Social Problem Solving as a Mediator of the Relation between Personality Traits and Emotional Distress
Authors:   , Ricelli Sarah E. , Nezu Christine M. 
Published: July 2024

Research has linked the presence of particular personality traits with emotional distress and resulting psychological and physical health consequences. Specifically, within the context of the empirically-supported personality trait taxonomy known as, five-factor model, the trait of low emotional stability (or neuroticism) has been associated with negative affect. Additionally, the traits of conscientiousness and extraversion have each been associated with reduction in negative affect. This suggests that personality vulnerabilities may lead to emotional distress, and personality strengths may serve as a buffering factor. However, one way that the likelihood of psychological outcomes may be either increased or decreased regardless of the presence of personality trait vulnerabilities (or strengths), may be dependent on the presence of specific coping strategies in an individual's repertoire. Social problem solving is a particular cognitive behavioral coping process by which an individual identifies effective solutions to everyday problems. Because of the extant evidence base for problem-solving coping as an important coping factor with regard to the link between stress and depression, it has been suggested that problem solving coping may represent one important set of coping responses that may also impact the link between personality traits and emotional distress. In the present study, personality, social problem solving, and emotional distress were investigated in 200 undergraduate college students. It was hypothesized that social problem solving would serve as a mediator of the relationship between personality and negative affect. Personality and social problem solving variables associated with distress were evaluated, including the traits of Neuroticism, Conscientiousness, and Extraversion, and the social problem solving dimensions of negative problem orientation and rational problem solving. A secondary hypothesis predicted a difference in the mediational role of social problem solving as a function of dispositional versus situational affect. The sample consisted of both males and females, ages 18-25, of various ethnicities. Participants completed a series of four questionnaires: NEO Personality Inventory-Revised, Social Problem Solving Inventory-Revised (short-version), and two different versions of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule. Bivariate analyses, individual regression analyses, and Sobel tests were performed to test the predicted mediational impact of problem-solving regarding the relationship between personality traits and negative affect. Negative problem orientation was found to be a significant partial mediator of the relationship between Neuroticism and negative affect, as well as the relationship between Conscientiousness and negative affect. This indicates that in addition to the direct effect of the personality traits on distress, there was also an indirect effect of the traits on negative problem orientation. No difference in the mediational impact of social problem solving for state versus trait affect was found. All other proposed mediational relationships were insignificant. These findings identify negative problem orientation as a clinical target to attenuate distress in individuals with personality vulnerabilities.