Individual differences in functional food consumption: The role of time perspective and the Big Five personality traits

Abstract

Prior research suggests inconsistent relationships between individuals’ personality traits, time perspective, and specific behavior. In a large representative sample of Norwegian consumers (<i>N</i> = 810), we investigated the relationships between the Big Five personality traits, domain-specific consideration of future consequences (CFC), and consumption of functional foods. Structural equation modeling was employed to test the hypothesized associations. Both CFC-Future and CFC-Immediate were positively related to the consumption of functional foods, whereas personality traits exerted no direct influence on consumption. Several significant associations between personality traits and CFC-Future and CFC-Immediate were found, and three of the five personality traits—Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism—exerted indirect effects on consumption frequency via CFC-Future. Results support an integrative and hierarchical understanding of how personality traits and time perspective interact in explaining variation in functional food consumption. The findings support the notion that (domain-specific) CFC is better conceptualized as two distinct—albeit related constructs—that are shaped, in part, by broader personality traits.