The present study aims to investigate longitudinal changes in mental well-being as well as
the role of individual differences in personality traits (Big Five) and the level of Personality
Organisation during the first lockdown of the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany. Overall, 272
adults (Mage= 36.94, SDage= 16.46; 68.62% female, 23.45% male, 0.69% non-binary) took
part in our study with four weekly surveys during the lockdown as well as a follow-up one
month after restrictions were lifted. To analyse the development of mental well-being during
and shortly after the first lockdown in Germany latent growth curve models (LGCM) were
calculated. The considered facets of well-being differ by their trajectory. Additionally, results
suggest that the lockdown did not affect all facets to the same extent. While Life Satisfaction
decreases in the short term as a reaction to the lockdown, Stress and Psychological Strain
were reduced after the second week of contact restrictions. When adding personality characteristics, our results showed that Neuroticism and Conscientiousness were the two
dimensions associated most strongly with SWB during the first month of the pandemic.
Thus, our research suggests that personality traits should be considered when analysing
mental well-being