Personality traits and adolescent anxiety: serial mediating roles of Red music cultural identification and self-identity

Objective Adolescence is a critical period for personality formation and vulnerability to anxiety. Although personality traits are well-established predictors of adolescent anxiety, comparatively little research has examined the cultural mechanisms underlying this association. Drawing on culture–personality interaction theory, this study examined whether Red music cultural identification and self-identity sequentially mediate the association between Big Five personality traits and anxiety among Chinese adolescents. Specifically, we tested the pathway “Big Five personality traits → Red music cultural identification → self-identity → adolescent anxiety.” Methods A cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted using data collected online from 1,751 Chinese primary and secondary school students (45.57% boys; Grades 4–12). Measures included the Chinese Big Five Personality Inventory–Brief Version, the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale, a self-developed Red Music Cultural Identification Scale, and the Adolescent Self-Identity Questionnaire. Serial mediation effects were examined using PROCESS Macro Model 6 with bias-corrected bootstrap confidence intervals based on 5,000 resamples. Results Neuroticism significantly negatively predicted Red music cultural identification, whereas conscientiousness significantly positively predicted it. Red music cultural identification, in turn, significantly positively predicted adolescent self-identity, and self-identity significantly negatively predicted anxiety. Bootstrap analyses confirmed that the serial mediation pathway “personality traits → Red music cultural identification → self-identity → adolescent anxiety” was statistically significant. Discussion These findings support the view that the association between personality traits and adolescent anxiety operates partly through culturally embedded identity processes. By identifying Red music cultural identification as a culturally specific psychological construct linked to self-identity, this study extends theoretical understanding of culture–personality interaction in adolescent development and offers a theoretical basis for exploring culturally grounded approaches to adolescent mental health intervention.