Affective temperament and executive functions in emergency medicine professionals

Abstract Background Recent studies indicate that choice of profession is related to differences in affective temperament, which is probably due to various predispositions needed to efficiently perform particular professions. The aim of the present study was to assess affective temperament and executive functions in a sample of emergency medicine professionals. Methods 75 emergency medicine professionals were enrolled in the study. Affective temperament was assessed by means of TEMPS-A. Executive functions were assessed by means of Trail Making Test and Stroop Color Word Interference Test. Results Subjects showed significantly higher rates of hyperthymic, compared to depressive, cyclothymic, irritable and anxious temperaments. The principal component analysis revealed that hyperthymic temperament contributes to a different factor, than the remaining ones. Higher rates of depressive, cyclothymic, irritable and anxious temperaments were related to poorer performance in Trail Making Test, whereas hyperthymic temperament had the opposite effect. Limitations Due to the size of the sample, results of the present study may have lacked power to show all the relationships between tested variables. Conclusions Hyperthymic temperament promotes efficient performance of complex tasks under time pressure. Depressive, cyclothymic, irritable and anxious temperaments have the opposite effect. This makes hyperthymic temperament a desirable trait in emergency medicine professionals, performing complex medical tasks under extreme conditions.