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The relation of state resident neuroticism levels to state cancer incidence in the USA

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Abstract

The present research was conducted to determine state-level relations of resident neuroticism to age-adjusted cancer incidence, overall health status, the prevalence of four other major illnesses, the incidence of 25 invasive cancer sites, all-cause mortality, and 10 main cause-of-death categories. Responses of 619,397 residents to the Big Five Inventory between 1999 and 2005 produced state neuroticism scores for each of the 50 states. State socioeconomic status, White population percent, urban population percent, heavy drinking, smoking, obesity, exercise, and consumption of fruits and vegetables served as control variables. For each of the 44 criteria, statistical control was attained in sequential multiple regression equations by entering the eight variables first as block, and then first stepwise, followed by the forced entry of neuroticism. For the 2000–2010 period, Study 1 established that state resident neuroticism accounted for an additional 11.2 to 31.7% of the variance in total, male, and female cancer incidence. With the same analytic procedures, Study 2 provided evidence for convergent and discriminant validity. Neuroticism accounted for significant variance in the incidence of a majority of the top 25 invasive cancer sites between 2000 and 2010, and cancer as a cause of death in 2011. In contrast, neuroticism was not a significant positive predictor of overall health in 2011, all-cause mortality in 2011, the prevalence of diabetes, COPD, and kidney disease in 2011, or, death in 2011 from digestive, nervous system, endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases, as well as from mental and behavioral disorders and certain infectious and parasitic diseases.

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Notes

  1. Because of incomplete data, 2001 had to be substituted for 2000 for heavy drinking and exercise, and 2009 had to be substituted for 2010 for exercise and consumption of fruits and vegetables.

  2. Analyses revealed that these correlations were not significant merely because of a few cancer incidence outliers. For each cancer incidence criterion, the values were within plus or minus three standard deviations, Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Shapiro-Wilk tests showed normality, and relations remained substantial and significant when Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico were judged as potential outliers and eliminated from the analyses either separately or in combination.

  3. Although not the focus of the present research, the other four Big Five personality variables were tested in Study 1. Conscientiousness correlated −.37 (p < .01) with total cancer incidence and −.50 (p < .001) with female cancer incidence. However, in sequential multiple regression equations with the three demographic and five risk factors entered as a block or in stepwise mode on the first step, neuroticism entered on the second step, and the other four Big Five variable selected stepwise on the third step, none of the other Big Five variables emerged as a predictor.

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  1. Department of Psychology, Cape Breton University, 1250 Grand Lake Road, Sydney, NS, B1P 6L2, Canada

    Stewart J. H. McCann

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McCann, S.J.H. The relation of state resident neuroticism levels to state cancer incidence in the USA. Curr Psychol 39, 364–377 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-017-9774-6

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