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Effects of personality traits on mindful self-care practices of healthcare workers


Abstract

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) placed healthcare professionals (HCPs) at a higher risk for stress-related conditions. Implementing a brief online mindfulness-based intervention (MBI) was hypothesised to transform the HCPs’ ability to cope with stress by enhancing their self-care.
Aim: This study aimed to explore the impact of an online MBI on HCPs’ self-care practices and determine if personality traits were a moderating variable.
Setting: An online MBI was implemented for HCPs working in South Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns.
Methods: A quantitative study design included a pre-assessment and post-assessment component, which allowed paired comparison and regression analysis to confer correlations. Data were collected via two validated instruments: the Mindful Self-Care scale-2018 and the Big Five Personality test.
Results: Forty-nine HCPs participated in the study. Significant improvements were found in all the major self-care subscales post-intervention (p < 0.05). No significant associations were found between the personality traits and self-care except for neuroticism, which appeared to be an essential moderating variable.
Conclusion: An online MBI significantly impacted health professionals’ ability to care for themselves, despite their personality styles.
Contribution: The impact of an online MBI on HCPs’ self-care during the most intense time of stress and with a cohort of people known to be the most vulnerable to stress, namely those with neuroticism to date, has not been commented on.


Journal Identifiers


eISSN: 2078-6786
print ISSN: 1608-9685