Managers' personality characteristics and quality of life in Rio Grande do Sul

Technology development and globalization caused worldwide changes in companies, requiring a new profile of organizational leaders. In this context, personality has become a decisive factor in obtaining professional success. Quality of life (QOL) is a broad research topic in management studies. By employing the Big Five Factors model, this explanatory research sought to investigate which personality characteristics of managers influence their quality of life. The sample consisted of 100 managers, with 77% men and 23% women, from 27 companies in Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul state. The study applied a Factorial Personality Test Battery, the brief version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life test (WHOQOL-BREF), and a socio demographic questionnaire. Main results indicated that there is a negative correlation between QOL and Neuroticism and positive associations between QOL and Extroversion, indicating that being more communicative, active, and gregarious and having less emotional instability are characteristics that positively affect managers' health. Furthermore, Neuroticism showed to be a predictor of QOL, demonstrating that better adjusted and more emotionally stable managers have greater wellbeing. These results may help the planning of future interventions aimed at promoting these individuals' health.