Big Five personality dimensions in ultramarathon runners: findings of the Ultrarunners Longitudinal TRAcking (ULTRA) Study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12775/QS.2025.37.55909Keywords
ultrarunners, ultramarathon, personality, runnersAbstract
The psychological aspect of ultrarunning is of interest in sports medicine. Ultrarunners are described as mentally tough, and have been shown in studies to be goal oriented, and intrinsically motivated. It is unknown how the personality traits of this group compare to the general population. 734 ultramarathon runners participated in this large longitudinal study. Ultramarathon runners scored significantly lower in extroversion (3.74 vs 4.44, p<.0001), and agreeableness (5.10 vs 5.23, p=.0099) compared to a control population. They scored higher in conscientiousness (5.93 vs 5.4, p<.0001), and emotional stability (5.28 vs 4.83, p<.0001), while statistically similar in openness to experiences (5.33 vs 5.38, p=0.4174). The current study dimensions of relatively low agreeableness (competitive), and extroversion (able to stay within oneself), combined with relatively high conscientiousness (organized, goal-directed), and emotional stability (stable in stressful circumstance), quantify the differences between a large ultramarathon runner population and a control group.
References
ACEVEDO, E. O., DZEWALTOWSKI, D.A., GILL, D.L. & NOBLE, J.M. 1992. Cognitive orientations of ultramarathoners. The Sport Psychologist 242-252.
ALLEN, M. S., GREENLEES, I. & JONES, M. 2013. Personality in sport: a comprehensive review. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 6, 184-208.
ANGHEL, A., BANICA, I. & IONESCU, S. 2009. Personality features of elite athletes considering the criterion of the sport practiced. Sport Science Review, 1, 5-6.
BUCHER, M. A., SUZUKI, T. & SAMUEL, D. B. 2019. A meta-analytic review of personality traits and their associations with mental health treatment outcomes. Clin Psychol Rev, 70, 51-63.
DIGMAN, J. M. 1990. Personality Structure: Emergence of the Five-Factor Model. Annual Review of Psychology, 41, 417-440.
FOLKINS, C. & WIESELBERG-BELL, N. 1981. A personality profile of ultramarathon runners: A little deviance may go a long way. Journal of Sport Behavior, 4, 119.
FREUND, W., WEBER, F., BILLICH, C., BIRKLEIN, F., BREIMHORST, M. & SCHUETZ, U. H. 2013. Ultra-marathon runners are different: investigations into pain tolerance and personality traits of participants of the TransEurope FootRace 2009. Pain Pract, 13, 524-32.
GOSLING, S. D., RENTFROW, P. J. & SWANN, W. B. 2003. A very brief measure of the Big-Five personality domains. Journal of Research in Personality, 37, 504-528.
HARRIS, M. A., BRETT, C. E., JOHNSON, W. & DEARY, I. J. 2016. Personality stability from age 14 to age 77 years. Psychol Aging, 31, 862-874.
HASHIMOTO, M., HAGURA, N., KURIYAMA, T. & NISHIYAMAI, M. 2006. Motivations and psychological characteristics of Japanese ultra-marathon runners using Myers-Briggs type indicator. Japanese Journal of Health and Human Ecology, 72, 15-24.
HOFFMAN, M. D. 2008a. Anthropometric characteristics of ultramarathoners. Int J Sports Med, 29, 808-11.
HOFFMAN, M. D. 2008b. Ultramarathon trail running comparison of performance-matched men and women. Med Sci Sports Exerc, 40, 1681-6.
HOFFMAN, M. D. 2010. Performance trends in 161-km ultramarathons. Int J Sports Med, 31, 31-7.
HOFFMAN, M. D. 2019. Participant Opinions and Expectations about Medical Services at Ultramarathons: Findings from the Ultrarunners Longitudinal TRAcking (ULTRA) Study. Cureus, 11, e5800.
HOFFMAN, M. D., CHEN, L. & KRISHNAN, E. 2014. Body mass index and its correlates in 1,212 ultramarathon runners: baseline findings from the ULTRA study. J Phys Act Health, 11, 1549-55.
HOFFMAN, M. D. & FOGARD, K. 2011. Factors related to successful completion of a 161-km ultramarathon. Int J Sports Physiol Perform, 6, 25-37.
HOFFMAN, M. D. & FOGARD, K. 2012. Demographic characteristics of 161-km ultramarathon runners. Res Sports Med, 20, 59-69.
HOFFMAN, M. D. & KRISHNAN, E. 2013. Exercise behavior of ultramarathon runners: baseline findings from the ULTRA study. J Strength Cond Res, 27, 2939-45.
HOFFMAN, M. D. & KRISHNAN, E. 2014. Health and exercise-related medical issues among 1,212 ultramarathon runners: baseline findings from the Ultrarunners Longitudinal TRAcking (ULTRA) Study. PLoS One, 9, e83867.
HOFFMAN, M. D. & KROUSE, R. 2018. Ultra-obligatory running among ultramarathon runners. Res Sports Med, 26, 211-221.
HOFFMAN, M. D., LEBUS, D. K., GANONG, A. C., CASAZZA, G. A. & VAN LOAN, M. 2010a. Body composition of 161-km ultramarathoners. Int J Sports Med, 31, 106-9.
HOFFMAN, M. D., ONG, J. C. & WANG, G. 2010b. Historical analysis of participation in 161 km ultramarathons in North America. Int J Hist Sport, 27, 1877-91.
HOFFMAN, M. D. & WEGELIN, J. A. 2009. The Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run: participation and performance trends. Med Sci Sports Exerc, 41, 2191-8.
HOFFMAN, M. D. & WHITE, M. D. 2020. Belief in the need for sodium supplementation during ultramarathons remains strong: findings from the Ultrarunners Longitudinal TRAcking (ULTRA) study. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab, 45, 118-122.
HUGHES, S., CASE, H. S., STUEMPFLE, K. & EVANS, D. 2003. Personality Profiles of Iditasport Ultra-Marathon Participants. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 15, 256-261.
KROKOSZ, D., LIPOWSKI, M., ASCHENBRENNER, P. & RATKOWSKI, W. 2018. Personality Traits and Vitamin D3 Supplementation Affect Mood State 12 h Before 100 km Ultramarathon Run. Front Psychol, 9, 980.
KROUSE, R. Z., RANSDELL, L. B., LUCAS, S. M. & PRITCHARD, M. E. 2011. Motivation, Goal Orientation, Coaching, and Training Habits of Women Ultrarunners. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 25, 2835-2842.
LABORDE, S., ALLEN, M. S., KATSCHAK, K., MATTONET, K. & LACHNER, N. 2020. Trait personality in sport and exercise psychology: A mapping review and research agenda. International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 18, 701-716.
MARTINEZ, C. T. & SCOTT, C. 2016. Trail and Ultrarunning: The Impact of Distance, Nature, and Personality on Flow and Well-Being. Psi Chi Journal of Psychological Research, 21, 6-15.
MCCUTCHEON, L. E. & YOAKUM, M. E. 1983. Personality Attributes of Ultramarathoners. Journal of Personality Assessment, 47, 178-180.
RAUCH, T. M., THARION, W. J., STROWMAN, S. R. & SHUKITT, B. L. 1988. Psychological factors associated with performance in the ultramarathon. J Sports Med Phys Fitness, 28, 237-46.
ROEBUCK, G. S., FITZGERALD, P. B., URQUHART, D. M., NG, S.-K., CICUTTINI, F. M. & FITZGIBBON, B. M. 2018. The psychology of ultra-marathon runners: A systematic review. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 37, 43-58.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 James Jastifer, Martin Hoffman
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Stats
Number of views and downloads: 14
Number of citations: 0
