Conscientiousness linked to daily functioning in frontotemporal dementia
Lower levels of conscientiousness are associated with greater difficulty in managing daily tasks for people with frontotemporal dementia, according to a study published November 10, 2026, in Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Researchers found that personality traits accounted for approximately 40% of the variation in functional scores among study participants.
The study involved 111 people with the behavioral variant of frontotemporal dementia, the most common form of the disease. Participants had an average age of 63 and were in the early stages of the progressive condition.
“Our study found that a person’s level of conscientiousness was closely associated with how well they managed complex everyday activities,” said Katherine P. Rankin, PhD, a study author at the University of California, San Francisco. “These findings may help predict who may have problems with functioning, which could allow doctors and caregivers to implement strategies to support people’s daily functioning.”
Personality shifts and daily activity changes follow disease onset
Researchers asked family members and caregivers to assess the participants’ personality traits and their ability to complete 10 complex daily activities, such as shopping, meal preparation, and managing finances. These assessments covered traits from 10 years prior to the disease onset as well as current behaviors.
The data showed substantial shifts in personality after the onset of the disease. Participants exhibited decreased openness, extraversion, agreeableness, and conscientiousness, while neuroticism—defined as a tendency toward anxiety, depression, and stress—increased.
When isolating individual traits, conscientiousness was the only one independently linked to everyday functioning. While the study established this association, researchers noted it does not prove that personality changes directly cause the decline in functional ability.
Clinical applications for future care
Caregivers and clinicians may be able to use brief personality assessments to anticipate future challenges for patients. Rankin told the American Academy of Neurology that this could facilitate proactive interventions.
“Asking family members and giving brief personality assessments may become a useful tool in anticipating people’s future challenges with organization, planning and completing their daily tasks,” Rankin said. “This could allow for educating caregivers and implementing interventions such as simplifying routines, adding structure to people’s tasks and helping people get started on tasks.”
A limitation noted in the research is that caregivers provided information for both personality and functional assessments, which could potentially inflate the observed association. The study was supported by the National Institutes of Health and the Larry L. Hillblom Foundation.
Common questions about the study
Does personality before dementia predict future functioning?
No, the study found that personality traits measured 10 years before the disease developed were not associated with current daily functioning scores.
Which personality traits were measured in the research?
Researchers evaluated the “Big Five” personality traits: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism.
What types of daily activities were assessed?
Participants were evaluated on their ability to manage 10 complex tasks, including shopping, preparing meals, and managing household finances.