Tue Aug 19

Why do smart people get hooked on wellness trends? Personality traits may play a role

Written by: Samuel Cornell, PhD Candidate in Public Health & Community Medicine, School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney

If you’ve spent time on social media recently you have probably been exposed to questionable ^[1] “wellness ^[2]” content. You may have been instructed to dip your toes in icy water ^[3] or let the sun shine where it usually doesn’t ^[4].

Wellness trends such as drinking “loaded” water ^[5] or taking ice baths ^[6] may be benign for most people, while others such as drinking raw milk ^[7], eating raw organ meats ^[8], or taping your mouth while you sleep ^[9] carry real risks.

The online spaces where they circulate can also be harmful, serving as breeding grounds for conspiracy theories ^[10], anti-vaccination sentiment ^[11], and misuse of appearance-^[12] and performance-enhancing ^[13] drugs.

It’s easy to dismiss followers of extreme wellness trends as gullible or misinformed ^[14]. But research suggests personality traits may help explain why some educated, well-intentioned people sometimes reject conventional medicine in favour of fringe practices ^[15].

The big five personality traits

Psychologists have shown that many aspects of human personality can be described via five fundamental dimensions, of which we all have varying levels.

Two of these “big five”^[16] traits – openness and agreeableness – are particularly relevant to people’s interest in alternative health practices ^[17]. (The remaining three traits are conscientiousness, extraversion and neuroticism.)

People high in openness ^[18] are curious, imaginative and adventurous. They question tradition and are attracted to novelty ^[19] and unconventional ideas. As a result, they are more likely to try new and unorthodox diets or treatments.

Highly agreeable people ^[20] are trusting, cooperative and empathetic. They are very receptive to emotional messages, especially when they appeal to ideas of caring for others and benefiting the community.

These personality traits also influence how people search for and evaluate online information ^[22]. People higher in openness tend to adopt an exploratory search strategy ^[23], preferring to seek novel or unconventional sources rather than relying on established information channels.

Because they value harmony, trust and maintaining relationships, highly agreeable people tend to give greater weight to information that comes from familiar or socially endorsed sources ^[24]. They do so even when this information has not been critically evaluated.

Personality and persuasive influence

In the online wellness ecosystem ^[25], high levels of openness and agreeableness can make people susceptible to persuasion ^[26].

Influencers have a powerful advantage ^[27]. They can position themselves as both novel and trustworthy ^[28]. Open people can be seduced by original, eye-catching content, and agreeable people by community-focused narratives.

Influencers cultivate one-sided “parasocial ^[29]” relationships in which followers feel an intimate connection with someone they have never met. These close bonds, coupled with the open personality’s attraction to unconventional ideas, can draw people into extreme, untested and unsafe health practices ^[30].

Openness to new experiences and being interpersonally agreeable are usually seen as strengths. However, in the buzzing, emotionally charged environment of online wellness culture they can become vulnerabilities.

From ice baths to anti-vax

Not all wellness practices peddled by online influencers are harmful. But some relatively innocuous trends can be a gateway to more extreme practices ^[31].

Someone might start taking ice baths for a mood boost ^[32], move on to restrictive raw diets for “clean eating ^[33]”, and eventually arrive at anti-vaccine beliefs ^[34] grounded in deep mistrust of health authorities.

Gateway effects ^[35] can occur if a trusted influencer makes increasingly extreme recommendations. If the influencer pivots to more dangerous ^[36] ideas ^[37], many followers will follow.

Over time, exposure to fringe wellness narratives can erode trust in mainstream institutions ^[38]. What began as curiosity and warmth may, through repeated exposure to extreme content, shift towards ^[39] cynicism and institutional mistrust.

How can public health messages adapt?

Public health campaigns sometimes assume people reject mainstream health advice because they lack knowledge ^[40] or have low “health literacy ^[41]”.

But if personality traits influence receptiveness to alternative wellness claims, simply giving people more information may not produce positive change.

Public health campaigns should consider personality traits ^[42] for more effective preventive interventions ^[43]. They can target people high in openness, for example, by presenting health science as dynamic and evolving, not just a set of rules and prescriptions. They can reach highly agreeable people with health messages that emphasise empathy and community ^[44].

To be effective for all of us, public health communication needs to be as engaging as the messages emanating from influencers ^[45]. It must use eye-catching visuals, personal stories, and moral hooks while remaining truthful.

People who engage in extreme or unusual wellness practices aren’t merely misinformed. Often, they’re driven by the same urge to explore, connect, and live well as everyone else. The challenge we face is to steer that drive toward health, not harm.