perceptions of self. Participant groups assigned
to this condition were told that "past research has shown that there is a rela-
tionship between personality characteristics such as intelligence and creativity
and the ability to solve anagrams. In other words, the smarter you are, and the
more creative you are, the more likely it is that you will be able to solve the
anagrams." In contrast, the "ego-peripheral" condition sought to minimize
connections between task performance and self-perception, by means of the
following instructions: "Past research has found that there is no relationship
between personality factors and the ability to solve anagrams. In other words,
it seems to make no difference what type of personality a person has when it
comes to solving anagrams; it all seems to depend on luck or mood."
Following these differential instructions, all participant groups were told
that their goal in the experiment was to complete as many anagrams as possible
within a specified time period. They were also informed that there would
204 Amirkhan et al.

be an assistant stationed outside of the room who could be asked for help in
solving the puzzles, and that such help seeking would not be penalized.
At this point, participants in the groups were separated into individual rooms
for the experimental task. Once alone, information regarding the availability
of assistance was reiterated: "Ann Johnson/John Browning is helping me in
my research and she/he will be available out in the hall to give you clues on the
anagrams if you need them." Actually, there was no assistant and only the
experimenter was waiting in the hallway. In the instructions, the gender of the
fictitious "helper" was matched to that of the participant; no other informa-
tion about the assistant was offered in order to minimize possible confounding
influences on the participant's help-seeking behavior.
Unless they needed help, participants were instructed to remain in their
rooms for the entire 15-minute duration of the task. The experimenter timed
each participant by means of a concealed stopwatch, which was started at
distribution of the anagram sheet and stopped when the participant exited the
room. Participants who chose not to exit were assigned default scores of 15
minutes. Help-seeking latencies (in seconds) were recorded next to partici-
pants' identification numbers.
Because participants might disclose the deception to their classmates, de-
briefing did not take place immediately. Contacted later, when the experiment
was no longer in danger of being compromised, participants were informed of
the true nature of the study, assured that the anagrams were unsolvable, and
given a summary of the results.

RESULTS
Pearson correlations and descriptive statistics for all variables are shown
in Table 3. The means and standard deviations of the personality scores
were comparable to normative data available for both the SEI and NEO-
PI scales (Coopersmith, 1987; Costa & McCrae, 1989).
Zero-order correlations showed a high degree of covariation between
the personality traits and the help-seeking latency, as well as among
the traits themselves. These results were consistent with past findings
that self-esteem was related to help seeking, and also with current ex-
pectations that self-esteem would be confounded by its relationship to
other aspects of personality. Personality dimensions proved to be unre-
lated to the ego relevance of the task, indicating the success of random
assignment to experimental conditions. However, in contrast to prior
findings, ego relevance was also found to be tinrelated to help-seeking
latency.
Although mean personality scores approximated scale norms, the
degree of covariation among Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Agree-
Eztraveision 205

Tabto3
Conelations and Descriptive Statistics for Study 2 Variables

Variable 1 2 3 4 5
1. Help-seeking latency
2. Self-esteem - . 30**
3. Extraversion - . 43** .42**
4. Neuroticism 40** -.50** -.47*
5. Agreeableness - . 27* .17 .45** -.58**
6. Task ego relevance 10 -.05 -.08 .12 -.10
Mean 640. 29 65.05 114.97 90.12 44.96
SD 333. 37 23.65 21.83 24.92 7.21
Note, n = 9 1 .
*p < .05
**p < .01.

ableness proved much higher than that found in the normative sample
(Costa & McCrae, 1989). This might be attributable to the demographic
composition of the current sample, which, having higher proportions
of females, Asians, and Hispanics, differed from the normative popu-
lation. Whatever the cause, however, the degree of correlation was
worrisome, suggesting possible confusion among the scales (i.e., their
failure to provide pure measures of their respective traits). To examine
this possibility, a factor analysis of the NEO-PI items was performed
following the original method of scale derivation (i.e., varimax rota-
tion of principal components). These analyses verified the integrity of
the scales, with one minor exception: Items comprising the hostility
facet of the Neuroticism scale tended to load higher (in the negative
direction) on Agreeableness than (positively) on their own factor.
Reassured that the validity of the scales was not seriously compro-
mised, analyses proceeded with an attempt to distinguish the personality
influences and determine which had greater explanatory power. Hier-
archical multiple regressions were used to this end, with help-seeking
latency as the dependent variable, and predictors entered in such an
order as to deliberately disprove hypotheses. That is, in deference to the
prior studies that had shown it to be a critical predictor, self-esteem was
stepped in early in the sequence (preceded only by gender, which was
placed first to control for any possible effects missed in the first study).
In contrast, Extraversion was stepped in after all of the other person-
related and the contextual variables, followed only by interaction terms
206 Amirkhan et al.

Table 4
Results of Hieiaichical Regression Analyses: Study 2
Dependent variable Predictors AR^ F(Effect) P <
Help-seeking latency
Sequence 1 Gender .00 .10 ns
Self-esteem .10 8.51 .005
Ego relevance (ER) .01 .38 ns
Agreeableness .04 3.42 ns
Neuroticism .04 3.35 ns
Extraversion .07 5.98 .02
Self-Esteem x ER .01 1.11 ns
Agreeableness x ER .00 .03 ns
Neuroticism X ER .00 .03 ns
Extraversion x ER .00 .00 ns
Sequence 2 Gender .00 .10 ns
Ego relevance .01 .51 ns
Agreeableness .06 3.51 ns
Neuroticism .06 3.55 ns
Extraversion .11 7.97 .01
Self-esteem .00 .24 ns
Agreeableness x ER .00 .19 ns
Neuroticism x ER .01 .43 ns
Extraversion x ER .00 .07 ns
Self-esteem x ER .01 .45 ns
All predictors combined .27 2.03 .05
Note. Predictors are listed in order of entry. For each effect, df = \, 89; for full equa-
tion, df = 10, 80.

crossing each disposition with task ego relevance. The precise order of
entry, as well as the results of the analysis, are shown in Table 4 under
the heading "Sequence 1."
Consistent with the literature, self-esteem emerged as a significant
predictor of the help-seeking latency. However, in support of the cur-
rent hypothesis, Extraversion also proved significant. These results
seemed to suggest an additive relationship between the predictors, with
Extraversion exerting an influence over and above that of self-esteem.
However, given its preferential placement in the order of entry, it was
possible that self-esteem had achieved significance solely by virtue
of the variance shared with Extraversion. In order to test this possibility,
the order of entry was altered so that self-esteem was stepped in after
Eztraversion 207

the other personality variables. The results of this analysis are shown in
Table 4, under the heading of "Sequence 2." As can be seen, while
Extraversion again emerged as a significant predictor, self-esteem did
not. Thus, rather than an additive relationship, it appears that self-
esteem had been masking the more powerful influence of Extraversion.
That neither task ego relevance nor interactions involving this variable
were found significant in the analyses indicates a possible failure of the
experimental manipulation.
To aid understanding of the mechanism linking Extraversion to help
seeking, correlations were calculated between each component facet
of Extraversion and the help-seeking latency. Although these facets
are highly intercorrelated, significant relationships were found only
for assertiveness (r = —.43,p < .001), warmth (r = —.34,p < .01),
and positive emotion (r = -.3l,p < .01), andnotforgregariousness,
activity, or excitement seeking.

DISCUSSION
If one were to judge from the correlations alone, it would appear that
self-esteem exerts a significant influence on help-seeking behavior, a
finding consonant with those of past laboratory (Nadler, 1986, 1987)
and community (Folkman, Lazarus, Gruen, & DeLongis, 1986) re-
search. However, the correlations also revealed a significant relationship
between self-esteem and other, more fundamental (i.e.. Big Five) di-
mensions of personality. When pitted against self-esteem in regression
analyses, one of these constructs proved to have superior predictive
power. This would suggest that personality dispositions are not simply
distal influences mediated by self-esteem, but instead account for the
apparent relationship between self-esteem and support seeking.
Of the dispositions investigated, Extraversion demonstrated the
strongest link to help seeking. Extraverted individuals sought help much
sooner than introverts, a finding which challenges some basic prem-
ises of the threat-to-self-esteem theories. These models assume that the
desire to protect one's self-image, specifically from the threatening mes-
sages inherent in the act of help seeking, motivates the pursuit or refusal
of aid. In contrast, the current findings suggest that deeply rooted per-
sonal predilections, involving approach or avoidance tendencies, may
represent the true dynamic.
Exactly what is it about Extraversion that promotes help seeking?
A fine-grained examination of the trait's component aspects provided
208 Amirkhan et al.

some clues. Warmth, positive emotionality, and assertiveness (but not

gregariousness, activity, or excitement seeking) were found to char-
acterize the extravert who sought help. Of the mechanisms proposed
earlier, this finding seems to lend credence to that of an indirect influ-
ence between Extraversion and support seeking. That is, such warm
and happy beings would seem likely to attract and maintain networks
of friends; furthermore, they appear assertive enough to call upon these
resources in times of trouble. The model of direct influences does not
seem viable, given that it was neither the gregarious nature nor the
characteristically high activity level of extraverts' behavior that lead to
their approaching others. And, since help seeking was not related to the
stimulation-seeking aspects of Extraversion, the affective mechanism
may also be dismissed.
Of course, at this point such conclusions are highly speculative—
but not without support from the literature. One study examined six
personality variables for their relationship to social support (i.e., social
resources, rather than the act of seeking support). Of these, only anxiety
and Extraversion were found to relate to level of support, with the latter
relationship being stronger (Duckitt, 1984). It appears, then, that extra-
verts do indeed benefit from larger support networks. Furthermore, it
has also been shown that those with greater social resources are most
likely to seek support as a coping strategy (Dunkle-Schetter, Folkman,
& Lazarus, 1987). Thus, the mechanism of indirect influences seems
probable, although it certainly warrants further research.
The second study was meant to be a more carefully controlled ex-
amination of the link between personality and one mode of coping,
but had limitations of its own. First, the manipulated ego relevance of
the problem was not found to affect help seeking. This failure to repli-
cate previous studies, despite the fact that the manipulation was derived
from those precedents, suggests that there may have been something
singular about the current sample or procedure. Moreover, if the ex-
perimental tasks did not differ in perceived ego centrality as the result
of a failed manipulation, then the current study did not sufficiently test
the predictive ability of personality variables across different types of
situations. Second, the correlations found among the personality mea-
sures were much higher than established norms. This raises some doubt
as to the validity of the scales in the present investigation and heightens
concerns about the singularity of the sample. Finally, it is not clear
that help seeking was indeed a good analogy for support seeking: The
former implies a search specifically for instrumental aid; the latter en-
 Extraveision 209

tails a more affective component and typically involves familiar others,

not anonymous laboratory assistants.

GBNZRAL DISCUSSION
It seems only logical that after repeated exposures to the trials of life,
people should come to have a preferred mode of coping. It does not
seem farfetched to assume that drinking might be the first reaction of
an alcoholic to stress, nor that efforts to regain control would typify
the Type A personality. Such assumptions need not imply that coping
behaviors are invariant across stressors; in fact, survival would seem to
demand adapting responses to situational exigencies. Rather, it is sug-
gested that different personalities have affinities for different strategies,
which they carry with them into stressful episodes—but which they can
change according to situational demands.
In both of the present studies, person-bound factors exerted an in-
fluence on the choice of a coping strategy equal to, if not greater than
that of situational characteristics. Certainly situational considerations
are essential to the precise prediction of coping, but current results
demonstrate that knowledge of personality alone permits estimation of
responses with a reasonable degree of accuracy. This information is
clearly useful, in that it allows for anticipation of likely responses to
future or novel stressors, including such pervasive recent crises as un-
employment and natural disasters.
Unfortunately, neither of the studies was flawless. Not the least
of their problems was that of generalizability: Results were based on
samples of college students who, although demographically diverse,
may not have been representative of the general population. Still, in
that the methodological problems of field and laboratory studies are
to a large extent complimentary, that relationships held across studies
provides a degree of confidence in the findings. And of these findings,
the fact that Extraversion predicted support-seeking coping responses
in both males and females, in both laboratory-simulated and real-life
problems, seems particularly significant.
Why should Extraversion emerge as a singularly powerful influence?
Carl Jung recognized it as a fundamental "attitude type," thereby dis-
tinct from the other, more superficial personality "functions" (Jung,
1921/1971). Evidence (such as that it can be assessed through saliva
acidity and other physiological measures) has also been presented to
suggest that Extraversion may be unique in having biological, rather
210 Amirkhan et al.

than purely psychosocial origins (Eysenck, 1967). This is not meant

to suggest that Extraversion is the only personality construct worthy of
consideration in studies of coping. Certainly the present research con-
firmed that other dispositions, such as optimism, have good predictive
power. Nor should evidence for person-related influences be construed
as diminishing the importance of situation-bound factors. Had a more
precise stressor typology or a more powerful experimental manipulation
been used in the present studies, greater situational influence probably
would have been discovered. The complex pattem of current find-
ings indeed suggests that while personality dispositions may be linked
to some forms of coping, other strategies may be primarily under
situational control. Whatever the precise linkages and their underlying
mechanisms prove to be, the re-embracing of personality variables is
seen as a valuable step toward the better prediction, and understanding,
of coping behavior.

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Manuscript received March 8, 1993; revised December 20, 1993.