Harm avoidance (HA) is a
personality trait
In psychology, trait theory (also called dispositional theory) is an approach to the study of human personality. Trait theorists are primarily interested in the measurement of ''traits'', which can be defined as habitual patterns of behaviour, tho ...
characterized by excessive worrying; pessimism; shyness; and being fearful, doubtful, and easily fatigued. In
MRI
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in radiology to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body. MRI scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and radio waves ...
studies HA was correlated with reduced grey matter volume in the orbito-frontal, occipital and parietal regions.
Harm avoidance is a temperament assessed in the
Temperament and Character Inventory The Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) is an inventory for personality traits devised by Cloninger et al.
It is closely related to and an outgrowth of the Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire (TPQ),
and it has also been related to the ...
(TCI), its revised version (TCI-R) and the
Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire (TPQ) is a personality test.
It was devised by C. Robert Cloninger.
A newer version of the questionnaire is called Temperament and Character Inventory.
As the name indicates TPQ seeks to measure three dimen ...
(TPQ) and is positively related to the trait
neuroticism and inversely to
extraversion in the
Revised NEO Personality Inventory
The Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R) is a personality inventory that assesses an individual on five dimensions of personality, the so-called Big Five personality traits. These traits are openness to experience, conscientiousness, ext ...
and the
Eysenck Personality Questionnaire
In psychology, the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) is a questionnaire to assess the personality traits of a person. It was devised by psychologists Hans Jürgen Eysenck and Sybil B. G. Eysenck.
Hans Eysenck's theory is based primarily on ...
.
Researchers have contended that harm avoidance represents a composite personality dimension with neurotic introversion at one end of the spectrum and stable extraversion at the other end. Harm avoidance has also been found to have moderate inverse relationships with
conscientiousness
Conscientiousness is the personality trait of being careful, or diligent. Conscientiousness implies a desire to do a task well, and to take obligations to others seriously