Personalities

Vocabulary

1.     Choose the correct answer (A,B or C).

1)     Samantha is very busy taking care of her children as well as her _____ parents.

Vocabulary

1.     Choose the correct answer (A,B or C).

2)     John doesn’t __________ his temper often. He is very calm and easy-going.

Vocabulary

1.     Choose the correct answer (A,B or C).

3)     Natalie is a very _________child. She likes ordering her younger brother around.

Vocabulary

1.     Choose the correct answer (A,B or C).

4)  Some writers under _____ because they do not want their real names to be revealed.

Vocabulary

1.     Choose the correct answer (A,B or C).

5) If you consider the needs or feelings of others, you're a _______ person.

Vocabulary

1.     Choose the correct answer (A,B or C).

6) If you have a relaxed attitude and don't worry too much, you're _______ .

Vocabulary

1.     Choose the correct answer (A,B or C).

7) Which word is closest in meaning to "sensible"?

Vocabulary

1.     Choose the correct answer (A,B or C).

8) If you don't depend on other people or need much support, you're an _______ person.

Vocabulary

2.   Read the descriptions that two students have written about a friend. Choose the best word for each gap.

I used to love playing with Sam when we were kids because he’s very (1) ___ so he was really good at making up exciting games to play. But he didn’t enjoy being in large groups because he was very (2) ___and he didn’t like other children playing with us. He’s become a bit more (3) ___ since then and as a result he’s got more friends now. But we had an argument the other day because I made a joke about his clothes. He’s much too (4) ___ so it’s really easy to upset him. I have to be careful what I say.

I met Emma quite recently. The best thing about her is that she’s great fun to be with as she’s always (5) ___ and she never seems to be in a bad mood. She’s always got something to say – in fact, she’s the most (6) ___ person I’ve ever met. She never gets anxious but in some ways she’s far too (7) ____about everything. For example, she nearly always arrives late when we meet up. I don’t mind that, though. The only thing I dislike about her is that she can be (8) ____ to other people – she sometimes makes fun of them, which isn’t nice.

Which of the following words should be in the first gap?

Vocabulary

2.   Read the descriptions that two students have written about a friend. Choose the best word for each gap.

I used to love playing with Sam when we were kids because he’s very (1) ___ so he was really good at making up exciting games to play. But he didn’t enjoy being in large groups because he was very (2) ___and he didn’t like other children playing with us. He’s become a bit more (3) ___ since then and as a result he’s got more friends now. But we had an argument the other day because I made a joke about his clothes. He’s much too (4) ___ so it’s really easy to upset him. I have to be careful what I say.

I met Emma quite recently. The best thing about her is that she’s great fun to be with as she’s always (5) ___ and she never seems to be in a bad mood. She’s always got something to say – in fact, she’s the most (6) ___ person I’ve ever met. She never gets anxious but in some ways she’s far too (7) ____about everything. For example, she nearly always arrives late when we meet up. I don’t mind that, though. The only thing I dislike about her is that she can be (8) ____ to other people – she sometimes makes fun of them, which isn’t nice.

Which of the following words should be in the second gap?

Vocabulary

2.   Read the descriptions that two students have written about a friend. Choose the best word for each gap.

I used to love playing with Sam when we were kids because he’s very (1) ___ so he was really good at making up exciting games to play. But he didn’t enjoy being in large groups because he was very (2) ___and he didn’t like other children playing with us. He’s become a bit more (3) ___ since then and as a result he’s got more friends now. But we had an argument the other day because I made a joke about his clothes. He’s much too (4) ___ so it’s really easy to upset him. I have to be careful what I say.

I met Emma quite recently. The best thing about her is that she’s great fun to be with as she’s always (5) ___ and she never seems to be in a bad mood. She’s always got something to say – in fact, she’s the most (6) ___ person I’ve ever met. She never gets anxious but in some ways she’s far too (7) ____about everything. For example, she nearly always arrives late when we meet up. I don’t mind that, though. The only thing I dislike about her is that she can be (8) ____ to other people – she sometimes makes fun of them, which isn’t nice.

Which of the following words should be in the third gap?

Vocabulary

2.   Read the descriptions that two students have written about a friend. Choose the best word for each gap.

I used to love playing with Sam when we were kids because he’s very (1) ___ so he was really good at making up exciting games to play. But he didn’t enjoy being in large groups because he was very (2) ___and he didn’t like other children playing with us. He’s become a bit more (3) ___ since then and as a result he’s got more friends now. But we had an argument the other day because I made a joke about his clothes. He’s much too (4) ___ so it’s really easy to upset him. I have to be careful what I say.

I met Emma quite recently. The best thing about her is that she’s great fun to be with as she’s always (5) ___ and she never seems to be in a bad mood. She’s always got something to say – in fact, she’s the most (6) ___ person I’ve ever met. She never gets anxious but in some ways she’s far too (7) ____about everything. For example, she nearly always arrives late when we meet up. I don’t mind that, though. The only thing I dislike about her is that she can be (8) ____ to other people – she sometimes makes fun of them, which isn’t nice.

Which of the following words should be in the fourth gap?

Vocabulary

2.   Read the descriptions that two students have written about a friend. Choose the best word for each gap.

I used to love playing with Sam when we were kids because he’s very (1) ___ so he was really good at making up exciting games to play. But he didn’t enjoy being in large groups because he was very (2) ___and he didn’t like other children playing with us. He’s become a bit more (3) ___ since then and as a result he’s got more friends now. But we had an argument the other day because I made a joke about his clothes. He’s much too (4) ___ so it’s really easy to upset him. I have to be careful what I say.

I met Emma quite recently. The best thing about her is that she’s great fun to be with as she’s always (5) ___ and she never seems to be in a bad mood. She’s always got something to say – in fact, she’s the most (6) ___ person I’ve ever met. She never gets anxious but in some ways she’s far too (7) ____about everything. For example, she nearly always arrives late when we meet up. I don’t mind that, though. The only thing I dislike about her is that she can be (8) ____ to other people – she sometimes makes fun of them, which isn’t nice.

Which of the following words should be in the fifth gap?

Vocabulary

2.   Read the descriptions that two students have written about a friend. Choose the best word for each gap.

I used to love playing with Sam when we were kids because he’s very (1) ___ so he was really good at making up exciting games to play. But he didn’t enjoy being in large groups because he was very (2) ___and he didn’t like other children playing with us. He’s become a bit more (3) ___ since then and as a result he’s got more friends now. But we had an argument the other day because I made a joke about his clothes. He’s much too (4) ___ so it’s really easy to upset him. I have to be careful what I say.

I met Emma quite recently. The best thing about her is that she’s great fun to be with as she’s always (5) ___ and she never seems to be in a bad mood. She’s always got something to say – in fact, she’s the most (6) ___ person I’ve ever met. She never gets anxious but in some ways she’s far too (7) ____about everything. For example, she nearly always arrives late when we meet up. I don’t mind that, though. The only thing I dislike about her is that she can be (8) ____ to other people – she sometimes makes fun of them, which isn’t nice.

Which of the following words should be in the sixth gap?

Vocabulary

2.   Read the descriptions that two students have written about a friend. Choose the best word for each gap.

I used to love playing with Sam when we were kids because he’s very (1) ___ so he was really good at making up exciting games to play. But he didn’t enjoy being in large groups because he was very (2) ___and he didn’t like other children playing with us. He’s become a bit more (3) ___ since then and as a result he’s got more friends now. But we had an argument the other day because I made a joke about his clothes. He’s much too (4) ___ so it’s really easy to upset him. I have to be careful what I say.

I met Emma quite recently. The best thing about her is that she’s great fun to be with as she’s always (5) ___ and she never seems to be in a bad mood. She’s always got something to say – in fact, she’s the most (6) ___ person I’ve ever met. She never gets anxious but in some ways she’s far too (7) ____about everything. For example, she nearly always arrives late when we meet up. I don’t mind that, though. The only thing I dislike about her is that she can be (8) ____ to other people – she sometimes makes fun of them, which isn’t nice.

Which of the following words should be in the seventh gap?

Vocabulary

2.   Read the descriptions that two students have written about a friend. Choose the best word for each gap.

I used to love playing with Sam when we were kids because he’s very (1) ___ so he was really good at making up exciting games to play. But he didn’t enjoy being in large groups because he was very (2) ___and he didn’t like other children playing with us. He’s become a bit more (3) ___ since then and as a result he’s got more friends now. But we had an argument the other day because I made a joke about his clothes. He’s much too (4) ___ so it’s really easy to upset him. I have to be careful what I say.

I met Emma quite recently. The best thing about her is that she’s great fun to be with as she’s always (5) ___ and she never seems to be in a bad mood. She’s always got something to say – in fact, she’s the most (6) ___ person I’ve ever met. She never gets anxious but in some ways she’s far too (7) ____about everything. For example, she nearly always arrives late when we meet up. I don’t mind that, though. The only thing I dislike about her is that she can be (8) ____ to other people – she sometimes makes fun of them, which isn’t nice.

Which of the following words should be in the eighth gap?

Listening

You will hear five short conversations. Listen to the first conversation and decide which word best describes the first speaker. Choose the correct answer.

Listening

You will hear five short conversations. Listen to the second conversation and decide which word best describes the first speaker. Choose the correct answer.

Listening

You will hear five short conversations. Listen to the third conversation and decide which word best describes the first speaker. Choose the correct answer.

Listening

You will hear five short conversations. Listen to the fourth conversation and decide which word best describes the first speaker. Choose the correct answer.

Listening

You will hear five short conversations. Listen to the fifth conversation and decide which word best describes the first speaker. Choose the correct answer.

Reading

Read the article and choose the correct answer.

Personality and health

There is increasing evidence that health is linked to personality. However, until now, the relationship has not affected the way health care is delivered. There are several reasons for this. Some health workers doubt whether there is a direct link between health and personality or whether it’s just a coincidence. Some feel it is their professional duty to treat all patients in the same way. Others argue that delivering health services according to patients’ personalities will have minimal impact and therefore isn’t worth the effort. However, some psychologists believe that applying different procedures to people with different personalities could have a significant, positive effect on health.

Research into personality has, in recent years, focused on the Big Five model of personality types. This model measures how neurotic, extrovert, open to experience, agreeable and conscientious a person is. Some of these personality types have been studied in relation to health. For example, conscientious people tend to be less likely to smoke, drink too much alcohol or be inactive. However, in other cases, the relationship is less clear. Neurotic behaviour, for instance, has been found in some studies to increase the risk of death, in others to protect people from illness and in others to have no link to health at all.

Even so, if health workers applied an understanding of personality to the services they provide, they could influence the extent to which patients act on advice and follow their treatment. For example, high sensation-seeking individuals, who are extroverts and unconscientious in the Big Five model and tend to take part in risky activities, respond to drama, energy and emotion. Thus, to encourage those people to follow health advice, health promotions can be designed to incorporate those factors. An example of this was the campaign SENTAR which aimed to reduce cannabis use among high sensation-seeking teenagers. By creating a suitable television advert, they successfully engaged these youths and reduced their recreational drug use. Of course, this approach isn’t always possible. It is often impractical and expensive to create several versions of a campaign to reach different personality types. However, recent developments in computer technology, cookies and targeted advertising may allow this approach to be used more in future.

Personality could also be considered when sending messages, information and guidance to specific patients. Already, health information is usually available in various forms – printed, digital, audio, and so on – to be suitable and accessible for different users, such as the blind, the elderly, and people with reading difficulties. Research has also shown that, by identifying different patients’ motivations for treatment and then corresponding with them in a way that reflects their motivations, patients will become more involved in their treatment, compared to when the same messages are sent to everyone. Correspondence could, therefore, be adapted to reflect patients’ personality type, too. For example, less conscientious people could be sent phone reminders to attend appointments. So far, there has been very little research into the effectiveness of tailoring health guidance according to personality, so this area deserves further study.

Until now, the focus of personality-health research has been to explore the link between personality and health and has had very little practical application. Thus, health workers have not engaged deeply with it. However, by suggesting, trialling and implementing practices to engage patients with different personalities, the relationship between psychology researchers and health workers could improve, along with the health of the general public.

Who is the article most likely aimed at?

Reading

Read the article and choose the correct answer.

Personality and health

There is increasing evidence that health is linked to personality. However, until now, the relationship has not affected the way health care is delivered. There are several reasons for this. Some health workers doubt whether there is a direct link between health and personality or whether it’s just a coincidence. Some feel it is their professional duty to treat all patients in the same way. Others argue that delivering health services according to patients’ personalities will have minimal impact and therefore isn’t worth the effort. However, some psychologists believe that applying different procedures to people with different personalities could have a significant, positive effect on health.

Research into personality has, in recent years, focused on the Big Five model of personality types. This model measures how neurotic, extrovert, open to experience, agreeable and conscientious a person is. Some of these personality types have been studied in relation to health. For example, conscientious people tend to be less likely to smoke, drink too much alcohol or be inactive. However, in other cases, the relationship is less clear. Neurotic behaviour, for instance, has been found in some studies to increase the risk of death, in others to protect people from illness and in others to have no link to health at all.

Even so, if health workers applied an understanding of personality to the services they provide, they could influence the extent to which patients act on advice and follow their treatment. For example, high sensation-seeking individuals, who are extroverts and unconscientious in the Big Five model and tend to take part in risky activities, respond to drama, energy and emotion. Thus, to encourage those people to follow health advice, health promotions can be designed to incorporate those factors. An example of this was the campaign SENTAR which aimed to reduce cannabis use among high sensation-seeking teenagers. By creating a suitable television advert, they successfully engaged these youths and reduced their recreational drug use. Of course, this approach isn’t always possible. It is often impractical and expensive to create several versions of a campaign to reach different personality types. However, recent developments in computer technology, cookies and targeted advertising may allow this approach to be used more in future.

Personality could also be considered when sending messages, information and guidance to specific patients. Already, health information is usually available in various forms – printed, digital, audio, and so on – to be suitable and accessible for different users, such as the blind, the elderly, and people with reading difficulties. Research has also shown that, by identifying different patients’ motivations for treatment and then corresponding with them in a way that reflects their motivations, patients will become more involved in their treatment, compared to when the same messages are sent to everyone. Correspondence could, therefore, be adapted to reflect patients’ personality type, too. For example, less conscientious people could be sent phone reminders to attend appointments. So far, there has been very little research into the effectiveness of tailoring health guidance according to personality, so this area deserves further study.

Until now, the focus of personality-health research has been to explore the link between personality and health and has had very little practical application. Thus, health workers have not engaged deeply with it. However, by suggesting, trialling and implementing practices to engage patients with different personalities, the relationship between psychology researchers and health workers could improve, along with the health of the general public.

What is the main idea of the article?

Reading

Read the article and choose the correct answer.

Personality and health

There is increasing evidence that health is linked to personality. However, until now, the relationship has not affected the way health care is delivered. There are several reasons for this. Some health workers doubt whether there is a direct link between health and personality or whether it’s just a coincidence. Some feel it is their professional duty to treat all patients in the same way. Others argue that delivering health services according to patients’ personalities will have minimal impact and therefore isn’t worth the effort. However, some psychologists believe that applying different procedures to people with different personalities could have a significant, positive effect on health.

Research into personality has, in recent years, focused on the Big Five model of personality types. This model measures how neurotic, extrovert, open to experience, agreeable and conscientious a person is. Some of these personality types have been studied in relation to health. For example, conscientious people tend to be less likely to smoke, drink too much alcohol or be inactive. However, in other cases, the relationship is less clear. Neurotic behaviour, for instance, has been found in some studies to increase the risk of death, in others to protect people from illness and in others to have no link to health at all.

Even so, if health workers applied an understanding of personality to the services they provide, they could influence the extent to which patients act on advice and follow their treatment. For example, high sensation-seeking individuals, who are extroverts and unconscientious in the Big Five model and tend to take part in risky activities, respond to drama, energy and emotion. Thus, to encourage those people to follow health advice, health promotions can be designed to incorporate those factors. An example of this was the campaign SENTAR which aimed to reduce cannabis use among high sensation-seeking teenagers. By creating a suitable television advert, they successfully engaged these youths and reduced their recreational drug use. Of course, this approach isn’t always possible. It is often impractical and expensive to create several versions of a campaign to reach different personality types. However, recent developments in computer technology, cookies and targeted advertising may allow this approach to be used more in future.

Personality could also be considered when sending messages, information and guidance to specific patients. Already, health information is usually available in various forms – printed, digital, audio, and so on – to be suitable and accessible for different users, such as the blind, the elderly, and people with reading difficulties. Research has also shown that, by identifying different patients’ motivations for treatment and then corresponding with them in a way that reflects their motivations, patients will become more involved in their treatment, compared to when the same messages are sent to everyone. Correspondence could, therefore, be adapted to reflect patients’ personality type, too. For example, less conscientious people could be sent phone reminders to attend appointments. So far, there has been very little research into the effectiveness of tailoring health guidance according to personality, so this area deserves further study.

Until now, the focus of personality-health research has been to explore the link between personality and health and has had very little practical application. Thus, health workers have not engaged deeply with it. However, by suggesting, trialling and implementing practices to engage patients with different personalities, the relationship between psychology researchers and health workers could improve, along with the health of the general public.

Which of these is NOT a reason why clinicians do not currently consider personality in their approach to healthcare?

Reading

Read the article and choose the correct answer.

Personality and health

There is increasing evidence that health is linked to personality. However, until now, the relationship has not affected the way health care is delivered. There are several reasons for this. Some health workers doubt whether there is a direct link between health and personality or whether it’s just a coincidence. Some feel it is their professional duty to treat all patients in the same way. Others argue that delivering health services according to patients’ personalities will have minimal impact and therefore isn’t worth the effort. However, some psychologists believe that applying different procedures to people with different personalities could have a significant, positive effect on health.

Research into personality has, in recent years, focused on the Big Five model of personality types. This model measures how neurotic, extrovert, open to experience, agreeable and conscientious a person is. Some of these personality types have been studied in relation to health. For example, conscientious people tend to be less likely to smoke, drink too much alcohol or be inactive. However, in other cases, the relationship is less clear. Neurotic behaviour, for instance, has been found in some studies to increase the risk of death, in others to protect people from illness and in others to have no link to health at all.

Even so, if health workers applied an understanding of personality to the services they provide, they could influence the extent to which patients act on advice and follow their treatment. For example, high sensation-seeking individuals, who are extroverts and unconscientious in the Big Five model and tend to take part in risky activities, respond to drama, energy and emotion. Thus, to encourage those people to follow health advice, health promotions can be designed to incorporate those factors. An example of this was the campaign SENTAR which aimed to reduce cannabis use among high sensation-seeking teenagers. By creating a suitable television advert, they successfully engaged these youths and reduced their recreational drug use. Of course, this approach isn’t always possible. It is often impractical and expensive to create several versions of a campaign to reach different personality types. However, recent developments in computer technology, cookies and targeted advertising may allow this approach to be used more in future.

Personality could also be considered when sending messages, information and guidance to specific patients. Already, health information is usually available in various forms – printed, digital, audio, and so on – to be suitable and accessible for different users, such as the blind, the elderly, and people with reading difficulties. Research has also shown that, by identifying different patients’ motivations for treatment and then corresponding with them in a way that reflects their motivations, patients will become more involved in their treatment, compared to when the same messages are sent to everyone. Correspondence could, therefore, be adapted to reflect patients’ personality type, too. For example, less conscientious people could be sent phone reminders to attend appointments. So far, there has been very little research into the effectiveness of tailoring health guidance according to personality, so this area deserves further study.

Until now, the focus of personality-health research has been to explore the link between personality and health and has had very little practical application. Thus, health workers have not engaged deeply with it. However, by suggesting, trialling and implementing practices to engage patients with different personalities, the relationship between psychology researchers and health workers could improve, along with the health of the general public.

What can be concluded from the text about neurotic patients?

Reading

Read the article and choose the correct answer.

Personality and health

There is increasing evidence that health is linked to personality. However, until now, the relationship has not affected the way health care is delivered. There are several reasons for this. Some health workers doubt whether there is a direct link between health and personality or whether it’s just a coincidence. Some feel it is their professional duty to treat all patients in the same way. Others argue that delivering health services according to patients’ personalities will have minimal impact and therefore isn’t worth the effort. However, some psychologists believe that applying different procedures to people with different personalities could have a significant, positive effect on health.

Research into personality has, in recent years, focused on the Big Five model of personality types. This model measures how neurotic, extrovert, open to experience, agreeable and conscientious a person is. Some of these personality types have been studied in relation to health. For example, conscientious people tend to be less likely to smoke, drink too much alcohol or be inactive. However, in other cases, the relationship is less clear. Neurotic behaviour, for instance, has been found in some studies to increase the risk of death, in others to protect people from illness and in others to have no link to health at all.

Even so, if health workers applied an understanding of personality to the services they provide, they could influence the extent to which patients act on advice and follow their treatment. For example, high sensation-seeking individuals, who are extroverts and unconscientious in the Big Five model and tend to take part in risky activities, respond to drama, energy and emotion. Thus, to encourage those people to follow health advice, health promotions can be designed to incorporate those factors. An example of this was the campaign SENTAR which aimed to reduce cannabis use among high sensation-seeking teenagers. By creating a suitable television advert, they successfully engaged these youths and reduced their recreational drug use. Of course, this approach isn’t always possible. It is often impractical and expensive to create several versions of a campaign to reach different personality types. However, recent developments in computer technology, cookies and targeted advertising may allow this approach to be used more in future.

Personality could also be considered when sending messages, information and guidance to specific patients. Already, health information is usually available in various forms – printed, digital, audio, and so on – to be suitable and accessible for different users, such as the blind, the elderly, and people with reading difficulties. Research has also shown that, by identifying different patients’ motivations for treatment and then corresponding with them in a way that reflects their motivations, patients will become more involved in their treatment, compared to when the same messages are sent to everyone. Correspondence could, therefore, be adapted to reflect patients’ personality type, too. For example, less conscientious people could be sent phone reminders to attend appointments. So far, there has been very little research into the effectiveness of tailoring health guidance according to personality, so this area deserves further study.

Until now, the focus of personality-health research has been to explore the link between personality and health and has had very little practical application. Thus, health workers have not engaged deeply with it. However, by suggesting, trialling and implementing practices to engage patients with different personalities, the relationship between psychology researchers and health workers could improve, along with the health of the general public.

It can be inferred that the campaign SENTAR...

Reading

Read the article and choose the correct answer.

Personality and health

There is increasing evidence that health is linked to personality. However, until now, the relationship has not affected the way health care is delivered. There are several reasons for this. Some health workers doubt whether there is a direct link between health and personality or whether it’s just a coincidence. Some feel it is their professional duty to treat all patients in the same way. Others argue that delivering health services according to patients’ personalities will have minimal impact and therefore isn’t worth the effort. However, some psychologists believe that applying different procedures to people with different personalities could have a significant, positive effect on health.

Research into personality has, in recent years, focused on the Big Five model of personality types. This model measures how neurotic, extrovert, open to experience, agreeable and conscientious a person is. Some of these personality types have been studied in relation to health. For example, conscientious people tend to be less likely to smoke, drink too much alcohol or be inactive. However, in other cases, the relationship is less clear. Neurotic behaviour, for instance, has been found in some studies to increase the risk of death, in others to protect people from illness and in others to have no link to health at all.

Even so, if health workers applied an understanding of personality to the services they provide, they could influence the extent to which patients act on advice and follow their treatment. For example, high sensation-seeking individuals, who are extroverts and unconscientious in the Big Five model and tend to take part in risky activities, respond to drama, energy and emotion. Thus, to encourage those people to follow health advice, health promotions can be designed to incorporate those factors. An example of this was the campaign SENTAR which aimed to reduce cannabis use among high sensation-seeking teenagers. By creating a suitable television advert, they successfully engaged these youths and reduced their recreational drug use. Of course, this approach isn’t always possible. It is often impractical and expensive to create several versions of a campaign to reach different personality types. However, recent developments in computer technology, cookies and targeted advertising may allow this approach to be used more in future.

Personality could also be considered when sending messages, information and guidance to specific patients. Already, health information is usually available in various forms – printed, digital, audio, and so on – to be suitable and accessible for different users, such as the blind, the elderly, and people with reading difficulties. Research has also shown that, by identifying different patients’ motivations for treatment and then corresponding with them in a way that reflects their motivations, patients will become more involved in their treatment, compared to when the same messages are sent to everyone. Correspondence could, therefore, be adapted to reflect patients’ personality type, too. For example, less conscientious people could be sent phone reminders to attend appointments. So far, there has been very little research into the effectiveness of tailoring health guidance according to personality, so this area deserves further study.

Until now, the focus of personality-health research has been to explore the link between personality and health and has had very little practical application. Thus, health workers have not engaged deeply with it. However, by suggesting, trialling and implementing practices to engage patients with different personalities, the relationship between psychology researchers and health workers could improve, along with the health of the general public.

The writer believes that improving computer technology...

Reading

Read the article and choose the correct answer.

Personality and health

There is increasing evidence that health is linked to personality. However, until now, the relationship has not affected the way health care is delivered. There are several reasons for this. Some health workers doubt whether there is a direct link between health and personality or whether it’s just a coincidence. Some feel it is their professional duty to treat all patients in the same way. Others argue that delivering health services according to patients’ personalities will have minimal impact and therefore isn’t worth the effort. However, some psychologists believe that applying different procedures to people with different personalities could have a significant, positive effect on health.

Research into personality has, in recent years, focused on the Big Five model of personality types. This model measures how neurotic, extrovert, open to experience, agreeable and conscientious a person is. Some of these personality types have been studied in relation to health. For example, conscientious people tend to be less likely to smoke, drink too much alcohol or be inactive. However, in other cases, the relationship is less clear. Neurotic behaviour, for instance, has been found in some studies to increase the risk of death, in others to protect people from illness and in others to have no link to health at all.

Even so, if health workers applied an understanding of personality to the services they provide, they could influence the extent to which patients act on advice and follow their treatment. For example, high sensation-seeking individuals, who are extroverts and unconscientious in the Big Five model and tend to take part in risky activities, respond to drama, energy and emotion. Thus, to encourage those people to follow health advice, health promotions can be designed to incorporate those factors. An example of this was the campaign SENTAR which aimed to reduce cannabis use among high sensation-seeking teenagers. By creating a suitable television advert, they successfully engaged these youths and reduced their recreational drug use. Of course, this approach isn’t always possible. It is often impractical and expensive to create several versions of a campaign to reach different personality types. However, recent developments in computer technology, cookies and targeted advertising may allow this approach to be used more in future.

Personality could also be considered when sending messages, information and guidance to specific patients. Already, health information is usually available in various forms – printed, digital, audio, and so on – to be suitable and accessible for different users, such as the blind, the elderly, and people with reading difficulties. Research has also shown that, by identifying different patients’ motivations for treatment and then corresponding with them in a way that reflects their motivations, patients will become more involved in their treatment, compared to when the same messages are sent to everyone. Correspondence could, therefore, be adapted to reflect patients’ personality type, too. For example, less conscientious people could be sent phone reminders to attend appointments. So far, there has been very little research into the effectiveness of tailoring health guidance according to personality, so this area deserves further study.

Until now, the focus of personality-health research has been to explore the link between personality and health and has had very little practical application. Thus, health workers have not engaged deeply with it. However, by suggesting, trialling and implementing practices to engage patients with different personalities, the relationship between psychology researchers and health workers could improve, along with the health of the general public.

In paragraph 4, the writer refers to a study that found that...

Reading

Read the article and choose the correct answer.

Personality and health

There is increasing evidence that health is linked to personality. However, until now, the relationship has not affected the way health care is delivered. There are several reasons for this. Some health workers doubt whether there is a direct link between health and personality or whether it’s just a coincidence. Some feel it is their professional duty to treat all patients in the same way. Others argue that delivering health services according to patients’ personalities will have minimal impact and therefore isn’t worth the effort. However, some psychologists believe that applying different procedures to people with different personalities could have a significant, positive effect on health.

Research into personality has, in recent years, focused on the Big Five model of personality types. This model measures how neurotic, extrovert, open to experience, agreeable and conscientious a person is. Some of these personality types have been studied in relation to health. For example, conscientious people tend to be less likely to smoke, drink too much alcohol or be inactive. However, in other cases, the relationship is less clear. Neurotic behaviour, for instance, has been found in some studies to increase the risk of death, in others to protect people from illness and in others to have no link to health at all.

Even so, if health workers applied an understanding of personality to the services they provide, they could influence the extent to which patients act on advice and follow their treatment. For example, high sensation-seeking individuals, who are extroverts and unconscientious in the Big Five model and tend to take part in risky activities, respond to drama, energy and emotion. Thus, to encourage those people to follow health advice, health promotions can be designed to incorporate those factors. An example of this was the campaign SENTAR which aimed to reduce cannabis use among high sensation-seeking teenagers. By creating a suitable television advert, they successfully engaged these youths and reduced their recreational drug use. Of course, this approach isn’t always possible. It is often impractical and expensive to create several versions of a campaign to reach different personality types. However, recent developments in computer technology, cookies and targeted advertising may allow this approach to be used more in future.

Personality could also be considered when sending messages, information and guidance to specific patients. Already, health information is usually available in various forms – printed, digital, audio, and so on – to be suitable and accessible for different users, such as the blind, the elderly, and people with reading difficulties. Research has also shown that, by identifying different patients’ motivations for treatment and then corresponding with them in a way that reflects their motivations, patients will become more involved in their treatment, compared to when the same messages are sent to everyone. Correspondence could, therefore, be adapted to reflect patients’ personality type, too. For example, less conscientious people could be sent phone reminders to attend appointments. So far, there has been very little research into the effectiveness of tailoring health guidance according to personality, so this area deserves further study.

Until now, the focus of personality-health research has been to explore the link between personality and health and has had very little practical application. Thus, health workers have not engaged deeply with it. However, by suggesting, trialling and implementing practices to engage patients with different personalities, the relationship between psychology researchers and health workers could improve, along with the health of the general public.

In the final paragraph, what does the writer advise researchers in health/personality to do?