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Personality, anxiety and general mental health fluctuation, before and after menstruation, in an adolescent group
Person. lndicid. 01% Vol. IO. No. I, pp. 131-132. Prmted in Greal Britam. All rights reserved
1989 Copyright
0191-8869189 53.00 + 0.00 C 1989 Pergamon Press plc
Personality, anxiety and general mental health fluctuation, before and after menstruation, in an adolescent group CLIVE
LAYTON
Departmen: of Psychology. Institute of Psychiatry, De Crespigny Park, Denmark Hill, London SE5 8AF. England (Received 16 January 1988) Summary-Ninety-four female subjects were studied on E, N, P and state anxiety, and 64 on the GHQ-60, in order to investigate trait variation and state-type transitory fluctuation, during the premenstrual and postmenstrual stages. As predicted, the r-ratio of correlated means revealed non-significant results with regard to the trait factors, whereas notable shifts occurred in state anxiety and general mental health.
INTRODUCIION
A number of recent studies (e.g. Mohan and Chopra. 1986, 1987; Layton, 1988) using small samples have found temporal shift on the Eysenckian factors of personality: Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Psychoticism, as a consequence of the menstruation cycle. As these orthogonal factors measure enduring characteristics, it would normally be predicted that change would be minor, whereas state-type questionnaires tapping transitory shift in such aspects as irritability, tension, depression etc., that go to form the psychological basis of the premenstrual syndrome, would show considerable fluctuation. The present experiment was designed to examine possible trait variation, and the level of state-type fluctuation, during the premenstrual and postmenstrual stages, using established and well-validated questionnaires upon a more representative sample of normal subjects. METHOD
The experiment was conducted in two phases. Ninety-four females, aged 1619, completed the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (Eysenck and Eysenck, 1975) to measure the trait factors E, N and P, and Form X-l (A-State) of the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (Spielberger, Gorsuch and Lushene, 1970). during the premenstrual stage [24 days before menstruation (Dalton, 1983)] and then again 2days after menstruation had ceased. Sixty-four of the subjects also completed the General Health Questionnaire (Goldberg, 1978) a measure of transitory fluctuation in general, minor, non-psychotic psychiatric morbidity. In addition, the Lie scale (L) of the EPQ, which is heterogeneous in content, measures dissimulation, and a conglomerate function which includes conformity, was also scored. RESULTS
The purpose of the study was to investigate personality, anxiety and general mental health shift during and postmenstrual stages. The r-ratio of correlated means was applied to the data, and the results Table I.
the premenstrual are presented in
DISCUSSION
The results of this experiment are as predicted: that scores on the Eysenckian factors of personality remain largely undisturbed in an adolescent sample as a consequence of the menstruation cycle, whereas transitory anxiety and general mental health are negatively elevated at the premenstrual stage. as compared to the postmenstrual stage. The significant decrease in L was probably more a function of the familiarity with the EPQ, and/or as a result of reflection on answers given at stage I. rather than of subjects being less likely to dissimulate, conform, or become less-defensive after menstruation. These findings are supportive of the trait-state distinction being upheld in menstruation research, and add to the growing, yet still relatively sparse literature, on the subject of the psychological changes that take place during the menstruation cycle.
Table
I. Means.
standard health,
deviations and r-values during the premenstrual
for personality, anxiety, and gener;il and postmenstrual stages
mental
Postmenstrual
Premenstrual MWll
SD
Meall
SD
I
P
E N P L A-state
14.02 13.28 4.09 7.75 41.26
5.13 4.68 3.70 4.23 9.21
14.04 13.19 4.1 I 7.19 37.45
3.48 5.25 4.14 4.14 9.93
0.09 0.39 0.13 2.44 3.09
NS NS NS <0.02
(N=94)
GHO-60
20.86
12.15
IO.31
10.69
4.97
(N=64)
I31
132
NOTES
AND
SHORTER
COMMIJNlCATlONS
REFERENCES Dalton K. (1983) The Premenstrual Syndrome and Progesterone Therapy, 2nd edn. Heinmann. London. Eysenck H. J. and Eysenck S. B. G. (1975) The Manual of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. Hodder & Stoughton. London. Goldberg D. (1978) Manual of the General Health Questionnaire. NFER. Windsor. Layton C. (1988) Personality and anxiety variation before and after menstruation. Person. indioid. 01% 9, 691492. Mohan V. and Chopra R. (1986) A study of personality variation in women, before and after menstruation. Person. indicid. 013 7, 127-128. Mohan V. and Chopra R. (1987) Personality variation as an effect of pre-menstrual tension. Person. indirid. Dtr 8.763-765. Spielberger C. D.. Gorsuch R. L. and Lushene R. E. (1970) The Srate-Trait Anxiety Incentory: Test Manual for Form X. Consulting Psychologists Press, Palo Alto, Calif.
1989 Copyright
0191-8869189 53.00 + 0.00 C 1989 Pergamon Press plc
Personality, anxiety and general mental health fluctuation, before and after menstruation, in an adolescent group CLIVE
LAYTON
Departmen: of Psychology. Institute of Psychiatry, De Crespigny Park, Denmark Hill, London SE5 8AF. England (Received 16 January 1988) Summary-Ninety-four female subjects were studied on E, N, P and state anxiety, and 64 on the GHQ-60, in order to investigate trait variation and state-type transitory fluctuation, during the premenstrual and postmenstrual stages. As predicted, the r-ratio of correlated means revealed non-significant results with regard to the trait factors, whereas notable shifts occurred in state anxiety and general mental health.
INTRODUCIION
A number of recent studies (e.g. Mohan and Chopra. 1986, 1987; Layton, 1988) using small samples have found temporal shift on the Eysenckian factors of personality: Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Psychoticism, as a consequence of the menstruation cycle. As these orthogonal factors measure enduring characteristics, it would normally be predicted that change would be minor, whereas state-type questionnaires tapping transitory shift in such aspects as irritability, tension, depression etc., that go to form the psychological basis of the premenstrual syndrome, would show considerable fluctuation. The present experiment was designed to examine possible trait variation, and the level of state-type fluctuation, during the premenstrual and postmenstrual stages, using established and well-validated questionnaires upon a more representative sample of normal subjects. METHOD
The experiment was conducted in two phases. Ninety-four females, aged 1619, completed the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (Eysenck and Eysenck, 1975) to measure the trait factors E, N and P, and Form X-l (A-State) of the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (Spielberger, Gorsuch and Lushene, 1970). during the premenstrual stage [24 days before menstruation (Dalton, 1983)] and then again 2days after menstruation had ceased. Sixty-four of the subjects also completed the General Health Questionnaire (Goldberg, 1978) a measure of transitory fluctuation in general, minor, non-psychotic psychiatric morbidity. In addition, the Lie scale (L) of the EPQ, which is heterogeneous in content, measures dissimulation, and a conglomerate function which includes conformity, was also scored. RESULTS
The purpose of the study was to investigate personality, anxiety and general mental health shift during and postmenstrual stages. The r-ratio of correlated means was applied to the data, and the results Table I.
the premenstrual are presented in
DISCUSSION
The results of this experiment are as predicted: that scores on the Eysenckian factors of personality remain largely undisturbed in an adolescent sample as a consequence of the menstruation cycle, whereas transitory anxiety and general mental health are negatively elevated at the premenstrual stage. as compared to the postmenstrual stage. The significant decrease in L was probably more a function of the familiarity with the EPQ, and/or as a result of reflection on answers given at stage I. rather than of subjects being less likely to dissimulate, conform, or become less-defensive after menstruation. These findings are supportive of the trait-state distinction being upheld in menstruation research, and add to the growing, yet still relatively sparse literature, on the subject of the psychological changes that take place during the menstruation cycle.
Table
I. Means.
standard health,
deviations and r-values during the premenstrual
for personality, anxiety, and gener;il and postmenstrual stages
mental
Postmenstrual
Premenstrual MWll
SD
Meall
SD
I
P
E N P L A-state
14.02 13.28 4.09 7.75 41.26
5.13 4.68 3.70 4.23 9.21
14.04 13.19 4.1 I 7.19 37.45
3.48 5.25 4.14 4.14 9.93
0.09 0.39 0.13 2.44 3.09
NS NS NS <0.02
(N=94)
GHO-60
20.86
12.15
IO.31
10.69
4.97
(N=64)
I31
132
NOTES
AND
SHORTER
COMMIJNlCATlONS
REFERENCES Dalton K. (1983) The Premenstrual Syndrome and Progesterone Therapy, 2nd edn. Heinmann. London. Eysenck H. J. and Eysenck S. B. G. (1975) The Manual of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. Hodder & Stoughton. London. Goldberg D. (1978) Manual of the General Health Questionnaire. NFER. Windsor. Layton C. (1988) Personality and anxiety variation before and after menstruation. Person. indioid. 01% 9, 691492. Mohan V. and Chopra R. (1986) A study of personality variation in women, before and after menstruation. Person. indicid. 013 7, 127-128. Mohan V. and Chopra R. (1987) Personality variation as an effect of pre-menstrual tension. Person. indirid. Dtr 8.763-765. Spielberger C. D.. Gorsuch R. L. and Lushene R. E. (1970) The Srate-Trait Anxiety Incentory: Test Manual for Form X. Consulting Psychologists Press, Palo Alto, Calif.