Neuroticism is considered one of the “big five” personality traits. The other four are extroversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. People with high scores on neuroticism testing tend to test lower on agreeableness and conscientiousness. 

A recent study has shown a precipitous decline in conscientiousness among youth, but we’ll save that for another day. Today, we’re going to take a look at neuroticism and addiction, because the two are related.

Exactly what it means to be “neurotic” is a fluid concept. It is characterized as a state of fearfulness, acute attention to warning signals, and a sense of unease or apprehension. Neuroticism is associated with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). People diagnosed with ADHD score higher than average on neuroticism testing. Here are some of the other personality traits associated with neuroticism:

• Easily irritated 
• Easily distressed 
• Subject to road rage 
• Anxious about health
• Overthinking things
• Argumentative 
• Negative outlook

Neuroticism is a precursor to anxiety disorders and depression. It is characterized by emotional instability, excessive worrying, and “maladaptive coping,” such as obsessive/compulsive behaviors and substance abuse.

A study involving 227 college students sought to understand the connection between neuroticism and addiction. Researchers used the Addiction Susceptibility Questionnaire (ASQ) to assess addiction potential, and the NEO Personality Inventory to gauge neuroticism. Their conclusion:

The findings revealed a significant relationship between personality traits and addiction susceptibility.

More specifically, both neuroticism and openness were positively correlated with addiction susceptibility, while extraversion, agreeableness, and conscientiousness were negatively correlated. The authors recommend “educational, preventive, and therapeutic programs” for children with high scores in neuroticism and openness.

A key differentiating aspect of neuroticism is the heightened response to stress. Neurotic people tend to stress easily over small problems and stress more deeply than other people over normal life problems. For example, their stress levels when driving are more extreme than most, leading to a tendency toward road rage.

A study of neuroticism and stress observed a tendency for neurotic individuals to engage in displacement behavior when stressed. The authors from the Department of Psychology at Roehampton University in London state, “Displacement behavior […] is linked to negative emotional states and has an important stress coping function.” They concluded:

Displacement behavior was negatively correlated with self-reported experience, physiological, and cognitive measures of stress and moderated the relationships between neuroticism, self-reported experience, and cognitive index of stress.

An earlier study by the same authors found that “displacement behaviour regulates the experience of stress in men.” The authors describe displacement as “a short-term behavioural response to emotionally challenging stimuli,” and that such behaviors as scratching, lip biting, and face touching reveal “feelings of anxiety and stress.”

The researchers conducted a study of 42 “healthy men” using the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) to quantify displacement. Stress and anxiety were measured before and after TSST. Displacement behavior diminished the negative impact of stressful situations, the authors say:

Results showed the rate of displacement behaviour was positively correlated with state anxiety but unrelated to trait anxiety, and negatively correlated with the self-reported experience of stress.

The researchers rely on Spielberger’s definition of state anxiety vs. trait anxiety: “Trait anxiety refers to individual tendency to experience state anxiety, which is the temporary uncomfortable experience that occurs when a person feels threatened by a situation.” The difference between an environmentally induced state of stress and a biological trait of being stressed is supposedly teased out by the Trier Social Stress Test.

The authors arrive at some interesting conclusions about neuroticism and displacement: “As a coping mechanism, displacement behaviour needs to be triggered by elevated levels of state anxiety.” This leads them to the further conclusion:

[T]he experience of higher state anxiety results from the habitual tendency towards anxiety (trait anxiety), and translates itself into higher levels of displacement behaviour, which in turn reduces the experience of stress.

The authors come right up to the edge of being able to show exactly how displacement reduces stress. In the end, they rely on animal studies rather than human studies to speculate upon the precise mechanism of stress reduction.

Summing up, research shows that scoring high on neuroticism strongly correlates with a tendency toward substance abuse. They point to resources for early diagnosis of neuroticism and suggest interventions. However, they fail to speculate on how children develop neuroticism in the first place. I’ll look at that in my next post for AddictionNews.

Written by Steve O’Keefe. First published August 21, 2025.

Sources:

“Neurotic Behavior: Causes, Symptoms, and Comprehensive Treatment,” Greater Boston Behavioral Health, December 24, 2024.

“What Is Neurotic Behaviour & How to Deal With It,” The Awareness Centre, retrieved August 15, 2025.

“The role of neuroticism in daily stress and coping,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, November 1999.

“Predicting Addiction Susceptibility Based on Big Five Personality Traits,” Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, June 22, 2021.

“Biological and psychological markers of stress in humans: Focus on the Trier Social Stress Test,” Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, January 2014.

“Neuroticism and stress: the role of displacement behavior,” Anxiety and Stress Coping, March 2015.

“Displacement behaviour regulates the experience of stress in men,” Stress: The International Journal on the Biology of Stress, October 1, 2012.

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