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Study, 2019

Do women with PMS or PMDD have different personality traits than women without these conditions?

Yes, women with PMS or PMDD had different personality traits. Women with moderate to severe PMS or PMDD were more nervous and anxious, and women with PMDD were less cooperative than women without symptoms or mild PMS.

Moderate study design 210 female university students in Tehran, Iran

What they did

Researchers studied 210 female university students in Tehran, Iran. Students completed personality questionnaires and PMS symptom screening. The researchers compared personality traits between students with no symptoms, mild PMS, moderate to severe PMS, and PMDD.

What they found

57.2% of students had no symptoms, 32.1% had PMS, and 10.2% had PMDD. Women with moderate to severe PMS or PMDD were more nervous and emotionally reactive compared to those with no symptoms or mild PMS. Women with PMDD were less cooperative compared to those without symptoms or with mild PMS.

What it means for you

This suggests that personality traits like nervousness and anxiety may be related to having PMS or PMDD. The main limitation is that this only studied university students in Iran, so results may not apply to all women. We also cannot tell from this study whether personality traits cause PMS or if PMS causes personality changes.

10.2%

students with PMDD

32.1%

students with PMS

57.2%

students with no PMS symptoms

About the study

Original title
Personality Characteristics in Female Students with Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder and Premenstrual Syndrome
Authors
Maryam Izadi, S.K. Mousavi Amiri
Journal
Advances in nursing and midwifery
Year
2019
Study design
Study
Participants
210
What was tested
None
Open access
Yes

Topics