Smokers Are Extraverted in Japan: Smoking Habit and The Big Five Personality Traits

Abstract

Identifying psychological factors related to smoking habits is important to enact effective personalized treatment. We examined the relationship between the Big Five personality traits and smoking using a large and representative Japanese sample ( n = 4,563 [2,462 women]; M age = 53.48 years, SD = 12.87, ranging from 23 to 79 years). The results of multinomial logistic regression analysis showed that current smokers were higher in Extraversion and lower in Conscientiousness than never smokers. Extraversion was the strongest personality trait differentiating current smokers from never smokers, especially in the younger age group. Former smokers scored significantly higher than current smokers on Conscientiousness, suggesting that Conscientiousness is associated with smoking cessation.