The influence of personality, inflammation, and sex on cognitive health

Personality traits have been consistently associated with elevated levels of inflammation, specifically high neuroticism (N) and low conscientiousness (C). Recent findings reveal that inflammation has also been shown to mediate the association between high N, low C and poor health outcomes. Given these related results, as well as research linking high N and low C to decreased cognitive resilience, we propose to examine whether the influence of personality traits on cognitive health is mediated by inflammation. The role of sex as a moderator will also be examined, as the role of sex has been understudied in research on personality and stress-related biomarkers, despite evidence of its potentially dichotomizing effects. Sex is particularly important to examine in the context of age-related cognitive decline, given that women exhibit elevated levels of neuroinflammation over the lifespan and are twice as likely to develop cognitive decline in comparison to men. Finally, although research linking cognitive decline with developmental trajectories of inflammation is relatively nascent, recent findings highlighting the association between inflammation during mid life (versus older age) and later cognitive decline in women point to the potential role of both life stage and sex in this area of research. We will thus examine the effects of personality traits, inflammation, and sex on cognitive health across life stages, particularly in mid and later adulthood.