Neuroticism, in psychology, refers to a personality trait characterized by emotional instability, anxiety, moodiness, and a higher tendency to experience negative emotions like fear, sadness, and anger.
People with high levels of neuroticism are more likely to worry, exhibit emotional instability, and perceive everyday situations as threatening or distressing and minor frustrations as hopelessly difficult.
It’s one of the five major personality traits in the Five-Factor Model.
Neuroticism is often associated with heightened self-consciousness, overthinking, and greater susceptibility to stress, making it an important factor to consider in understanding an individual’s emotional and psychological well-being.
Neuroticism and Personality Theories
Freud’s early view of neurotic anxiety
The word ‘neurotic’ dates back to Freud (1924), who described neurotic anxiety. He claimed this is generated when an individual’s defense mechanisms can no longer successfully repress an early traumatic experience, resulting in a persistent state of distress.
Eysenck’s Big Three Personality Model
The label neuroticism was believed to be first coined by Eysenck (1947) to describe the personality trait.
Eysenck argued that individuals diagnosed with ‘neurosis’ had extreme levels of the personality trait neuroticism.
He claimed that those with high levels of neuroticism require little life stress to trigger neurosis compared to those without high neuroticism levels.
Eysenck’s influential theory (1961, 1981) led to the development of the Big Three personality traits. He claimed that all individuals fall into three dimensions of personality: extraversion, neuroticism, and psychoticism.
He suggested that extraversion, or positive emotion, is associated with moderate levels of arousal, whereas neuroticism, or negative emotion, is associated with under- or overarousal.
Neuroticism has thus come to be known as the trait reflecting emotional stability or the tendency to become easily aroused, or upset, and worried when stimulated.
The Big Five
McCrae and Costa (1987), among others, have later described neuroticism as a negative personality trait involving the tendency to experience frequent negative emotions, maladjustment, poor ability to manage urges, trouble dealing with stress, and a strong reaction to perceived threats.
McCrae and Costa developed the popular personality theory of the Big Five, which includes five personality trait dimensions: extraversion, openness to experience, conscientiousness, agreeableness, and neuroticism.
They defined 6 facets of neuroticism that can help identify people who are prone to psychological distress:
- Anxiety – the level of anxiety someone has
- Anger/hostility – the tendency to feel anger, frustration, or bitterness
- Depression – the tendency to feel guilt, loneliness, and low mood
- Self-consciousness – how easily someone experiences social anxiety or extreme shyness.
- Impulsiveness – the tendency to give in to cravings and the ability to delay gratification
- Vulnerability – how well someone can handle stress
As neuroticism is a dimension and not a diagnosis, the prevalence rate of neurotic personality traits is not reported as they are for diagnosable mental health disorders.
Common neurotic traits
People who score highly on neuroticism may experience some of the following traits:
- Poor emotional stability
- Feeling anxious
- Self-conscious or shy
- Often sad, moody, or depressed
- Easily stressed -unable to handle stress well
- Chronic worrying about a variety of things
- Tendency to interpret neutral situations as threatening
- Become jealous easily
- Low self-esteem
Some of the behaviors of people high on neuroticism can include the following:
- Panicking in non-threatening situations – if the fight-or-flight response system kicks in when there is nothing threatening in the environment, it is likely that neuroticism is prompting this panic.
- Likely to display more road rage – over-the-top anger at minor mistakes on the road could be a sign of neurotic behavior.
- Overly protective of their child’s health and safety – whilst it is normal for parents to worry about their child’s safety, those who are neurotic may overly worry about their child’s health, which may prevent them from doing anything that presents any risks or taking them to a medical professional over any minor health concern.
- Strive for perfection – those who are neurotic may spend more time than necessary completing tasks because they are determined to avoid making mistakes.
- Overly dependent – people who are neurotic may depend on others to meet their needs rather than doing things themselves. They may overly complain about their problems in the hopes that someone else will solve them.
Strengths and Challenges of Neuroticism
Neuroticism influences behavior in both helpful and harmful ways. While it’s often linked to emotional struggles, this trait also carries some surprising strengths.
Strengths
People high in neuroticism tend to focus on potential threats or negative outcomes. While this can increase anxiety, it may also help them avoid risky situations—a trait that once supported human survival.
They often experience regret, which can drive self-improvement by encouraging reflection and behavior change. Compared to less neurotic individuals, they may also be:
- More self-aware and introspective
- Emotionally deep, often developing empathy through personal struggles
- More intelligent and creative, especially when paired with conscientiousness
- Realistic thinkers, able to detect problems that others might overlook due to over-optimism
Challenges
Despite these strengths, high neuroticism can negatively impact well-being and performance—especially under stress.
- Stress sensitivity: Neurotic individuals may react more strongly to challenges, becoming easily upset, angry, or overwhelmed.
- Work difficulties: They may perform well yet constantly worry about being judged or making mistakes.
- Harsh self-criticism: Even minor feedback can lead to rumination, anxiety, and avoidance, which can harm job performance and self-esteem.
Over time, these patterns can lead to reduced job satisfaction, strained relationships, and even decreased life expectancy when not managed.
Neuroticism and Mental Health
Neuroticism is a normal personality trait, but high levels are linked to greater vulnerability to mental health conditions. Research consistently shows that neuroticism is a risk factor for a wide range of disorders, including:
- Mood and anxiety disorders
- Substance use disorders
- Schizophrenia and PTSD
- Eating disorders and insomnia
- Personality disorders (Zhang, 2020; Zhang, 2021)
Why Is Neuroticism So Closely Tied to Mental Illness?
Both neuroticism and many psychological conditions involve intense emotional distress. This overlap helps explain why neuroticism is particularly associated with depression, anxiety, and disorders marked by emotional instability.
Neuroticism + Low Extraversion = Higher Risk
Studies show that the combination of high neuroticism and low extraversion increases the risk of developing anxiety and depression (Brown & Barlow, 2009; Gershuny & Sher, 1998).
People with this personality profile are also more likely to experience mental health issues after stressful life events (van Os & Jones, 1999).
The Role of Emotion Regulation
How people manage their emotions may mediate the neuroticism–depression link. Those who use maladaptive emotion regulation strategies—like rumination or suppression—tend to experience more severe depressive symptoms (Yoon et al., 2012).
A Silver Lining: Sensitivity to Positive Change
Interestingly, people high in neuroticism may benefit more from positive life events. In a 3.5-year study of people with depression, those with higher neuroticism showed three times greater improvement in response to positive experiences (Oldehinkel et al., 2000).
How Neuroticism Can Affect Relationships
People high in neuroticism often struggle to maintain satisfying relationships. On average, they report lower relationship satisfaction, and those close to them may find them emotionally difficult to be around.
People high in neuroticism may unintentionally strain their relationships in the following ways:
- Constant reassurance-seeking
→ Frequently asking, “Are you mad at me?” or needing repeated validation. - Emotional overreactions
→ Getting visibly upset or withdrawn over small misunderstandings or changes in plans. - Frequent criticism or negativity
→ Pointing out flaws—in themselves or others—which can wear down partners or friends. - Conflict sensitivity
→ Taking things personally or assuming hostile intent during disagreements. - Clinginess or overdependence
→ Relying heavily on others to make decisions or cope with stress, which can feel overwhelming. - Anger or blame during stress
→ Lashing out or accusing a partner unfairly when feeling overwhelmed. - Social withdrawal
→ Avoiding events or isolating themselves when feeling low, which can lead others to feel shut out. - Mood unpredictability
→ Shifting from affectionate to distant quickly, creating confusion or emotional whiplash in close relationships.
These behaviors, while often unintentional, can wear down partners, friends, and colleagues—contributing to social isolation or limited professional opportunities.
A Self-Reinforcing Cycle
Low self-worth and fear of rejection can lead to awkward or avoidant behavior, which may in turn confirm the person’s negative beliefs about themselves. This can create a vicious cycle of social difficulty and self-doubt.
Personality Facets and Relationship Patterns
Research by Du et al. (2021) found that specific traits within neuroticism influence different types of relational issues:
- Anxiety & Self-Consciousness → Passivity, non-assertiveness, and social inhibition
- Anger → Coldness, vindictiveness, and heightened conflict
- Depression → Social withdrawal and avoidance
Understanding these patterns may help individuals identify which behaviors are affecting their relationships and how to address them.
Coping With Neuroticism
For people who are neurotic, it can feel as if their maladaptive thought patterns trap them. Personality traits tend to be stable during the lifetime; therefore, neuroticism can be reduced to some degree, but it may always be present.
Some research suggests that sometimes, especially after a major life event, neuroticism can naturally decline over time. Coping with neuroticism is more about changing behaviors rather than the personality trait itself.
Mindfulness
There are ways to cope with neuroticism, such as practicing mindfulness. Studies show that mindfulness can reduce how often negative thoughts occur and increase one’s ability to let go of these thoughts.
Taking a step back from stressful or upsetting situations and thinking about what is causing the negative feelings when they happen can prevent some of the automatic neurotic patterns of thinking.
Asking questions such as ‘What am I thinking?’ How am I feeling? How am I responding?’ can make it easier to take a broader perspective of the situation.
Deep breathing
In situations where neurotic feelings and behaviors can take over, it can be useful to take some deep breaths to calm down.
Breathing exercises can help to create some distance from the intensity of the experience. They may help people realize that their reaction was disproportionate to the situation itself.
Taking deep breaths can also help calm the autonomic nervous system biologically before it gets into fight-or-flight.
Lifestyle changes
Some other lifestyle methods to try for people who are neurotic can be to engage in physical activity or exercise to help them burn off any negative emotions they may be facing.
Also, avoiding substances such as alcohol and drugs can also help since neurotic people are more vulnerable to being dependent on substances.
Consider therapy
Therapeutic methods such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can also be useful for addressing ways to react in a more balanced way to stressors.
CBT involves working with a therapist to address and challenge negative thought patterns and behaviors.
CBT is generally effective in addressing the specific symptoms of mental health conditions that may result alongside high neuroticism, but it may not reduce the general predisposition features of neuroticism.
This means that even after CBT, individuals may still be susceptible to other mental health conditions, although learning how to manage worries and negative thoughts through CBT can be a useful tool for reducing the severity of mental health conditions.
FAQs
Is neuroticism a mental illness?
No. Neuroticism is not a mental illness—it’s a personality trait. It reflects a person’s tendency to experience negative emotions like anxiety, sadness, or irritability more intensely or frequently.
While high neuroticism increases the risk of developing mental health conditions such as anxiety or depression, the trait itself is part of the normal range of personality and does not require a diagnosis.
What causes neuroticism?
Neuroticism is shaped by a mix of genetic, biological, and environmental factors.
– Genetics: Research shows the trait is moderately heritable.
– Brain function: People high in neuroticism often show heightened activity in brain areas linked to emotional reactivity and threat detection (like the amygdala).
– Early experiences: Childhood adversity, inconsistent caregiving, or chronic stress may increase emotional sensitivity and the tendency to worry.
How is high-functioning anxiety related to neuroticism?
High-functioning anxiety and neuroticism both involve heightened emotional distress. Neuroticism is a personality trait linked to negative emotions and sensitivity to stress. Those with high-functioning anxiety often exhibit neurotic tendencies, such as constant worry, despite outward success. They overlap in emphasizing internal emotional struggles.
further reading
References
Barlow, D. H., Sauer-Zavala, S., Carl, J. R., Bullis, J. R., & Ellard, K. K. (2014). The nature, diagnosis, and treatment of neuroticism: Back to the future. Clinical Psychological Science, 2(3), 344-365.
Brown, T. A., & Barlow, D. H. (2009). A proposal for a dimensional classification system based on the shared features of the DSM-IV anxiety and mood disorders: implications for assessment and treatment. Psychological assessment, 21(3), 256.
Cuncic, A. (2020, February 24). How Neuroticism Affects Your Behavior. Very Well Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/how-neuroticism-affects-your-behavior-4782188
Du, T. V., Yardley, A. E., & Thomas, K. M. (2021). Mapping big five personality traits within and across domains of interpersonal functioning. Assessment, 28(5), 1358-1375.
Eysenck, H. J. (1947). Student selection by means of psychological tests—a critical survey. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 17(1), 20-39.
Eysenck, M. W. (1981). Learning, memory and personality. In A model for personality (pp. 169-209). Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg.
Gershuny, B. S., & Sher, K. J. (1998). The relation between personality and anxiety: findings from a 3-year prospective study. Journal of abnormal psychology, 107(2), 252.
Griffith, J. W., Zinbarg, R. E., Craske, M. G., Mineka, S., Rose, R. D., Waters, A. M., & Sutton, J. M. (2010). Neuroticism as a common dimension in the internalizing disorders. Psychological medicine, 40(7), 1125-1136.
Krauss Whitbourne, S. (2021, August 14). 3 Reasons Neurotic People Can Struggle with Relationships. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/fulfillment-any-age/202108/3-reasons-neurotic-people-can-struggle-relationships
McCrae, R. R., & Costa, P. T. (1987). Validation of the five-factor model of personality across instruments and observers. Journal of personality and social psychology, 52(1), 81.
Oldehinkel, A. J., Ormel, J., & Neeleman, J. (2000). Predictors of time to remission from depression in primary care patients: do some people benefit more from positive life change than others?. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 109(2), 299.
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