SHORT COMMUNICATION The Effects of Conscientiousness on the Appraisals of Daily Stressors Nicola Gartland * † , Daryl B O’Connor * † & Rebecca Lawton Institute of Psychological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK Abstract Conscientiousness (C) is positively associated with health and longevity although the mechanisms underlying this relationship are not fully understood. Stress may play a role in explaining the C–longevity relationship. This study investigated whether C predicted the cognitive appraisals of daily stressors/hassles. Participants (N = 102) completed measures of C and cognitive appraisal in relation to the most stressful hassle they had experienced in the last 7 days. Correlational analysis revealed that Total C, Order and Industriousness were positively correlated with primary appraisals, and Responsibility was positively correlated with secondary appraisals. The facets of C were then entered into hierarchical regression models, controlling for age and gender. This demonstrated that Order (β = 0.27, p < 0.05) and Industriousness (β = 0.28, p < 0.05) significantly predicted primary appraisals, accounting for 15.8% of the variance. Responsibility significantly predicted secondary appraisals (β = 0.44, p < 0.01), accounting for 16.3% of the variance. These findings indicate that higher Order and Industriousness are related to having a greater stake in daily stressors, whereas higher Responsibility is related to greater confidence in one’s ability to deal with daily stressors. These results are the first demonstration that C is related to the appraisals of daily hassles and suggest that C may moderate the experience of stress in daily life. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Received 29 September 2010; Accepted 29 March 2011; Revised 29 March 2011 Keywords conscientiousness; cognitive appraisal; daily hassles; stress *Correspondence Nicola Gartland or Daryl O’Connor, Institute of Psychological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK. † Emails: N.K.Gartland07@leeds.ac.uk; d.b.o’connor@leeds.ac.uk Published online 17 May 2011 in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com) DOI: 10.1002/smi.1404 Introduction The evidence for a positive relationship between Conscientiousness (C) and longevity is accumulating (Bogg & Roberts, 2004; Friedman et al., 1993; Hampson, Goldberg, Vogt, & Dubanoski, 2006; Kern & Friedman, 2008; Roberts & Bogg, 2004). Data from the Terman Life‐Cycle Study have shown that people high in C have a significantly reduced risk of dying in any given year (Friedman et al., 1993). Furthermore, C has been associated with better health status (Goodwin & Friedman, 2006). The role of health behaviours in this relationship has been widely studied (for review, see Roberts, Walton, & Bogg, 2005). However, longitudinal work suggests that health behaviours only partially ac- count for the relationship with longevity (Friedman et al., 1995). This paper investigates whether the differentiation in the health of high and low C individuals is related also to the experience of stress and more specifically, whether cognitive appraisals of daily stressors are an important point of distinction in the trajectory of stress experience for these two groups. The negative impact of stress on health and well‐ being has received much research attention, providing evidence that it is detrimental to the immune system (Kiecolt‐Glaser, Marucha, Malarkey, Mercado, & Glaser, 1995; for review, see Segerstrom & Miller, 2004) and can influence the development of disease (e.g. Cohen et al., 1998). Prior research has proposed the stress process as an additional explanation for the effect of C on health (O’Connor, Conner, Jones, McMillan, & Ferguson, 2009; O’Connor & O’Connor, 2004; Penley & Tomaka, 2002). As described by Bolger and Zuckerman (1995), numerous pathways could exist between C, stress and health, including indirect routes via stress–health behaviour relations, and direct routes through the quantity of stress experienced. However, C may also influence the initial response and interpretation of stress experienced. Previous research on the effects of life events on health outcomes has produced mixed findings. Therefore, researchers have turned their attention to the study of 80 Stress and Health 28: 80–86 (2012) © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.