ABSTRACT
Psychological well-being (PWB) is a core component of mental health influenced by personality; however, most prior research focused on subjective well-being and normal-range personality traits. Less is known about the longitudinal role of maladaptive personality traits in shaping eudaimonic well-being. This study examined prospective associations between maladaptive personality domains and subsequent PWB in the SUN cohort. Personality traits were assessed at the 16-year follow-up using the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 Abbreviated Form (PID-5-BF). PWB was evaluated 2 years later using Ryff’s 29-item scale. All domains were analyzed as continuous variables in multivariable linear regression models with mutual adjustment. Among 2080 participants (56.9% women, mean age 57 ± 10.9 years), higher levels of detachment (β: −2.43; 95% CI: −2.77, −2.09), negative affect (β: −1.09; 95% CI: −1.38, −0.80), psychoticism (β: −0.76; 95% CI: −1.21, −0.30) and disinhibition (β: −0.52; 95% CI: −0.93, −0.11) were prospectively associated with lower PWB, whereas antagonism showed a positive association (β: 0.76; 95% CI: 0.36, 1.17). Detachment was consistently associated with lower scores across all six PWB dimensions, negative affect and psychoticism showed selective inverse associations with several PWB dimensions, and disinhibition showed an inverse association for autonomy. Nevertheless, antagonism displayed positive associations with environmental mastery, purpose in life, and self-acceptance. In conclusion, maladaptive personality traits are prospectively associated with PWB, with domain-specific patterns, highlighting the importance of a multidimensional perspective when examining personality–PWB relationships.