Personality traits shape how a person navigates life, with some traits having a greater positive impact than others. According to new research, older adults may be better supported as they age if their personalities are considered, such as whether they are more like orchids or dandelions. Researchers from Simon Fraser University’s Circle Innovation investigated the potential effects of lifestyle activities on the cognitive health of over 3,500 adults aged 60 and up, and discovered that personality—using psychology’s orchid-dandelion metaphor—can play a role in how well supportive programs work.
Their findings, which were published this month in the journal Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience, argue that policymakers should consider designing programs tailored to personality types rather than a one-size-fits-all approach.
These findings open up new avenues for supporting aging adults and provide significant evidence for new social prescribing programs. Understanding how personality differences affect an aging population can assist decision-makers in providing solutions that fit the individual needs of older adults.
Circle Innovation
“These findings open up new avenues for supporting aging adults and provide significant evidence for new social prescribing programs,” says Circle Innovation CEO and scientific director Sylvain Moreno. “Understanding how personality differences affect an aging population can assist decision-makers in providing solutions that fit the individual needs of older adults.”
People who may be considered ‘orchid adults’ thrive best under ideal circumstances, since they are more sensitive and biologically reactive, while ‘dandelion adults’ are thought to be resilient and can easily adapt to any environment.
That means orchid individuals could require more nurturing solutions, researchers say. “These older adults are more fragile, like the delicate flower they represent, and hence prone to overreact to ongoing health and housing problems, disturbing news about the economy or global pandemics,” says SFU Ph.D. student and study researcher Emma Rodrigues. “On the other hand, dandelion retirees are relatively less environment-sensitive and also more resilient to deterioration in poor environmental conditions.”
“The lesson here is that we should stop categorizing aging adults as a subset of our population. These findings show how aging trajectories can differ depending on whether or not a person is influenced by their environment.”
Understanding how modifiable lifestyle factors can maintain or promote cognitive health, according to researchers, can lead to a healthier aging population.
