tag:theconversation.com,2011:/uk/topics/personality-23086/articlesPersonality – The Conversation2024-03-01T00:39:18Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2222642024-03-01T00:39:18Z2024-03-01T00:39:18ZCurious Kids: what are the main factors in forming someone’s personality?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/577829/original/file-20240226-24-q8fp4p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C11%2C7348%2C4891&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/casual-children-cheerful-cute-friends-kids-499922971">Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><strong>“What are the main factors in forming someone’s personality?” – Emma, age 10, from Shanghai</strong></p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/curious-kids-36782"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291898/original/file-20190911-190031-enlxbk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=90&fit=crop&dpr=1" width="100%"></a></p>
<p>Hello Emma, and thank you for this very interesting question!</p>
<p>Let’s start by exploring what we mean by personality. Have you noticed no two people are completely alike? We all see, experience, and understand the world in different ways. </p>
<p>For example, some people love spending time with friends and being the centre of attention, whereas other people are more shy and enjoy having time to themselves. </p>
<p>Your unique personality is shaped by your genes as well as various influences in your environment. And your personality plays an important role in how you interact with the world.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/curious-kids-how-did-the-first-person-evolve-142735">Curious Kids: how did the first person evolve?</a>
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<h2>The big five</h2>
<p>Did you know there are scientists who spend time researching personality? Their research is concerned with describing the ways <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.psych.093008.100507">people differ from each other</a>, and understanding how these differences could be important for other parts of life such as our health and how well we do in school or at work.</p>
<p>There are many different perspectives on personality. A widely accepted viewpoint based on <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0092656620301367?via%3Dihub">a lot of research</a> is called the five factor model or the “big five”. According to this theory, a great deal of a person’s personality can be summarised in terms of where they sit on five dimensions, called traits:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>the <strong>introversion-extraversion</strong> trait refers to how much someone is outgoing and social (extroverted) or prefers being with smaller groups of friends or focusing on their own thoughts (introverted)</p></li>
<li><p><strong>agreeableness</strong> captures how much someone tends to be cooperative and helps others</p></li>
<li><p><strong>openness to experience</strong> refers to how much a person is creative and enjoys experiencing new things</p></li>
<li><p><strong>neuroticism</strong> describes a person’s tendency to experience negative feelings, like worrying about things that could go wrong</p></li>
<li><p><strong>conscientiousness</strong> encompasses how much a person is organised, responsible, and dedicated to things that are important to them, like schoolwork or training for a sports team. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>A person can have high, low, or moderate levels of each of these traits. And understanding whether someone has higher or lower levels of the big five can tell us a lot about how we might expect them to behave in different situations.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/curious-kids-how-does-our-dna-relate-to-our-personality-and-appearance-168489">Curious Kids: how does our DNA relate to our personality and appearance?</a>
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<h2>So what shapes our personalities?</h2>
<p>A number of factors shape <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev-psych-010418-103244">our personalities</a>, including our genes and social environment. </p>
<p>Our bodies are made up of many very small structures called cells. Within these cells are genes. We inherit genes from our parents, and they carry the information needed to make our bodies and personalities. So, your personality may be a bit like your parents’ personalities. For example, if you’re an outgoing sort of person who loves to meet new people, perhaps one or both of your parents are very social too.</p>
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<img alt="A mother getting her son ready, fastening his backpack." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/577830/original/file-20240226-16-1uvanq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/577830/original/file-20240226-16-1uvanq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/577830/original/file-20240226-16-1uvanq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/577830/original/file-20240226-16-1uvanq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/577830/original/file-20240226-16-1uvanq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/577830/original/file-20240226-16-1uvanq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/577830/original/file-20240226-16-1uvanq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Our personalities are influenced by the genes we get from our parents.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/mother-dressing-her-child-getting-ready-2012433464">KieferPix/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>Personalities are also affected by our environment, such as our experiences and our relationships with family and friends. For example, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165178102001282">some research has shown</a> our relationships with our parents can influence our personality. If we have loving and warm relationships, we may be more agreeable and open. But if our relationships are hurtful or stressful, this may increase our neuroticism. </p>
<p><a href="https://bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/bjdp.12102">Another study</a> showed that, over time, young children who were more physically active were less introverted (less shy) and less likely to get very upset when things don’t go their way, compared to children who were less physically active. Although we don’t know why this is for sure, one possible explanation is that playing sport leads to reduced shyness because it introduces children to different people.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/curious-kids-why-do-some-people-worry-more-than-others-119874">Curious Kids: why do some people worry more than others?</a>
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<p>While we’re learning more about personality development all the time, research in this area presents quite a few challenges. Many different biological, cultural and environmental influences shape our development, and these factors can interact with each other <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev-psych-010213-115100">in complex ways</a>. </p>
<h2>Is our personality fixed once we become adults?</h2>
<p>Although we develop most of our personality when we are young, and people’s personalities tend to become more stable as they get older, it is possible for aspects of a person’s personality to change, even when they are fully grown. </p>
<p>A good example of this can be seen among people who seek treatment for conditions like anxiety or depression. People who respond well to working with a psychologist can show <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cpp.2541">decreases in neuroticism</a>, indicating they become less likely to worry a lot or feel strong negative feelings when something stressful happens.</p>
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<p><em>Hello, Curious Kids! Do you have a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to curiouskids@theconversation.edu.au</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/222264/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tim Windsor receives funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Natalie Goulter receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council. </span></em></p>Personality is shaped by our genes and various influences in our social environments, and it plays an important role in how we interact with the world.Tim Windsor, Professor, Director, Generations Research Initiative, College of Education, Psychology and Social Work, Flinders UniversityNatalie Goulter, Lecturer, College of Education, Psychology and Social Work, Flinders UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2241472024-02-27T23:22:27Z2024-02-27T23:22:27ZWar in Ukraine affected wellbeing worldwide, but people’s speed of recovery depended on their personality<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/578119/original/file-20240227-26-lc1e5n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=240%2C457%2C4935%2C2855&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/woman-with-head-resting-on-hand-Pe4gh8a8mBY">Nicklas Hammann/Unsplash</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The war in Ukraine has had impacts around the world. <a href="https://mitsloan.mit.edu/ideas-made-to-matter/ripple-effects-russia-ukraine-war-test-global-economies">Supply chains</a> have been disrupted, the <a href="https://news.un.org/pages/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/GCRG_2nd-Brief_Jun8_2022_FINAL.pdf?utm_source=United+Nations&utm_medium=Brief&utm_campaign=Global+Crisis+Response">cost of living</a> has soared and we’ve seen the <a href="https://www.unhcr.org/hk/en/73141-ukraine-fastest-growing-refugee-crisis-in-europe-since-wwii.html">fastest-growing refugee crisis since World War II</a>. All of these are in addition to the devastating humanitarian and economic impacts within Ukraine.</p>
<p>Our international team was conducting a global study on wellbeing in the lead up to and after the Russian invasion. This provided a unique opportunity to examine the psychological impact of the outbreak of war. </p>
<p>As we explain in a new study published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-44693-6">Nature Communications</a>, we learned the toll on people’s wellbeing was evident across nations, not just <a href="https://ijmhs.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13033-023-00598-3">in Ukraine</a>. These effects appear to have been temporary – at least for the average person.</p>
<p>But people with certain psychological vulnerabilities struggled to recover from the shock of the war.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/food-shortages-millions-of-refugees-and-global-price-spikes-the-knock-on-effects-of-russias-ukraine-invasion-180559">Food shortages, millions of refugees, and global price spikes: the knock-on effects of Russia’s Ukraine invasion</a>
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<h2>Tracking wellbeing during the outbreak of war</h2>
<p>People who took part in our study completed a rigorous “<a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2773515/">experience-sampling</a>” protocol. Specifically, we asked them to report their momentary wellbeing four times per day for a whole month. </p>
<p>Data collection began in October 2021 and continued throughout 2022. So we had been tracking wellbeing around the world during the weeks surrounding the outbreak of war in February 2022. </p>
<p>We also collected measures of personality, along with various sociodemographic variables (including age, gender, political views). This enabled us to assess whether different people responded differently to the crisis. We could also compare these effects across countries. </p>
<p>Our analyses focused primarily on 1,341 participants living in 17 European countries, excluding Ukraine itself (44,894 experience-sampling reports in total). We also expanded these analyses to capture the experiences of 1,735 people living in 43 countries around the world (54,851 experience-sampling reports) – including in Australia.</p>
<h2>A global dip in wellbeing</h2>
<p>On February 24 2022, the day Russia invaded Ukraine, there was a sharp decline in wellbeing around the world. There was no decline in the month leading up to the outbreak of war, suggesting the change in wellbeing was not already occurring for some other reason. </p>
<p>However, there was a gradual increase in wellbeing during the month <em>after</em> the Russian invasion, suggestive of a “return to baseline” effect. Such effects are commonly reported in psychological research: situations and events that impact our wellbeing often (<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237535630_Adaptation_and_the_Set-Point_Model_of_Subjective_Well-BeingDoes_Happiness_Change_After_Major_Life_Events">though not always</a>) do so <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/7062343_Beyond_the_Hedonic_Treadmill_Revising_the_Adaptation_Theory_of_Well-Being">temporarily</a>.</p>
<p>Unsurprisingly, people in Europe experienced a sharper dip in wellbeing compared to people living elsewhere around the world. Presumably the war was much more salient for those closest to the conflict, compared to those living on an entirely different continent. </p>
<p>Interestingly, day-to-day fluctuations in wellbeing mirrored the salience of the war on social media as events unfolded. Specifically, wellbeing was lower on days when there were more tweets mentioning Ukraine on Twitter/X. </p>
<p>Our results indicate that, on average, it took around two months for people to return to their baseline levels of wellbeing after the invasion.</p>
<h2>Different people, different recoveries</h2>
<p>There are <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31944795/">strong links</a> between our wellbeing and our individual personalities. </p>
<p>However, the dip in wellbeing following the Russian invasion was fairly uniform across individuals. None of the individual factors assessed in our study, including personality and sociodemographic factors, predicted people’s response to the outbreak of war.</p>
<p>On the other hand, personality did play a role in how quickly people recovered. Individual differences in people’s recovery were linked to a personality trait called “stability”. Stability is a broad dimension of personality that combines low neuroticism with high agreeableness and conscientiousness (three traits from the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-sciences/big-five">Big Five</a> personality framework). </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/ukraine-war-conflict-related-ptsd-is-putting-strain-on-an-already-underfunded-mental-health-system-199629">Ukraine war: conflict-related PTSD is putting strain on an already underfunded mental health system</a>
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</em>
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<p>Stability is so named because it reflects the stability of one’s overall psychological functioning. This can be illustrated by breaking stability down into its three components: </p>
<ol>
<li><p>low neuroticism describes <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2212154120">emotional stability</a>. People low in this trait experience less intense negative emotions such as anxiety, fear or anger, in response to negative events</p></li>
<li><p>high agreeableness describes <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2018-63285-010">social stability</a>. People high in this trait are generally more cooperative, kind, and motivated to maintain social harmony</p></li>
<li><p>high conscientiousness describes <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2023.112331">motivational stability</a>. People high in this trait show more effective patterns of goal-directed self-regulation. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>So, our data show that people with less stable personalities fared worse in terms of recovering from the impact the war in Ukraine had on wellbeing. </p>
<p>In a supplementary analysis, we found the effect of stability was driven specifically by neuroticism and agreeableness. The fact that people higher in neuroticism recovered more slowly accords with a wealth of research linking this trait with <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10573882/">coping difficulties</a> and <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5428182/">poor mental health</a>. </p>
<p>These effects of personality on recovery were stronger than those of sociodemographic factors, such as age, gender or political views, which were not statistically significant.</p>
<p>Overall, our findings suggest that people with certain psychological vulnerabilities will often struggle to recover from the shock of global events such as the outbreak of war in Ukraine.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/224147/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Luke Smillie does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The toll of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on people’s wellbeing was felt worldwide. The effects were temporary for most. But those high on certain psychological traits struggled for longer.Luke Smillie, Professor in Personality Psychology, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2236772024-02-20T12:25:59Z2024-02-20T12:25:59ZThe psychology of great artists: beyond the myth of the lone, tortured genius<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/575954/original/file-20240125-29-o4c74x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C13%2C2995%2C1670&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/es/image-photo/talented-female-artist-works-on-abstract-1540650071">Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In our constant quest to understand artists and their genius, we often put them on a pedestal, or we assume that they are otherworldly beings with incomprehensible thoughts. This myth, though common, distances us from everything they share with us. It makes us feel that their feats and successes are far beyond our reach. </p>
<p>It is important to demystify the idea that artists are radically different from us. We can do this by looking at how their behaviour is connected to our shared experience as humans.</p>
<p>For years, I have researched the personality and character of historical figures, looking deeply into the figure of <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/350382743_Ludwig_van_Beethoven_in_a_Snapshot_Exploring_His_Own_Words">Beethoven in particular from a psychological perspective</a>. I have also delved more widely into academic literature on the psychology of some of history’s most famed creative minds.</p>
<p>Though each artist is different, there are certain traits and patterns in their personalities that merit attention. By understanding these, we can bring ourselves closer to their creative worlds without feeling like outsiders. </p>
<p>We can do this by looking at the “<a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/big-5-personality-traits">Big Five</a>” psychological pillars of personality: extroversion, conscientiousness, neuroticism, agreeableness, and openness to experience.</p>
<p><strong>Introversion and extroversion: a delicate but necessary balance</strong></p>
<p>Artists, by and large, tend to be <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/introversion">introverts</a>. This is natural, given that they often have to spend a lot of time working in solitude, and in the noise and chaos of society it is much harder to work creatively. This does not mean that they avoid all opportunities to socialise, nor that they do not enjoy being surrounded by friends and loved ones. Like all of us, finding the right balance is what matters.</p>
<p><a href="https://books.google.es/books/about/Daily_Rituals.html?id=xTAAAQAAQBAJ&source=kp_book_description&redir_esc=y">Pablo Picasso</a> is a good example. In his apartment in Montparnasse, Paris, he dedicated the largest room to painting, and forbade anyone from entering without his permission. In there, he surrounded himself with painting supplies, other miscellaneous articles and his pets: a dog, three cats and a monkey. He would work until nightfall, and although he appreciated visits and was a good host, he hated unwanted distractions.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/571486/original/file-20240125-28-jwmljh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Picasso also socialised. He is pictured here in the centre, with Modigliani and André Salmon in front of the Café de la Rotonde, Paris." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/571486/original/file-20240125-28-jwmljh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/571486/original/file-20240125-28-jwmljh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571486/original/file-20240125-28-jwmljh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571486/original/file-20240125-28-jwmljh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571486/original/file-20240125-28-jwmljh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571486/original/file-20240125-28-jwmljh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571486/original/file-20240125-28-jwmljh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Picasso also socialised. He is pictured here in the centre, with Modigliani and André Salmon in front of the Café de la Rotonde, Paris. Photo taken by Jean Cocteau in Montparnasse, Paris, in 1916.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Modigliani,_Picasso_and_Andr%C3%A9_Salmon.jpg">Modigliani Institut Archives Légales, Paris-Rome</a></span>
</figcaption>
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<p><strong>Conscientiousness: navigating order and ambition</strong></p>
<p>The concept of <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/conscientiousness">conscientiousness</a> in artists is often misunderstood. It is often associated with order and organisation, while artists tend to be perceived as more chaotic or absent minded. However, they have other aspects of conscientiousness, such as a need for achievement, a strong desire to excel, and a high level of discipline.</p>
<p>We can look to Mexican painter <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09540261.2023.2258959?src=">Frida Kahlo</a> for an example of conscientiousness in artists. Despite experiencing health problems in childhood, and being left bedridden after a bus accident at the age of 18, she made huge efforts to carry on her work, leaving an artistic legacy and and example for the world.</p>
<p><strong>Neuroticism: sensitivity and emotional stability</strong></p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/571487/original/file-20240125-19-jhuibc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A man at a lectern with raised hand." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/571487/original/file-20240125-19-jhuibc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/571487/original/file-20240125-19-jhuibc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=909&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571487/original/file-20240125-19-jhuibc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=909&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571487/original/file-20240125-19-jhuibc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=909&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571487/original/file-20240125-19-jhuibc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1142&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571487/original/file-20240125-19-jhuibc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1142&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571487/original/file-20240125-19-jhuibc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1142&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">The orchestra conductor Leonard Bernstein juggled his career with a complex personal life.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Leonard_Bernstein_repeteert_met_Concertgebouworkest,_Bestanddeelnr_934-0954.jpg">Bart Molendijk / Anefo</a></span>
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<p>There is a lot of speculation surrounding the subject of artists and <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/neuroticism">neuroticism</a>, or mental illness. Many artists do undeniably show a certain intensity in expressing their emotions, or have suffered from unstable, psychologically difficult periods. However, psychological science <a href="https://academic.oup.com/book/41155">has found no correlation between greater neuroticism and increased artistic ability</a>.</p>
<p>Heightened emotional sensitivity does not always translate into instability. This does not, however, mean that artists do not use their output to express emotional difficulty, pain or trauma, nor that feelings cannot be channelled into artistic expression.</p>
<p>In her recent book <a href="https://books.google.es/books/about/Saved_by_a_Song.html?id=z8D3DwAAQBAJ&source=kp_book_description&redir_esc=y">Saved by a Song</a>, US American singer-songwriter Mary Gauthier recounts history of trauma and addiction, and how songwriting and music offered her a sense of purpose and a way out. She is currently in good mental health, as reflected in her musical performances and her way of engaging with her audience.</p>
<p><strong>Agreeableness: the delicate balance of originality</strong></p>
<p>The trait of <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/agreeableness">agreeableness</a>, which involves trust in others, modesty, and a desire to cooperate, may appear to be lacking among many artists. Their inclination towards solitude and their dedication to their work may create an image of them as unfriendly and distrustful.</p>
<p>However, does not imply selfishness or a lack of sympathy. Those engaged in art feel compelled to develop a sense of their own uniqueness and originality, driving many to show their art to the world and earn a living from it. What we call <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/cambridge-handbook-of-creativity-and-personality-research/FAD51C0730BC0126A35737A7631B1183">creative self-concept</a> is sometimes misinterpreted as arrogance.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/571491/original/file-20240125-15-nucqdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Director Greta Gerwig on the set of Barbie looking at a screen and surrounded by actors." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/571491/original/file-20240125-15-nucqdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/571491/original/file-20240125-15-nucqdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571491/original/file-20240125-15-nucqdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571491/original/file-20240125-15-nucqdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571491/original/file-20240125-15-nucqdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571491/original/file-20240125-15-nucqdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/571491/original/file-20240125-15-nucqdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Cinematic achievements, like Greta Gerwig’s 2023 film Barbie, cannot be made in isolation from others.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.filmaffinity.com/es/filmimages.php?movie_id=506593">FilmAffinity</a></span>
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<p>In an interview, the Spanish ballet dancer and choreographer <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djHPe-rXnus">Nacho Duato</a> hinted at a need to separate himself from others in order to grow personally and professionally. At the same time, he was also modest in recognising his own work, defining himself as an “artisan of movement”. </p>
<p><strong>Openness to experience: the key to creativity</strong></p>
<p>The one trait that stands out among artists is <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/openness">openness to experience</a>. This involves curiosity, a desire to discover new things, an appreciation of beauty, and the will to expand horizons. Being open to new experiences allows fresh, original ideas to be created, which can drive innovation in the artistic field. </p>
<p>A classic example of this trait can be found in the German composer Beethoven. He always respected where he had come from and what he had learned, but he also felt a strong need to experiment and push boundaries. He asked piano makers to add keys to instruments, and defied the comfortable, safe and predictable musical conventions of his time. One of his major innovations was including vocal parts in a symphony, a style of composition which had hitherto been exclusively instrumental. </p>
<h2>Beyond the myths</h2>
<p>Though unique in some respects, the personality of artists shares many similarities with the common human experience. As you explore these traits yourself, you may well discover that you too harbour a creative spark that deserves to be expressed. </p>
<p>The main difference between artists and other people might just be the courage to listen to yourself, to observe yourself, and to dare to show what is original within yourself.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/223677/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Abigail Jareño Gómez is a member of the Psychobiography Group of the Psychohistory Forum.</span></em></p>We often put artists on a pedestal, but if we look at their personalities closely, we see that they aren’t so different from the rest of us.Abigail Jareño Gómez, Profesor de Psicología, Universidad CEU San PabloLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2168592024-01-22T13:29:39Z2024-01-22T13:29:39ZWhy do people have different tastes in music? A music education expert explains why some songs are universally liked, while others aren’t<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/566074/original/file-20231215-21-eo0769.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=19%2C0%2C2121%2C1409&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The types of music you listen to can reflect your personality traits. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/group-of-young-friends-listening-to-music-with-royalty-free-image/1156897122?phrase=listening+to+music&adppopup=true">Smile/Stone via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/281719/original/file-20190628-76743-26slbc.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/curious-kids-us-74795">Curious Kids</a> is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to <a href="mailto:curiouskidsus@theconversation.com">curiouskidsus@theconversation.com</a>.</em></p>
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<blockquote>
<p><strong>Why do we have a certain taste in music, different than others? – Shirya R., age 11</strong></p>
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<hr>
<p>When you turn on the radio, you might hear songs you like and other songs you just skip past. But even the songs you don’t like usually have some fans. Maybe you don’t like older music, but your parents or grandparents might love it <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-do-old-people-hate-new-music-123834">because they grew up</a> with it. It’s familiar and comfortable. When you’re older, you’ll likely return to music you love too.</p>
<p>As a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=QXuOzQIAAAAJ&hl=en">music education professor</a> who teaches music psychology, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about music preferences and how music weaves its way through people’s brains.</p>
<p>Some composers produce music with <a href="https://theconversation.com/burt-bacharach-mastered-the-art-of-the-perfect-pop-song-and-that-aint-easy-199660">cross-generational appeal</a>. Look at the song “True Colors,” which artists have remade time and time again. It was originally released in 1986 by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPn0KFlbqX8">Cyndi Lauper</a>.</p>
<p>Ten years later, Disney World’s Epcot used it as part of a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUm22pobGU4">pre-show video</a>. Ten years after that, it made its way to our ears again as part of the “Trolls” movie. Now, if you scour the internet, you’ll find lots of covers of this song.</p>
<p>How can this one song appeal to many different people over time, while other songs do not? Why do some people have wildly different tastes in music, even while certain songs can unite people from a variety of backgrounds and generations? </p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3JIpIsgHqV0?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">‘True Colors’ from the movie ‘Trolls,’ starring Justin Timberlake and Anna Kendrick.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Researchers have looked at <a href="https://www.ucf.edu/pegasus/your-brain-on-music/">how music works in the brain</a>. They suggest people like music with unexpected twists and turns, which sometimes cause <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-do-only-some-people-get-skin-orgasms-from-listening-to-music-59719">pleasurable physical reactions</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2020.565815">or chills</a>. This finding suggests that humans have created and listened to music over time <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nsw009">because it is pleasurable or rewarding</a>.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">When you listen to music, you might get chills.</span></figcaption>
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<h2>Emotions and personality</h2>
<p>Some researchers suggest people experience emotions through music, or that they choose music based on what they want to feel. A <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/a0022406">2011 study</a> suggests musical preference may reflect the emotions people feel when listening to music, regardless of the music’s style.</p>
<p>Some people respond to mellow and relaxing music. Others’ emotions are triggered by classical-style music. Still others emotionally react to singer-songwriter music like country, folk and some pop music. Preferences for certain types or styles of music might come from the time and place they’re first heard, or it may simply be specific to each person, regardless of what’s going on around them. </p>
<p>Though people might like certain music at one point in their lives, their music preferences change over time based on their lived experiences. When you’re struggling through a tough time, you might choose music that reflects what you wish was happening and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10824-022-09454-7">search for happy songs</a>. On the flip side, sometimes people <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2015.00404">gravitate toward sad songs</a>. People want to move through grief, so they may search for songs that help them make sense of their emotions.</p>
<p>However, people’s choices don’t account for the whole picture. Musical taste goes <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1062146">deeper than the music type or genre</a>. People who like pop or rock music don’t all like the same pop or rock music. </p>
<p>Studies on <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797618761659">personality and social media interaction</a> suggest your musical tastes can tell others what kind of personality you have. If someone knows what kind of music you like, that might tell them something about your personality. </p>
<p>Other <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/pspp0000397">research suggests</a> your music preferences mirror your unique personality. So, people who already know you may be able to suggest music that you would like to hear.</p>
<p>For example, those who are more open might prefer mellow, sophisticated music like Billie Eilish’s “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cW8VLC9nnTo">What Was I Made For?</a>” or intense music like Imagine Dragons’ “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5M2WZiAy6k">Natural</a>.”</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/pspp0000397">The research found</a> extroverts may lean toward contemporary music. Agreeable people prefer unpretentious music, like Garrett Kato & Elina’s “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgxNu8fBrgw">Never Alone</a>.” Conscientious people lean toward <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0o5NTQMzNPo">unpretentious music</a> or intense music like Marshmello’s “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYfejxVZ7lg">Power</a>.” People who are more anxious might prefer many different types of music.</p>
<p>People may like music by artists they like, rather than how the music sounds. Some prefer music from <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/pspp0000293">artists who are like them</a>, especially when they can view their profiles on <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797618761659">social media</a>.</p>
<p>Why does knowing what music others like matter? Knowing about different people’s musical preferences and personalities <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evVRxrOo5iw">can bridge gaps between people</a> with different personalities and identities. </p>
<h2>The music people stream</h2>
<p>A <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-018-0508-z">study of 765 million songs streamed</a> by people worldwide revealed several reasons people listen to music. People’s preferences tended to change based on the time of day, their age and particular styles of music. Most people listened to more relaxing music at night but more intense music during the day. </p>
<p>Music streamed in Latin America often produced quicker physical and emotional reactions. Music streamed in Asia was usually relaxing. People who stay up later at night listened to less intense music. Depending on where participants lived, the length of the day also played a part in their music listening habits. In short, people’s environments and their individual moods shaped their preferences.</p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/TOhANADfR04?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Harmony in the Brain: Unraveling the Neuroscience of Music.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>So, why do we have different tastes in music? People have complex personalities, and the music they like may be related to this. People’s brains work in unique ways as they process music. Some may have a physical reaction to certain music, while others may not. People may like music because a musician’s views might be like their own views. That said, some songs surprise, intrigue and entertain a wide variety of listeners, which makes them universally liked.</p>
<p>The bottom line? Each person is unique in many ways, and their musical tastes reflect that uniqueness.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Hello, curious kids! Do you have a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to <a href="mailto:curiouskidsus@theconversation.com">CuriousKidsUS@theconversation.com</a>. Please tell us your name, age and the city where you live.</em></p>
<p><em>And since curiosity has no age limit – adults, let us know what you’re wondering, too. We won’t be able to answer every question, but we will do our best.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/216859/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jane Kuehne does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Lots of factors can influence your music taste, from your age and where you’re from to the personality traits you have.Jane Kuehne, Associate Professor of Music Education, Auburn UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2127582023-09-11T16:06:43Z2023-09-11T16:06:43ZHow we uncovered the shared personality profile of violent extremists<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547571/original/file-20230911-7527-pua5x7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=62%2C26%2C5847%2C3961&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Ex-Proud Boys chairman Enrique Tarrio was sentenced to 22 years in prison for "seditious conspiracy" following the 2021 United States Capitol attack. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/portland-oregon-usa-august-17-2019-1487750318">Tony Prato/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Violent extremism – be it political or religious – is a persistent global problem, which has <a href="https://www.csis.org/analysis/pushed-extremes-domestic-terrorism-amid-polarization-and-protest">escalated considerably in the US</a> in the last decade. Why do some people resort to violence for their cause? </p>
<p>Research on the causes of violent extremism has often focused on <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10576100600704069">social or political explanations</a>. It has particularly investigated Islamist extremism and marginalised individuals or groups in society.</p>
<p>Social and political factors no doubt play a role. But could there also be shared psychological characteristics among individuals who endorse group-based violence in different contexts? And could this extend to non-political forms of violence? </p>
<p>In a series of studies, my colleagues and I have unpacked the basic psychology of violent extremism. </p>
<p>Almost every month, there are reports in the news of violent extremism or politically motivated violence in the west. These include terror attacks in Europe, the storming of the Capitol in Washington, and violence occurring at political demonstrations (both left- and rightwing). </p>
<p>Different forms of violence seem to have different motivations. Rightwing extremism aims to preserve the status quo whereas leftwing extremism aims to overthrow it.</p>
<p>But if we take a closer look at the rhetoric of known terrorists, such as the <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4206800.stm">London 7/7 bombers</a>, the <a href="https://www.isdglobal.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/The-Great-Replacement-The-Violent-Consequences-of-Mainstreamed-Extremism-by-ISD.pdf">Christchurch mosque shooter </a> — or <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk/4206800.stm">Islamist</a>, <a href="https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/extremist-files/ideology/alt-right">rightwing</a> and <a href="https://blacklivesmatter.com/about/">leftwing movements</a> – they appear to have one thing in common. They all feel that their group, or a group they support, is unjustly disadvantaged. </p>
<h2>Humility and emotional sensitivity</h2>
<p>We wanted to unpick the influence of personality on whether an individual endorses violence for their cause. Not everyone who thinks that their group is unjustly disadvantaged resorts to violence. This begs the question of whether basic personality traits are at play.</p>
<p><a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/13684302231154412">We’ve uncovered</a> common personality and social psychological factors among those who endorse group-based violence in different contexts. In three studies, we gathered survey responses from 394 Black Lives Matters supporters in the US (during the 2020 protests), 252 immigration-critical Swedes, and 445 football supporters in Sweden.</p>
<p>We included measures of personality from the <a href="https://hexaco.org/">Hexaco personality inventory</a> and social psychological factors. We also included items measuring support for violence, violent behavioural intentions and self-reported violence and aggression. Each of these measures was adapted for the specific context and type of violence.</p>
<p>Individuals who endorsed violence for their cause indeed scored highly on feelings of “group-based relative deprivation” — that their group was unjustly disadvantaged. When it came to personality, individuals who endorsed violence, and reported violent intentions or actual engagement in violence, scored low on the personality traits known as “honesty-humility” and “emotionality”. </p>
<p><a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16138875/">Honesty-humility</a> is a personality trait which captures the extent to which an individual is humble, fair and genuine in their interactions with others. Emotionality, on the other hand, as measured by the <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1088868314523838">Hexaco inventory</a>, refers to the tendency to experience fear, anxiety and sentimentality. Low emotionality can make it harder to empathise with the suffering of others. It may also mean you are less likely to worry about the consequences of your actions.</p>
<p>Individuals low on these two traits may therefore be more inclined to endorse violence for their cause. They are likely to have a general tendency towards antisocial behaviour. They are also less fearful and anxious about the risks of their behaviour.</p>
<h2>The modesty factor</h2>
<p>To follow up, we looked closer at the humility aspect of the honesty-humility trait. We thought this might explain why members of structurally advantaged groups, in particular, perceive that their group is unjustly disadvantaged.</p>
<p>Modesty refers to a person’s belief about themselves in relation to others. Those high in modesty see themselves as no better than others, whereas those low in modesty feel superior and entitled to privileges. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A Black Lives Matter protest at St Nicholas church in Brighton, June 2020." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/546685/original/file-20230906-29-88ck0l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/546685/original/file-20230906-29-88ck0l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/546685/original/file-20230906-29-88ck0l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/546685/original/file-20230906-29-88ck0l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/546685/original/file-20230906-29-88ck0l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/546685/original/file-20230906-29-88ck0l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/546685/original/file-20230906-29-88ck0l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Not everyone who believes in a cause turns violent.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Lives_Matter#/media/File:George_Floyd_Protest_Brighton,_England,_UK_-_49968982403.jpg">Flickr/wikipedia</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In two studies, we gathered survey responses from structurally advantaged and disadvantaged groups. We looked at the association between modesty and feelings of “group-based relative deprivation”. We first gathered survey responses from 171 white Americans and 163 black Americans, asking them the extent to which they felt unjustly disadvantaged as a white or black American. We then also gathered responses from 156 men and 153 women of mixed backgrounds, asking them the extent to which they felt unjustly disadvantaged as a man or woman.</p>
<p>As we expected, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0092656623000181">we found</a> that members of structurally advantaged groups (men and white Americans) who scored low on modesty were more inclined to endorse the perception that their group was unjustly disadvantaged than those who scored high on modesty.</p>
<p>This pattern of results was not observed among structurally disadvantaged groups (women and black Americans). </p>
<p>Thus, personality traits can illustrate why some members of structurally advantaged groups perceive their group as disadvantaged – despite history and statistics suggesting otherwise. Low modesty predisposes them to feel that their group is not getting what they are entitled to. </p>
<p>This has implications for understanding why some people endorse the rhetoric of, for example, the alternative (“alt”) right and involuntary celibate (“incel”) movements. Due to an immodest and hence entitled disposition more generally, people endorse the rhetoric that their group is not getting what they deserve.</p>
<p>These findings suggest that both basic personality traits and social factors help explain why individuals endorse group-based violence for their cause. Research solely focusing on social or social-psychological factors — and neglecting the role of personality — is missing an important piece of the “puzzle” of violent extremism.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/212758/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joanna Lindström does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>People who lack modesty and have few negative emotions are more likely to back violent actions for a cause.Joanna Lindström, PhD Researcher in Psychology, Stockholm UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1987552023-02-16T02:39:26Z2023-02-16T02:39:26ZWhat kinds of people ‘catfish’? Study finds they have higher psychopathy, sadism, and narcissism<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/509098/original/file-20230209-28-nbas4h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5310%2C3537&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Online dating has revolutionised romance, creating more opportunities to meet potential partners than ever before.</p>
<p>However, alongside the benefits is the risk of abuse, harassment, and exploitation. In late January this year, the Australian government convened a <a href="https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/department/media/news/government-convenes-national-roundtable-online-dating-safety">national roundtable on online dating</a> to explore what could be done to improve safety. </p>
<p><a href="https://minister.infrastructure.gov.au/rowland/media-release/albanese-government-convenes-national-roundtable-online-dating-safety?_ga=2.175973863.4162575.1675400995-1565035519.1675400995">Alarming figures</a> compiled by the Australian Institute of Criminology showed three out of four Australian dating app users who responded to the survey had experienced sexual violence on dating apps in the last five years.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1619834288010059776"}"></div></p>
<p>One such harm is “<a href="https://www.esafety.gov.au/young-people/catfishing">catfishing</a>” – when someone creates, or steals, an identity with the purpose of deceiving and exploiting others.</p>
<p>In a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2022.107599">study</a> by myself and Cassandra Lauder at Federation University, we wanted to find out what psychological traits were common among people who conduct behaviours associated with catfishing. We surveyed the perpetration of catfishing behaviours in nearly 700 adults. </p>
<p>We found a cluster of psychological traits that are associated with catfishing – known as the “dark tetrad” of personality. This includes psychopathy, sadism, narcissism, and Machiavellianism. </p>
<p>So what are these traits, and how can you spot a potential romance scam?</p>
<h2>What’s catfishing again?</h2>
<p>What differentiates catfishing from phishing and other online scams is the lengths the catfisher will go to to deceive and exploit their targets. Often, this includes establishing long-term relationships – with <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/news/insight/article/catfishing-my-relationship-of-12-years-was-all-a-lie/fw28o2lcf">some accounts of these relationships lasting over a decade</a>. </p>
<p>For many of these scams, the goal is often financial exploitation. According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), in 2019 Australians reported just under 4,000 romance scams, costing Australians <a href="https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/romance-scammers-move-to-new-apps-costing-aussies-more-than-286-million">over A$28 million</a>. In 2021, that number was <a href="https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/scam-statistics?scamid=13&date=2021">just over $56 million</a>. </p>
<p>However, not all catfishing scams involve financial exploitation. In some cases, there may appear to be no real reason why the victim-survivor was psychologically exploited and manipulated – a form researchers have termed <a href="https://theconversation.com/its-not-about-money-we-asked-catfish-why-they-trick-people-online-100381">social catfishing</a>. </p>
<p>The experience of catfishing can cause significant <a href="https://bulliesout.com/need-support/catfishing/#:%7E:text=Being%20catfished%20can%20cause%20mental,catfisher%20will%20expose%20them%20publicly.">psychological and financial</a> damage to the victim-survivor.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/its-not-about-money-we-asked-catfish-why-they-trick-people-online-100381">It's not about money: we asked catfish why they trick people online</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The ‘dark tetrad’</h2>
<p>In <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2022.107599">our study</a>, we recruited a sample of 664 participants (55.8% men, 40.3% women, 3.9% other/missing) via social media. We asked participants to indicate how often they perpetrated a range of catfishing-related behaviours. This included “I orchestrate online scams” and “I present inaccurate personal information online in order to attract friends or romantic partners”. </p>
<p>We also assessed participants on a range of personality traits commonly associated with antisocial behaviour, known as the “<a href="https://myfamilypsychologist.com/the-truth-about-the-dark-tetrad/">dark tetrad</a>” of personality.</p>
<p>This included</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/basics/narcissism">narcissism</a> (self-grandiosity, entitlement)</li>
<li><a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/basics/psychopathy">psychopathy</a> (callousness, low empathy)</li>
<li><a href="https://psyche.co/ideas/ever-taken-pleasure-in-anothers-pain-thats-everyday-sadism">everyday sadism</a> (enjoying harming others)</li>
<li>and <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/blog/machiavellians-gulling-the-rubes/201509/meet-the-machiavellians">Machiavellianism</a> (strategic and calculating).</li>
</ul>
<p>We found people who perpetrated catfishing behaviours had higher psychopathy, higher sadism, and higher narcissism. Sadism in particular was a very strong predictor of catfishing behaviours.</p>
<p>We also found that men were more likely than women to catfish. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1515088682306396161"}"></div></p>
<p>It’s worth noting that in this research, participants filled out the survey themselves, meaning the data are what we call “self-reported” in research. As we asked people if they performed socially undesirable behaviours such as interpersonal manipulation, exploitation, and deception, a key issue is that people may not be entirely honest when responding to the survey. This could lead to bias in the data.</p>
<p>We addressed this by measuring participants’ “<a href="https://www.scribbr.com/research-bias/social-desirability-bias/">social desirability</a>” – the degree to which a person conceals their true self to look good to others. We used this measure in all of our findings to reduce some of this potential bias.</p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/its-not-about-money-we-asked-catfish-why-they-trick-people-online-100381">Previous research</a> found those who catfished cited motivations such as loneliness, dissatisfaction with physical appearance, identity exploration, and escapism. </p>
<p>Knowing why people might catfish could be empowering for catfishing victim-survivors. Although the above motives may certainly still play a part, our findings add to the story.</p>
<h2>6 signs of a potential romance scam</h2>
<p>We found people who perpetrate catfishing behaviours are more likely to be callous, egotistical, lack empathy, and – importantly – enjoy harming other people. This suggests that not all catfishers are necessarily indifferent to the harm they could cause. Indeed for some, harm could be the goal. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/from-psychopaths-to-everyday-sadists-why-do-humans-harm-the-harmless-144017">From psychopaths to 'everyday sadists': why do humans harm the harmless?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>There are other practical ways to identify a possible online romance scam. I have been researching antisocial online behaviours for almost a decade. Drawing on The <a href="https://www.psychiatrypodcast.com/psychiatry-psychotherapy-podcast/episode-160-the-psychology-behind-catfishing">Psychiatry Podcast</a>, and in collaboration with the Cyberpsychology and Healthy Interpersonal Processes Lab at Federation University, here are six signs of a potential catfishing scenario:</p>
<ol>
<li><p><strong>They contact you first.</strong>
It’s unusual for the victim-survivor to have made the initial contact. Typically, the catfisher will make the first contact. </p></li>
<li><p><strong>They are too good to be true.</strong>
Great profile? Check. Good looking? Check. Maybe even educated and rich? Check. The catfisher wants to look good and lure you in.</p></li>
<li><p><strong>Love bombing.</strong>
Prepare yourself for the pedestal you are about to be put on. The catfisher will shower you with compliments and protestations of love. It’s hard not to be flattered by this amount of attention. You may also find terms of endearment are common – saves the catfisher having to remember all those different names.</p></li>
<li><p><strong>They never call.</strong>
There’s always something that will get in the way of phone calls, video calls, and meetings.</p></li>
<li><p><strong>Strange communication.</strong>
There may be typos, delayed or vague responses. Something about this communication feels a bit off.</p></li>
<li><p><strong>They ask for money.</strong>
Money isn’t always the goal of the catfisher. But any of the signs above combined with asking for money should be a red flag. Don’t make any decisions before talking to someone – a trusted friend or family member. Often, people on the outside have a clearer view of the situation than those who are involved.</p></li>
</ol><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/198755/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Evita March does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>People who catfish tend to score highly in the ‘dark tetrad’ personality traits.Evita March, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Federation University AustraliaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1923162023-02-08T13:42:40Z2023-02-08T13:42:40ZHere’s what to do when you encounter people with ‘dark personality traits’ at work<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508142/original/file-20230203-14078-gedpau.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1000%2C569%2C4133%2C2848&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Keeping your eyes and ears open can keep you from falling for the antics of a dark personality.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/young-businesswoman-sitting-in-cubicle-high-section-royalty-free-image/200495922-001">Noel Hendrickson/DigitalVision via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Have you ever suffered through tales of greatness from a self-absorbed “friend” who reminds you of Michael Scott from “The Office” – and not in a good way? Have you been betrayed by a colleague out of the blue, undermined on a project by the office mean girl, or had a work friendship dropped altogether without explanation?</p>
<p>If any of these scenarios sound familiar, you may have been dealing with someone who has what psychologists term a “dark personality.” These people score higher on three socially undesirable traits: narcissism, psychopathy and Machiavellianism.</p>
<p>As an organizational scholar, <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=O6GMV30AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">I’ve spent years studying personality traits</a> in the context of the sales profession. In recent work, <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=fP64fToAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=sra">my colleagues</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=3JMMd3sAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">and I focused</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=-8Rz4qMAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">on the ways</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/00222429221113254">people with these dark personalities succeed</a> in sales organizations and the social factors that allow them to extend their successful tenures. Based on our research, here’s a primer on these antagonistic personality types – and how you can unmask examples you encounter in your everyday life.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508143/original/file-20230203-12714-kjwewj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="man stands soaking in applause from people around conference table" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508143/original/file-20230203-12714-kjwewj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508143/original/file-20230203-12714-kjwewj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508143/original/file-20230203-12714-kjwewj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508143/original/file-20230203-12714-kjwewj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508143/original/file-20230203-12714-kjwewj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508143/original/file-20230203-12714-kjwewj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508143/original/file-20230203-12714-kjwewj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A narcissist is always first in line to compliment himself.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/multi-ethnic-businesspeople-having-meeting-royalty-free-image/79214499">Jon Feingersh Photography Inc/DigitalVision via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Defining the dark personalities</h2>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/a0016338">Narcissists</a> have the most familiar type of dark personality. They aren’t shy about letting you know exactly how highly they think of themselves. At work, you might find the narcissist bragging about their superior sales skills, even though their performance <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/00222429221113254">isn’t much better than the average salesperson</a>. Conservative estimates of narcissism in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.4088/jcp.v69n0701">general population fall around 6.2%</a>. </p>
<p>While narcissistic behavior can be annoying, it’s usually more tolerable than what the other two dark traits tend to serve up. </p>
<p>Functional – meaning noncriminal – psychopaths are particularly disturbing. Psychologists estimate they <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/products/snakes-in-suits-paul-babiakrobert-d-hare?variant=39689396617250">comprise up to 4% of the general population</a>. Psychopaths have no qualms about <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2009.02.005">exploiting others</a> for their own benefit. Stubbornly antisocial, functional psychopaths generally have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025679">little empathy for others</a>. They’re more concerned about “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/s0092-6566(02)00505-6">getting theirs” by any means necessary</a>. Psychopaths are quick to deflect blame and throw others under the bus, even if it means <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2014.06.038">telling lies</a>.</p>
<p>With their impulsive tendencies, psychopaths are prone to telling lies for no particular reason at all. If you find yourself in a group water-cooler conversation and hear someone telling lies that don’t seem to serve any purpose, you might have stumbled on a functional psychopath.</p>
<p>In the workplace, at first a psychopath may seem charming. But eventually you’ll likely find yourself either questioning their motivations, or becoming a victim of their destructive behavior. Though they can be harder to identify than narcissists with their nonstop bragging, psychopaths’ egregious behavior tends to unmask them in the end. </p>
<p>Machiavellians are the most prevalent of the dark personalities, estimated to be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0000784">about 16% of the population</a>. They get their name from Italian Renaissance statesman <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Niccolo-Machiavelli">Nicolo Macchiavelli</a>, who believed the ends could justify immoral means. Less annoying than narcissists, less abrasive than functional psychopaths, Machiavellians are more subtle in the pursuit of their agendas. They forge ahead regardless of ethical considerations. Like lions, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S0092-6566(02)00505-6">Machiavellians seem benevolent</a>, watching their prey from afar – until they strike. They’re adept at playing the long game – it’s their stealth, patience and subtle manipulation that make them a particularly dangerous dark personality.</p>
<p>Compared with a psychopath’s unnecessary lies, you’re more likely to overhear the Machiavellian in the group <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2014.06.038">telling little white lies</a> that are strategically designed to further a future agenda. For example, you might hear them flattering the colleague you happen to know will be getting a big bonus in the near future – the Machiavellian may be strategically laying the groundwork for being invited to help them spend it. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508144/original/file-20230203-13410-mzpn5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="two warehouse workers with a pallet truck" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508144/original/file-20230203-13410-mzpn5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508144/original/file-20230203-13410-mzpn5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508144/original/file-20230203-13410-mzpn5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508144/original/file-20230203-13410-mzpn5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508144/original/file-20230203-13410-mzpn5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508144/original/file-20230203-13410-mzpn5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508144/original/file-20230203-13410-mzpn5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Someone with a dark personality may be happy to take sole credit for work to which you contributed.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/man-warehouse-workers-pulling-a-pallet-truck-with-royalty-free-image/993650090">Halfpoint Images/Moment</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In short, targets of dark personalities likely find narcissists to be conspicuously and irritatingly self-centered, but generally innocuous. Psychopaths are less obvious in their bad behavior, but their transgressions can be quite severe. Machiavellians are less in-your-face than narcissists, and their nefarious actions are likely to be less severe than those of psychopaths. In the long run, though, a Machiavellian can leave you reeling from an unexpected betrayal to benefit their personal agenda.</p>
<p>As you consider these dark traits and how they show up in interpersonal relationships, you might sense a spark of recognition. Here are five tips for avoiding dark personalities in your own life or minimizing the harm they cause.</p>
<h2>1. Don’t fall for first impressions</h2>
<p>Dark personalities are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550612461284">experts at making great first impressions</a>, drawing you in with humor and charisma. So, when you meet someone new, be wary of superficial appeal. Narcissists, with their tendency to talk themselves up, are the easiest to spot.</p>
<p>To identify the others, ask questions about past relationships and listen carefully for clues about who this person really is. Because dark personalities are almost always unmasked in the end, they’re less likely to have long-standing friendships – an absence they may explain away by faulting others.</p>
<p>Just be mindful not to overcorrect and ditch a potential new work friend based only on first impressions, either.</p>
<h2>2. Share your own (bad) experiences</h2>
<p>When you encounter a dark personality and the outcome is unpleasant, you might feel embarrassed for allowing yourself to be fooled or manipulated, or you might feel guilt or shame when you observe someone treating someone else badly. As a result, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/hrdq.21395">you might not want to talk about it</a>. Dark personalities exploit that reluctance because your silence helps keep hidden their “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/per.1893">core of darkness</a>” – the antagonistic traits that define them. </p>
<p>So to help unmask the dark personality and keep others from meeting the same fate, sharing your experience, with discretion, is critical.</p>
<h2>3. Manage up to clue bosses in</h2>
<p>Those with dark personalities are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025679">good at carefully managing the impressions</a> they make on people in positions of power. So, at work, you can practice managing up to help your boss see the dark personality more clearly.</p>
<p>Share your experiences in a nongossipy way, such as expressing concern about incidents of incivility that you witnessed or requesting advice or guidance in dealing with a very boastful colleague who may be alienating prospects or customers. It may help your boss see through the facade and help you deal with the issue.</p>
<h2>4. Plug into your networks</h2>
<p>On the flip side, remember to also listen to others. To avoid falling into a manipulator’s web, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/00222429221113254">tap into the network of those around you</a> who share a link to the person in question. See if you can gather references regarding their behavior over the long term. Ideally, you can benefit from others’ knowledge, without having to learn the hard way. </p>
<h2>5. Be aware of your own biases</h2>
<p>Don’t underestimate the strength of a dark personality’s machinations. When someone shares a personal story of betrayal, be wary of thinking, “that would never happen to me!” Dark personalities are <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1177/147470491201000303">experts in manipulating situations to serve their interests</a>, and you may never notice you’re ensnared until it’s too late. Considering yourself too smart or savvy to ever find yourself in the same predicament is misguided.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508145/original/file-20230203-3129-mix7a9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="two women talk at a conference table" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508145/original/file-20230203-3129-mix7a9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/508145/original/file-20230203-3129-mix7a9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508145/original/file-20230203-3129-mix7a9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508145/original/file-20230203-3129-mix7a9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508145/original/file-20230203-3129-mix7a9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508145/original/file-20230203-3129-mix7a9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/508145/original/file-20230203-3129-mix7a9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Keep discussions professional and focused on what’s making it hard for you to do your job.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/businesswomen-having-meeting-with-laptops-in-royalty-free-image/1128219622">Klaus Vedfelt/DigitalVision</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>As you apply these tips in your life, you want to be wary of becoming an <a href="https://www.mindtools.com/blog/armchair-psychology-at-work/">armchair pscyhologist</a>. Anyone can have a bad day – and everyone has. Instead of diagnosing friends, partners and colleagues based on what you think might be their underlying personality traits, focus on any bad behaviors you personally witness, and respond to the actions – not what you think underlies them. Best leave that to the professionals.</p>
<p>If you are in charge of organizations or teams, consider having clear guidance and pathways of communication for individuals to report any concerning behavior they witness. By working together and sharing collective experiences, the rest of us can shine light on the workplace misdeeds of those with antagonistic personalities.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/192316/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>I began this work while on faculty at Northeastern University, continued it while on faculty at the University of Connecticut, and completed the work at the University of New Hampshire. Research funding was provided as part of my employment contract at all entities, but not specifically for this work. Additionally, I currently serve as the Research Director for the UNH Sales Center at the Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics at the University of New Hampshire.</span></em></p>Narcissists, psychopaths and Machiavellians, oh my. These antagonistic personality types can make life hard for the people around them. Here are five tips for how to deal with them at work.Cinthia Beccacece Satornino, Research Director at the UNH Sales Center and Assistant Professor of Marketing, University of New HampshireLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1963082022-12-16T11:29:06Z2022-12-16T11:29:06ZBad hangovers? Why genetics, personality and coping mechanisms can make a difference<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501264/original/file-20221215-19-purmy2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4636%2C2608&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Even if you drink the same amount, it's likely your hangover will be different from your friends.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/hangover-after-party-friends-suffering-stomachache-1356266630">Prostock-studio/ Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>After a good night out you may not be surprised when you wake up feeling rough the next morning. But what may surprise you is if your friends aren’t feeling the same way. Some may feel worse, some better and some (if they’re lucky) may not feel any of the negative consequences at all.</p>
<p>This is the variability of a hangover. In research, hangovers are measured on an 11-point scale (zero being no effects and ten being extremely hungover). In my own research, participants have reported hangovers on this scale anywhere between one (very mild) to eight (severe) – while other research has estimated around 5% of people may be <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2017-22141-004">hangover resistant</a>.</p>
<p>So why the difference? There’s more to it than simply how much we drink. Researchers are now starting to explore the many biological and psychological mechanisms that could influence our experience during hangovers.</p>
<h2>Biological mechanisms</h2>
<p>Some research suggests that people with a variation of the gene <a href="https://www.jsad.com/doi/10.15288/jsa.2000.61.13">ALDH2</a> report experiencing more severe hangovers. </p>
<p>When we consume alcohol, it’s broken down by the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase into acetaldehyde – a chemical compound which is important for the <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15706734/">emergence of hangover symptoms</a>. However, the ALDH2 gene variant limits the breakdown of acetaldehyde, leading to a greater buildup of the chemical compound – thus greater hangover symptoms. </p>
<p><a href="https://academic.oup.com/alcalc/article/56/5/589/6210036">Age and sex</a> can also influence the way in which a hangover is experienced. A recent online survey of 761 Dutch alcohol consumers has found that hangover severity declines with age, even when accommodating for the amount of alcohol consumed. Interestingly, the authors also reported differences in hangover severity between men and women. These sex differences were greater in younger drinkers, with young (18 to 25-year-old) men tending to report more severe hangovers compared to young female drinkers. However, it’s not currently known why these differences exist.</p>
<h2>Psychological factors</h2>
<p>Certain psychological traits may be linked to how a hangover is experienced – including anxiety, depression, stress levels and even personality. </p>
<p>Previously, research suggested that neuroticism, a broad personality trait which tends to cause people to see the world in a negative way, can predict the severity of a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/089543569390017U">hangover</a>. However, recently this idea has been disputed with another study finding no link between <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/11/8/2240">hangover and personality</a>. </p>
<p>This is somewhat surprising, given that extroversion (a personality trait usually characterised by being sociable and outgoing) is <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19592356/">positively associated with binge drinking</a> behaviours in college students – though it doesn’t appear to be linked to worse hangovers. This is despite evidence that more frequent heavy drinking is linked to <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/8/10/1520">more severe hangover experiences</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A young man with a hangover sits in bed holding a glass of water. One hand holds his head in pain." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501261/original/file-20221215-19-xer2tt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C9%2C6371%2C4225&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501261/original/file-20221215-19-xer2tt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501261/original/file-20221215-19-xer2tt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501261/original/file-20221215-19-xer2tt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501261/original/file-20221215-19-xer2tt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501261/original/file-20221215-19-xer2tt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/501261/original/file-20221215-19-xer2tt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Certain conditions are linked with more severe hangovers.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/hangover-concept-sleepy-black-guy-touching-1810290859">Prostock-studio/ Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p><a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/11/8/2240">Anxiety, depression and stress</a> are all also linked with more severe hangovers. Each of these moods are associated with a “negative bias” -– a tendency to interpret the world more negatively. <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33179037/">Our findings</a> show hangovers also tend to make people interpret the world more negatively. As a result, hangovers may exacerbate this negative bias, leading some people to feel worse than others.</p>
<h2>Coping mechanisms</h2>
<p>It’s possible that the way we cope with adverse situations could underlie the variation in hangover experiences. </p>
<p>Pain catastrophising refers to the extent to which a person emphasises the negative experience of pain. Research shows that people with high scores of pain catastrophising <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7019682/">report more severe hangovers</a> – suggesting that they’re focusing on their negative symptoms and possibly amplifying them. Other studies have also shown that people who tend to cope with their problems by ignoring or denying them tend to experience <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/11/8/2240">worse hangovers</a>.</p>
<p>Emotion regulation is another key psychological mechanism that helps us to deal with difficult situations by effectively managing and responding to emotional experiences. Interestingly, although people who are hungover report feeling it’s more difficult to <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33179037/">regulate their emotions</a>, this may not actually be the case – with research showing participants are just as able to control their emotional response compared to those who weren’t hungover. This could mean that people choose easier (but less effective) regulatory strategies during a hangover – such as avoiding feelings of guilt or shame. But this is yet to be determined. </p>
<h2>What can we do?</h2>
<p>Although researchers may have identified a few <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/add.15786">natural compounds</a> which may alleviate overall hangover symptoms, further research is still needed to determine whether these should be recommended for treatment. In the meantime, the best strategy for <a href="https://theconversation.com/five-popular-hangover-cures-reviewed-by-experts-103484">alleviating your hangover</a> is going to be up to you to determine.</p>
<p>But one study suggests a strategy commonly used by students to cope with the misery of a hangover – by “suffering” together and <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/16066359.2018.1453063">bonding on their experiences</a> – may be helpful in helping relieve at least some of the negative emotional effects of a hangover. Taking care of your own personal wellbeing more generally and finding better strategies to reduce stress levels and adopt better coping mechanisms may also help you deal with the negative consequences of a hangover.</p>
<p>Though of course, if you really want to avoid a hangover, you could always choose non-alcoholic alternatives.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>An earlier version of this article mistakenly stated that acetaldehyde was a protein as opposed to a chemical compound. The article has now been updated to correct this.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/196308/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Craig Gunn does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Certain genes and personality traits may explain why some people can hardly function the day after a night of drinking.Craig Gunn, Lecturer in Psychological Science, University of BristolLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1919422022-10-17T03:53:52Z2022-10-17T03:53:52ZAre ‘core memories’ real? The science behind 5 common myths<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489922/original/file-20221017-11-4qvy1b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=17%2C4%2C2858%2C1909&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/qSikQUI_-KM">Jakob Owen / Unsplash</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>What are your core memories from childhood? Can you lock in a core memory by choice? What do your core memories say about you? </p>
<p>The notion of “core memories” has become well known in popular culture. First seen in the 2015 movie <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXGhfYVAOKE">Inside Out</a>, core memories are thought to be your five or so most important memories. The idea is that some specific events are so important, experiencing them instantly shapes your personality, behaviours and sense of self. </p>
<p>Thousands of TikTok users have made <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/search?q=core%20memory&t=1665318393294">“core memory”</a> posts about salient memories (often from childhood), with more than <a href="https://www.intheknow.com/post/core-memory-tiktok/">880 million views</a> worldwide. Typically these posts have a strong element of nostalgia and focus on small moments: watching Saturday morning cartoons, holding hands with a schoolyard crush, or splashing through the rain. </p>
<p>So, do core memories actually exist? While we do use memories to construct a <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10789197/">sense of self</a>, and these memories support our <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.3758/s13415-022-01013-z">psychological wellbeing</a>, memory science suggests the notion of a “core memory” is faulty in five key ways. </p>
<p><iframe id="tc-infographic-738" class="tc-infographic" height="400px" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/infographics/738/2541978ebcdb8b615c534bcb472dc4ef0de65072/site/index.html" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<h2>1: We don’t have just five core memories</h2>
<p>Autobiographical memories (memories about our selves and our lives) are kept in our <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-child-psychology-and-psychiatry-and-allied-disciplines/article/abs/development-of-memory/3056604FF0FD140AB05CCF4443AE3A3D">long-term memory</a>. This is an enormous memory store with <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphar.2017.00438/full">no known limits</a> on size or capacity. </p>
<p>For this reason, we are not limited to just five (or 50) important life memories. And different memories might be relevant to us in different contexts, meaning we might bring to mind a different set of self-defining memories on different occasions. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/were-capable-of-infinite-memory-but-where-in-the-brain-is-it-stored-and-what-parts-help-retrieve-it-63386">We're capable of infinite memory, but where in the brain is it stored, and what parts help retrieve it?</a>
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<h2>2: Core memories don’t drive our personality</h2>
<p>While our memory is critically important to us, individual memories do not drive our personality.</p>
<p>Psychologists and cognitive scientists often talk about autobiographical memory as having (at least) three <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23808866/">key functions</a>.
According to the <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2008-10052-004">self function</a>, we know who we are because of our past experiences. According to the <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/242118672_A_TALE_of_Three_Functions_The_SelfReported_Uses_of_Autobiographical_Memory">social function</a>, telling memory stories helps us to socialise and bond with others. Finally, according to the <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/741938208">directive function</a>, our memories help us learn lessons from the past and solve problems into the future.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-what-is-memory-9035">Explainer: what is memory?</a>
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<p>Some salient memories may be particularly important for our identity. For example, winning the state volleyball championship may be critical for how we view ourselves as an athlete. Underlying personality traits, however, are relatively stable. </p>
<h2>3: Our childhood memories are not always our strongest</h2>
<p>Contrary to popular media portrayals, our most salient autobiographical memories are not always from our childhoods. Indeed, we tend to have <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5473198/">relatively poor memories</a> from our early years. Although our earliest memories often date from <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4669902/">three or four</a> years of age, the number of events we remember remains low across the primary school years. </p>
<p>In contrast, most of our salient and important memories <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4850910/">tend to cluster</a> in our early adulthood. This phenomenon is known as a “reminiscence bump”. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/Cf10BTDDb8M","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p>
<p>One explanation for this finding is that our earliest childhood memories are often mundane. What interested us as a child may not be as interesting as an adult, and vice versa. Instead, our most formative experiences happen in late adolescence and early adulthood as our sense of self stabilises.</p>
<p>Of course, we do <a href="https://www.apa.org/news/podcasts/speaking-of-psychology/nostalgia">often develop nostalgia</a> for our earlier lives: a bittersweet longing for the past. The core memory trend <a href="https://www.pedestrian.tv/news/more-memory-unlocked-psychology-nostalgia/">likely picks up</a> on this nostalgia.</p>
<h2>4: We can’t predict what will become a core memory</h2>
<p>Across social media, “new core memory” has become shorthand for highlighting an exciting new experience as soon as it occurs. These include snowfights, hugs, holidays, and more.</p>
<p>Although we <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1571064510000072">do remember emotional events</a> more easily than neutral events, we don’t get to choose our memories. This means it isn’t possible to predict what events we will recall later and what we will forget – our memories can take us by surprise! </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1580538259406405633"}"></div></p>
<p>The events that become important to us over the long term might be ones that seemed entirely ordinary at the time, and different memories may come to have different meaning at <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18033623/">different stages of our lives</a>.</p>
<p>Even for highly salient events, we are likely to forget many of the details we thought important at the time.</p>
<h2>5: Core memories are no more accurate than others</h2>
<p>Core memories are sometimes portrayed as literal snapshots of the past, like pressing play on a camcorder and watching the event unfold. </p>
<p>Similar arguments have previously been made about so-called “<a href="https://dictionary.apa.org/flashbulb-memory">flashbulb memories</a>”. These are the highly vivid memories that form when learning about dramatic events for the first time (such as the September 11 attacks or the death of Princess Diana).</p>
<p>In reality, every memory we have is prone to change, forgetting, and errors in minor details – even when it refers to <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1467-9280.02453">an important event</a>.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/remember-when-we-why-sharing-memories-is-soul-food-35542">'Remember when we...?' Why sharing memories is soul food</a>
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<p>This capacity for error is because of the way memory works. When we encode a memory, we typically recall the broad gist of the event and some detail. </p>
<p>When we retrieve the event, we <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272735898000415">reconstruct it</a>. This means piecing back together the gist and the fragments of detail as best we can, and filling in the gaps for any detail we might have forgotten. </p>
<p>Every time we recall the event, we have the <a href="https://theconversation.com/are-memories-reliable-expert-explains-how-they-change-more-than-we-realise-106461">potential to change details</a>, introduce new emotion, and to reinterpret an event’s meaning. Consider the joyful memory one might have after becoming engaged to a beloved partner. If that relationship were to fail, the reconstructive memory process allows new negative emotions to be introduced into the memory itself.</p>
<h2>What core memories get right</h2>
<p>While “core memory” is a made-up term, the core memory trend is helpful in showing how valuable our memories are. </p>
<p>Memory allows us a window to our former lives: rich with emotion and tied to identity. By reminiscing about our experiences with others, we also share parts of ourselves.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/191942/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Penny Van Bergen has received funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Celia Harris received funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p>Do we really have ‘core memories’ that shape our personality? The science says things are a little more complicated.Penny Van Bergen, Professor in Educational Psychology, University of WollongongCelia Harris, Vice Chancellor's Senior Research Fellow, Western Sydney UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1913082022-09-28T18:00:45Z2022-09-28T18:00:45ZHas the pandemic changed our personalities? New research suggests we’re less open, agreeable and conscientious<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487057/original/file-20220928-15-2y4f7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C9%2C6614%2C3480&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-illustration/schizophrenia-psychiatric-disease-mental-disorder-psychiatry-1527608867">Lightspring/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>For many of us, some personality traits <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5144810/">stay the same</a> throughout our lives while others <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16248708/">change only gradually</a>. However, evidence shows that <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5042633/">significant events</a> in our personal lives which induce severe stress or trauma can be associated with more rapid changes in our personalities. </p>
<p>A <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0274542">new study</a>, published in PLOS ONE, suggests the COVID pandemic has indeed triggered much greater shifts in personality than we would expect to have seen naturally over this period. In particular, the researchers found that people were less extroverted, less open, less agreeable and less conscientious in 2021 and 2022 compared with before the pandemic.</p>
<p>This <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0274542">study</a> included more than 7,000 participants from the US, aged between 18 and 109, who were assessed before the pandemic (from 2014 onwards), early in the pandemic in 2020, and then later in the pandemic in 2021 or 2022. </p>
<p>At each time point, participants completed the “<a href="https://fetzer.org/sites/default/files/images/stories/pdf/selfmeasures/Personality-BigFiveInventory.pdf">Big Five Inventory</a>”. This assessment tool measures personality on a scale across five dimensions: extroversion versus introversion, agreeableness versus antagonism, conscientiousness versus lack of direction, neuroticism versus emotional stability, and openness versus closedness to experience.</p>
<p>There weren’t many changes between pre-pandemic and 2020 personality traits. However, the researchers found significant declines in extroversion, openness, agreeableness and conscientiousness in 2021/2022 compared with before the pandemic. These changes were akin to a decade of normal variation, suggesting the trauma of the COVID pandemic had accelerated the natural process of personality change.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/languishing-what-to-do-if-youre-feeling-restless-apathetic-or-empty-174994">Languishing: what to do if you're feeling restless, apathetic or empty</a>
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<p>Interestingly, younger adults’ personalities changed the most in the study. They showed marked declines in agreeableness and conscientiousness, and a significant increase in neuroticism in 2021/2022 compared with pre-pandemic. This may be due in part to social anxiety when emerging back into society, having missed out on two years of normality.</p>
<h2>Personality and wellbeing</h2>
<p>Many of us became more health-conscious during the pandemic, for example by <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.963806/full">eating better</a> and doing more exercise. A lot of us sought whatever <a href="https://www.journalofhappinessandhealth.com/index.php/johah/article/view/11/4">social connections</a> we could find virtually, and tried to refocus our attention on psychological, emotional and intellectual growth – for example, by practising mindfulness or picking up new hobbies.</p>
<p>Nonetheless, mental health and wellbeing <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8460161/">decreased significantly</a>. This makes sense given the drastic changes we went through. </p>
<p>Notably, personality significantly <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-71888-6_9">impacts our wellbeing</a>. For example, people who report high levels of conscientiousness, agreeableness or extroversion are more likely to experience <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0191886915005322">the highest level</a> of wellbeing.</p>
<p>So the personality changes detected in this study may go some way to explaining the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8460161/">decrease in wellbeing</a> we’ve seen during the pandemic.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A young woman looks out the window." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487079/original/file-20220928-17-vfpmgx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/487079/original/file-20220928-17-vfpmgx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487079/original/file-20220928-17-vfpmgx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487079/original/file-20220928-17-vfpmgx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487079/original/file-20220928-17-vfpmgx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487079/original/file-20220928-17-vfpmgx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/487079/original/file-20220928-17-vfpmgx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Personality changed the most for younger people.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/side-view-young-woman-looking-away-1196187574">fizkes/Shutterstock</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>If we look more closely, the pandemic appears to have negatively affected the following areas: </p>
<ul>
<li><p>our ability to express sympathy and kindness towards others (agreeableness);</p></li>
<li><p>our capacity to be open to new concepts and willing to engage in novel situations (openness);</p></li>
<li><p>our tendency to seek out and enjoy other people’s company (extraversion);</p></li>
<li><p>our desire to strive towards our goals, do tasks well or take responsibilities towards others seriously (conscientiousness). </p></li>
</ul>
<p>All of these traits influence our interaction with the environment around us, and as such, may have played a role in our wellbeing decline. For example, working from home may have left us feeling demotivated and as though our career was going nowhere (lower conscientiousness). This in turn may have affected our wellbeing by making us feel more irritable, depressed or anxious.</p>
<h2>What next?</h2>
<p>Over time, our personalities usually change in a way that helps us adapt to ageing and cope more effectively with life events. In other words, we learn from our life experiences and this subsequently impacts our personality. As <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-8721.2008.00543.x">we age</a>, we generally see increases in self-confidence, self-control and emotional stability. </p>
<p>However, participants in this study recorded changes in the opposite direction to the usual trajectory of personality change. This is understandable given that we faced an extended period of difficulties, including constraints on our freedoms, lost income and illness. All these experiences have evidently changed us – and our personalities.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/personality-can-predict-whos-a-rule-follower-and-who-flouts-covid-19-social-distancing-guidelines-142364">Personality can predict who's a rule-follower and who flouts COVID-19 social distancing guidelines</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>This study provides us with some very useful insights into the impacts of the pandemic on our psyche. These impacts may subsequently influence many aspects of our lives, such as wellbeing. </p>
<p>Knowledge allows us to make choices. So you might like to take the time to reflect on your experiences over the past few years, and how these personality changes may have affected you.</p>
<p>Any changes may well have protected you during the height of the pandemic. However, it’s worth asking yourself how useful these changes are now that the acute phase of the pandemic is behind us. Do they still serve you well, or could you try to rethink your perspective?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/191308/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jolanta Burke does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>COVID-related changes in our personalities could go some way to explaining the widespread decrease in wellbeing.Jolanta Burke, Senior Lecturer, Centre for Positive Psychology and Health, RCSI University of Medicine and Health SciencesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1885322022-08-24T22:45:49Z2022-08-24T22:45:49ZDoes a sibling’s gender influence our own personality? A major new study answers an age-old question<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480678/original/file-20220823-632-lq8kfh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=16%2C8%2C5590%2C3715&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Our siblings play a central role in our childhoods, so it stands to reason they influence our personality in the long term. In particular, researchers have long been interested in how growing up with a sister compared to a brother might influence who we become as adults. </p>
<p>How do children interact with their sister or brother? How do parents behave differently towards their children of different genders, and how does that interaction influence the children? </p>
<p>Past theories have made quite different predictions: siblings of the opposite gender may plausibly result in either <a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/2786054">gender-stereotypical personalities</a> (a girl may take on a more feminine role to differentiate herself from her brother) or <a href="https://doi.org/10.9783/9781512800807">less gender stereotypical personalities</a> (a girl may take on more masculine traits because she imitates her brother).</p>
<p>In fact, psychological research has been exploring these differences for over half a century. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2015.02.037">In some studies</a>, siblings of the opposite sex seemed to be more gender-conforming. Girls with brothers later become more “typically female” and boys with sisters more “typically male”.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/h0030055">Other studies find the exact opposite</a>, however. Opposite gender siblings developed in typically gender-conforming ways. To resolve these contradictions, we wanted to test the effect of sibling gender on personality in a rigorous and comprehensive way.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480681/original/file-20220823-16-4ll79p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480681/original/file-20220823-16-4ll79p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480681/original/file-20220823-16-4ll79p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480681/original/file-20220823-16-4ll79p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480681/original/file-20220823-16-4ll79p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480681/original/file-20220823-16-4ll79p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480681/original/file-20220823-16-4ll79p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Like brother, like sister? Researchers have differed on the likely influence of an opposite gender sibling on personality.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Getty Images</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Using big data</h2>
<p>In our <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/09567976221094630">new study</a> we focused on the relationships between children and their next older or younger sibling. We compiled a unique data set by combining 12 large representative surveys covering nine countries across four continents (US, UK, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Australia, Mexico, China and Indonesia).</p>
<p>This resulted in a data set of more than 85,000 people – many times the sample sizes used in previous studies.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/when-do-children-develop-their-gender-identity-56480">When do children develop their gender identity?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>We also investigated many more personality traits than previous studies have. This included the traits that have been most widely studied in other research, and which have been shown to be important predictors of people’s decisions and choices.</p>
<p>The “big five” of these traits are: openness to experiences, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness and neuroticism. The other traits examined were: risk tolerance, trust, patience and “locus of control” (the degree to which people believe they have control over their lives).</p>
<p>We also created an index describing to what extent people have a typically female personality. This allowed us to test comprehensively whether growing up with an opposite gender sibling leads to a more or less gender-stereotypical personality.</p>
<h2>Sibling gender and life experience</h2>
<p>This study is not only innovative in its use of a large data set, but it also applies a consistent method to identify any causal effects of a sibling’s gender on personality traits. </p>
<p>To estimate credible causal effects, we make use of an interesting fact of nature: once parents decide to have another child it is essentially random whether they have a girl or boy. In this “natural experiment” some people are therefore “randomly assigned” a younger sister or brother. </p>
<p>This allows us to estimate the causal effect of sibling gender on personality by comparing the average personality of people who grew up with a sister as their next youngest sibling with those who grew up with a next younger brother. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/are-your-squabbling-kids-driving-you-mad-the-good-bad-news-is-sibling-rivalry-is-developmentally-normal-186300">Are your squabbling kids driving you mad? The good/bad news is, sibling rivalry is 'developmentally normal'</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Brothers and sisters</h2>
<p>Our results suggest sibling gender has no effect on personality. For all nine personality traits and the summary index, we find people who have a next younger sister display, on average, the same personality traits as people who have a next younger brother. </p>
<p>We also see no difference in personality between people who have a next older sister and people who have a next older brother. Because we have data on more than 85,000 people, these results are estimated with great precision.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/when-parents-play-favourites-what-happens-to-the-kids-110019">When parents play favourites, what happens to the kids?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The results help refute the idea that brothers or sisters cause each other to develop “feminine” or “masculine” personality traits over the long term.</p>
<p>However, the results don’t mean sibling gender has no long-term effect at all. Other studies that applied a similar methodological approach have shown that women with brothers in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.labeco.2019.02.009">US</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s00148-021-00830-9">Denmark</a> earn less. And a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/qje/qjt011">study of Asian populations</a> has found women with younger sisters marry earlier and women with older sisters marry later. </p>
<p>So, there seem to be interesting sibling dynamics related to gender – but personality is probably not part of the explanation for those effects.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/188532/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>During this research project, Thomas Dudek received funding from QuakeCoRE, a New Zealand Tertiary Education Commission-funded Centre. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Anne Ardila Brenøe and Jan Feld do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Researchers have long differed on whether growing up with a sister or brother influences who we become as adults. New research using big data aims to finally settle the argument.Jan Feld, Senior Lecturer in Economics, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of WellingtonAnne Ardila Brenøe, Assistant Professor of Economics, University of ZurichThomas Dudek, Postdoctoral Researcher, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of WellingtonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1887132022-08-16T00:04:43Z2022-08-16T00:04:43ZThe finale of Better Call Saul: A psychologist explains how Jimmy McGill became Saul Goodman<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/479051/original/file-20220814-34367-qta4ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=69%2C43%2C5571%2C2824&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Bob Odenkirk's portrayal of Saul Goodman over two different TV series has been a fascinating journey.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AMC</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>This story contains spoilers about ‘Better Call Saul,’ although it doesn’t reveal details of the series finale.</em></p>
<p><em><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3032476/">Better Call Saul</a></em> has wrapped up after six seasons, bringing an end to one of the most interesting characters in the history of television. </p>
<p>Bob Odenkirk’s portrayal of the “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNMQqh1ovlM"><em>criminal</em> lawyer</a>” Saul Goodman began in 2009 during <em><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0903747/">Breaking Bad</a>,</em> but <em>Better Call Saul</em> tells the complex story of the character both before and after the events of <em>Breaking Bad</em>.</p>
<p>As a clinical neuropsychologist and associate professor of psychology — and a fan of <em>Better Call Saul</em> — it’s been fascinating to watch the progression of the character who transforms into three different identities. He goes from young lawyer Jimmy McGill to the corrupt Saul Goodman and then finally to Gene Takovic, the persona he adopts to avoid the law after the events of <em>Breaking Bad</em>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A composite of three different characters played by Bob Odenkirk" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/479166/original/file-20220815-19-8zmpbr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/479166/original/file-20220815-19-8zmpbr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=238&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479166/original/file-20220815-19-8zmpbr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=238&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479166/original/file-20220815-19-8zmpbr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=238&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479166/original/file-20220815-19-8zmpbr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=299&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479166/original/file-20220815-19-8zmpbr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=299&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479166/original/file-20220815-19-8zmpbr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=299&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Bob Odenkirk as Jimmy McGill, Saul Goodman and Gene Takovic.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AMC</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Jimmy McGill’s character defies categories, capturing the complexity of personal development shaped by circumstances and personal choices. </p>
<h2>Antisocial personality disorder</h2>
<p>Despite displaying several features of <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/antisocial-personality-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20353928">antisocial personality disorder</a> (stealing from his family, a history of conning people and defying authority), he can be compassionate and is guided by an idiosyncratic code of ethics. Sometimes he even exceeds normative morality to the point of altruism (like when he <a href="https://breakingbad.fandom.com/wiki/Mijo">saves the twins’ lives from Tuco’s revenge</a> in Season 1, how he takes exceptionally good care of his brother Chuck during his illness and how he risks his career <a href="https://breakingbad.fandom.com/wiki/Coushatta">to save his assistant Huell from jail</a>).</p>
<p>The arc of his character is carefully constructed to resist moralizing. Just as we start to make up our minds about Jimmy, a new side of him is revealed that’s incompatible with that judgment. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Q3t7_eeVjmg?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>The early part of the series tells the story of Jimmy becoming a lawyer after years of pulling small-time cons as “Slippin’ Jimmy.”</p>
<p>While supervisors at his first law firm acknowledge Jimmy’s valuable skill sets (a natural ability to connect with people, highly persuasive, creative problem-solver who holds up under pressure, extremely hard worker), they are constantly on the edge, bracing themselves for the next fallout. </p>
<p>At work, he is a strange mix of assets and liabilities: he generates <a href="https://breakingbad.fandom.com/wiki/Sandpiper_Crossing_class-action_lawsuit">a multi-million dollar class-action lawsuit</a> for his firm, but his obnoxious, authority-busting behaviour quickly builds up to a critical mass that bosses cannot tolerate.</p>
<h2>A magnetic personality</h2>
<p>People close to him are drawn to his magnetic personality and are able to see “the good in him.” He makes friends easily, and typically keeps them for life. With her last breath, his mother <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLQFrSEpmYY">calls out for Jimmy</a> — as Chuck is dutifully sitting by her deathbed. <a href="https://breakingbad.fandom.com/wiki/Davis_%26_Main">Davis and Main</a> welcome him to their law firm with open arms. Even the battle-hardened, fish-eyed <a href="https://breakingbad.fandom.com/wiki/Mike_Ehrmantraut">private investigator Mike Ehrmantraut</a> (whose life trajectory provides a subtle road map to Jimmy’s) has a growing respect for him. </p>
<p>However, they inevitably fall victims of his impulsive need for subversive behaviour. Even so, his vibe is intoxicating. <a href="https://breakingbad.fandom.com/wiki/Kim_Wexler">Kim Wexler</a>, who goes from fellow lawyer to co-conspirator to his wife, gets addicted to the thrill of recreational or utilitarian rule-breaking binges he inspires.</p>
<p>Jimmy has a pathological need to challenge the power structure. His thrill-seeking streak gets him in trouble time and again, hurting his loved ones either directly (like when he needs to be <a href="https://breakingbad.fandom.com/wiki/Sunk_Costs">bailed out of jail</a>) or indirectly (his limited income due to <a href="https://breakingbad.fandom.com/wiki/Chicanery">a suspended law licence</a>, lost trust from deep, dark secrets). Despite his reflex to externalize, deep down he knows Kim is right (<a href="https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/better-call-saul-season-4-episode-9-review-wiedersehen/">“You are <em>always</em> down, Jimmy”</a>), eliciting cycles of self-reflection, depression and eventual recovery.</p>
<p>Jimmy’s personal responsibility for his misfortunes is another fascinating thread. Early on, the balance (an overused symbol of justice in the series) seems to tip toward “his own worst enemy.” </p>
<h2>Learned helplessness</h2>
<p>As we learn more about Jimmy’s understated but ongoing victimization (gut-wrenching, repeated emotional betrayal by his brother, the arbitrary <a href="https://breakingbad.fandom.com/wiki/Wiedersehen">denial of his application</a> by the law licensing board during the one time he did <em>not</em> try to manipulate the system, his accidental entanglement with the cartel, barely getting paid for his high-quality defender work), an alternative explanation is emerging: a condition known as <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/basics/learned-helplessness">learned helplessness</a>. </p>
<p>As Jimmy tries hard (though arguably not hard enough) to leave his checkered past behind, he is constantly confronted by the rejection of the system that he openly despises but secretly wants to join.</p>
<p>As his emotional scar tissue accumulates, it turns into callouses. He spends a lot of time in a <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dissociative-disorders/symptoms-causes/syc-20355215">dissociative reflection</a>, and finally accepts his fate as an eternal misfit. Jimmy slowly becomes (or regresses into?) a street-wise, no-nonsense, tough-minded hustler who is well-connected to the underworld. </p>
<p>As he finds himself on the other side of the law, he develops a new persona: the <em>criminal</em> lawyer Saul Goodman. Identity change is often catalyzed by trauma — in his case, coming to terms with his losses. He is the last McGill left and his unique skill sets cannot be monetized in the legitimate world.</p>
<p>He disappointed his brother (the only man whose approval he craved), his girlfriend, the top lawyers in the state and ultimately, himself. <a href="https://breakingbad.fandom.com/wiki/Lantern">Ushering Chuck toward his suicide</a> may have settled their rivalry in his favour, but it’s also the first of many red lines to cross on his way to Goodmanhood. </p>
<h2>Becoming Saul</h2>
<p>Becoming Saul is more than taking on a new professional identity: it’s a desperate attempt to reinvent himself and become successful <em>his way</em> through a grotesque fusion of Slippin’ Jimmy (the freedom to be himself) and Charles McGill (the respect he craves).</p>
<p>It may seem like a dramatic transformation, but at some level he simply returns to his roots – this time, as a major-league scam artist embedded within the legal system (that <em>criminal</em> lawyer that Jesse in <em>Breaking Bad</em> references).</p>
<p>The name he chooses (<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2018/oct/11/sall-good-man-how-better-call-saul-became-superior-to-breaking-bad">“S'all good, man”</a>) encapsulates the tension that holds his character together: a desire to be liked against an opportunistic appropriation of a culture by <a href="https://www.chicagojewishnews.com/is-saul-goodman-in-breaking-bad-jewish/">portraying himself as a Jewish lawyer</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="The characters Kim Wexler and Jimmy McGill sit on a bed." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/479200/original/file-20220815-19-a4cqxy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/479200/original/file-20220815-19-a4cqxy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=315&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479200/original/file-20220815-19-a4cqxy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=315&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479200/original/file-20220815-19-a4cqxy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=315&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479200/original/file-20220815-19-a4cqxy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479200/original/file-20220815-19-a4cqxy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/479200/original/file-20220815-19-a4cqxy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The relationship between Kim (Rhea Seehorn) and Jimmy becomes a defining moment in the series.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AMC</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Personal purgatory</h2>
<p>In the words of Tony Soprano, a criminal career ends in one of two ways: jail or death. While Jimmy repeatedly escapes both, the black-and-white footage of his post-Saul life (as Gene Takovic) is an intrusive reminder that his troubles are not over. He’s spending his last years in his own personal purgatory, perpetually re-examining where he went wrong.</p>
<p>Jimmy would make a tough patient if he ever stumbled into a psychologist’s office.</p>
<p>Cognitive therapy (“mind over mood”) has little to offer him in the way of life-changing revelations: he already knows himself pretty well and understands how his self-defeating thought pattern contributes to his problems. </p>
<p>Jimmy could talk circles around a psycho-dynamically oriented clinician, and the authoritarian style of Freudian therapy would likely trigger oppositional behaviour, recapitulating rather than resolving his core conflicts. </p>
<p>He may respond best to <a href="https://www.contemporarypsychotherapy.org/volume-12-issue-1-2020/act-and-existential-therapy/">Existential or Acceptance and Commitment Therapy</a>. Although his diagnosis is famously treatment-resistant, the “good in this man” provides a window for a genuine (patient-initiated) attempt at self-redemption in the hands of a highly skilled clinician. </p>
<p>Reminiscent of ancient Greek tragedies in which the heroes rebel against their fate and inevitably lose, Jimmy is a morally ambiguous figure who fights another invisible force — his own impulses that keep him from becoming the man he wants to be. </p>
<p>This is what makes him relatable. We’ve all experienced that struggle.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/188713/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Laszlo Erdodi does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The end of the TV show ‘Better Call Saul’ wraps up the story of Saul Goodman. A clinical neuropsychologist analyzes the character’s progression from a small-time con man to a ‘criminal’ lawyer.Laszlo Erdodi, Associate Professor, Psychology, University of WindsorLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1846082022-07-12T12:33:37Z2022-07-12T12:33:37ZWhat makes people willing to risk their lives to save others?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/473426/original/file-20220711-17-1wrjox.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C5%2C3542%2C3420&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Heroic actions are often intuitive – even impulsive – rather than a product of thoughtful deliberation.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/illustration/retro-hand-sinking-in-a-vortex-or-whirlpool-royalty-free-illustration/468613889?adppopup=true">MHU/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>After an 18-year-old shooter murdered 19 elementary school students and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas, distraught parents directed their rage at <a href="https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/cowards-teacher-survived-uvalde-shooting-slams-police-response-85219697">the multiple police officers</a> who failed to enter the classroom where children were being shot. A teacher who survived his wounds derided the officers as “cowards.” </p>
<p>It’s possible that <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/03/us/uvalde-police-response.html">a broken chain of command</a> was more consequential than a lack of courage. But the actions – or inaction – of these officers stand in stark contrast to the heroism displayed by others under similar circumstances.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.france24.com/en/20190201-americans-who-thwarted-thalys-train-terror-attack-become-french-citizens">For example</a>, in August 2015, three young American men were on a crowded train heading from Paris to Amsterdam when they encountered a heavily armed terrorist. With little regard for their personal safety, they rushed the terrorist and subdued him. No one disputes that these men deserve to be called heroes.</p>
<p>Only some people seem capable of this split-second form of heroism. What separates them from everyone else?</p>
<p>Psychology researchers <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=MxorsyYAAAAJ&hl=en">like myself</a> have explored this question through the lens of evolutionary and personality psychology. Study after study has shown that men tend to be more willing to put themselves at physical risk to help others. </p>
<p>Why some men rise to the occasion – and others don’t – has been a bit trickier to pin down.</p>
<h2>A ‘guy thing’?</h2>
<p>The Carnegie Medal is an award given to individuals in the United States or Canada who have valiantly risked their lives in attempts to save others. In 2022, <a href="https://www.carnegiehero.org/heroes/latest-award-announcements/">15 of the 16 Carnegie Medal winners were men</a>. </p>
<p>In my view, this is no coincidence.</p>
<p>Of course, heroism and courage can appear in many forms, and men and women alike risk their reputations, health and social standing to do what they think is right. There is no shortage of courageous women. Meta whistleblower Frances Haugen and the testimony by 26-year-old Cassidy Hutchinson before the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6 Attack on the United States Capitol are just two <a href="https://theconversation.com/cassidy-hutchinson-and-greek-tragedy-show-that-courage-is-rare-and-cowardice-more-common-186423">recent profiles in female courage</a>.</p>
<p>However, when it comes to physically risky bravery – the kind that’s called for when there’s a terrorist on a train or a shooter in a school – people <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/147470491201000107">assume men will take the lead</a>. There are sound evolutionary reasons for this stereotype, and one of the most common fears in men <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177%2F1474704915598490">is that they’ll be outed as a coward</a>. A man who fails to display physical courage <a href="https://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007/978-3-319-19650-3_1558#:%7E:text=Definition,a%20life%2Dthreatening%20emergency%20situation.">will suffer damage to his reputation in a way that a woman will not</a>.</p>
<p>Throughout human history, attaining a position of high status or dominance among one’s peers has been the ticket that needs to get punched for men to attract mates and father children. Establishing a reputation as a hero isn’t a bad way to quickly elevate your status and desirability.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/473421/original/file-20220711-26-zjebmj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Gold medal with side profile of bearded man." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/473421/original/file-20220711-26-zjebmj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/473421/original/file-20220711-26-zjebmj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=683&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/473421/original/file-20220711-26-zjebmj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=683&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/473421/original/file-20220711-26-zjebmj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=683&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/473421/original/file-20220711-26-zjebmj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=858&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/473421/original/file-20220711-26-zjebmj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=858&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/473421/original/file-20220711-26-zjebmj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=858&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">In 2022, 15 of the 16 Carnegie Medal recipients were men.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/silver-struck-medal-with-obverse-showing-clothed-bust-of-news-photo/460281397?adppopup=true">J.E. Caldwell & Co./The New York Historical Society/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>I am not suggesting that heroes consciously calculate all of the great stuff that will come their way if they risk their lives; they aren’t thinking, “Nothing impresses the ladies like a Legion of Honor Medal!” In fact, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0109687">interviews with men who have won the Carnegie Medal</a> reveal that their heroic actions were intuitive – even impulsive – rather than a product of thoughtful deliberation.</p>
<p>Conspicuously displaying courage and strength by taking and surviving great risks seems to signal to others that a man has special qualities, so these impulses have been selected for through evolution because heroic action has reliably provided mating advantages for men.</p>
<h2>Bravery as a mating strategy</h2>
<p>The notion that bravery is intimately linked with mating motives has been around for quite some time. The Sioux warrior Rain in the Face <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/301903/the-last-stand-by-nathaniel-philbrick/">described the effect</a> that the presence of women in a war party had on male warriors: “When there is a woman in the charge, it causes the warriors to vie with one another in displaying their valor.”</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2004.08.004">Psychological research has confirmed</a> that altruistic male behavior is most admired when it takes the form of risky heroism which displays courage and strength. Another study found that men are more likely to behave generously <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/147470490800600302">in the presence of an attractive member of the opposite sex</a>; the same doesn’t hold true for women.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/147470491201000107">I’ve conducted a series of laboratory studies</a> demonstrating that men are most likely to endure pain so that others can benefit when females are present and another male is also present as a competitor.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2015.02.005">A team of European psychologists</a> explored the proposition that war provides an arena for men, but not for women, to burnish their heroic credentials and impress both their male rivals and females who might be potential mates.</p>
<p>In their first study, they found that 464 American men who had won the Medal of Honor during World War II eventually had more children than other U.S. servicemen. This is consistent with the hypothesis that heroism gets rewarded with greater reproductive success.</p>
<p>In their second study, women rated the sexual attractiveness of men who behaved heroically in war higher than that of other soldiers. Tellingly, women did not find men who had behaved heroically in sports or business to be more attractive. A third study revealed that when female soldiers behaved heroically in war, it didn’t increase their attractiveness to men.</p>
<h2>The hero and the … psychopath?</h2>
<p>Of course, not everyone will rise to the occasion upon encountering someone in dire need. </p>
<p>Is there such a thing as a heroic personality type? </p>
<p>People tend to have an idea of what heroes are like. In one study, <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/why-we-need-heroes/201405/how-heroic-is-your-personality">when rating the personalities of movie heroes</a>, participants expected them to be more conscientious, open to experience, extroverted, agreeable and emotionally secure than the average person. </p>
<p>Studies of real-life heroes tell a different story. </p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/per0000261">Some studies</a> perversely indicate that people who exhibit heroic behavior and first responders such as firefighters <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/per0000261">score high on personality traits usually associated with psychopaths</a>: risk taking, sensation seeking, coolness under stress, and a tendency to take over in social situations. </p>
<p>However, the study of the relationship between personality and heroism is in its infancy. Psychologists are still at a loss to predict in advance who will heroically step up when needed. Often, the hero is an otherwise ordinary person who finds himself in extraordinary circumstances, while some individuals who have trained to behave heroically might dither during a crisis, like the armed school resource officer who stayed outside of the high school in Parkland, Florida, while a gunman was on a rampage inside.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, there will be future calamities that cry out for acts of true heroism. Hopefully the right mix of circumstances and personalities enable courage, rather than cowardice, to carry the day.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/184608/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Frank T. McAndrew does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Study after study has shown that men tend to be more willing to put themselves in harm’s way to help others. Why some men rise to the occasion – and others don’t – has been a bit trickier to pin down.Frank T. McAndrew, Cornelia H. Dudley Professor of Psychology, Knox CollegeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1717802021-11-16T16:19:53Z2021-11-16T16:19:53ZBirds’ feeding habits are affected by their personality and self-control – new research<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432183/original/file-20211116-15-13ytrei.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C2%2C1597%2C1274&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">James O’Neill / UCC</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>For a long while, it was assumed that only humans have personalities or can exercise self-control. Now, biologists are beginning to discover that birds and other wild animals share these traits with humans. </p>
<p>We explored how self-control and personality influenced <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2656.13600?af=R">feeding behaviour in the great tit</a>, a common species of garden bird in Eurasia, and our results revealed that both factors play a large role in how they make their decisions.</p>
<p>Self-control is the ability to control one’s impulses. Even as adults, many of us struggle with self-control on a daily basis. Against our better judgment, we might choose to eat that extra slice of cake rather than an apple, or switch on the TV instead of going for that walk. We reprimand ourselves and each other lightheartedly when we fail, and in many cases there are no serious ramifications for a few less-than-ideal choices.</p>
<p>But the evidence suggests that success in many areas of life <a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/108/7/2693.full">depends on self-control</a>.</p>
<p>Personality also guides many of our decisions. Our “extraversion” influences how we socialise, and our “openness” affects our tendency to take risks. Unsurprisingly, personality too can influence <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/pdf/10.1146/annurev.psych.57.102904.190127">life outcomes</a>, such as happiness and health.</p>
<h2>Self-control in the great tit</h2>
<p>Life in the wild is harsh and few animals live as long as they might, often because of their inflexibility when making decisions.</p>
<p>We wanted to explore whether they just keep on doing the same old thing, led by their natural impulses - or can they change their behaviour when needed.</p>
<p>First, we trained wild great tits, temporarily taken into captivity, to become proficient at finding hidden food that could only be accessed from the side of an opaque plastic tube. When the tube was switched with one that was transparent but otherwise identical, many birds pecked impulsively at the front of the tube, through which the food could be seen. Others resisted this impulse and quickly realised that food could only and easily be taken from the side. </p>
<p>This “<a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10071-017-1152-0">detour-reaching task</a>” is often used as a way of measuring inhibitory control, one of the key cognitive processes in the brain that underpins self-control. </p>
<p>Those same great tits with greater inhibitory control were also those who were more flexible in an experiment that mimicked one of the ways that great tits find food in nature. </p>
<p>In this experiment, birds were trained to find mealworms hidden under sand until this behaviour became very natural to them. When a better – bigger and more visible – food option was suddenly also made available on the surface of the sand, the birds who were identified as having good inhibitory control earlier were also the ones who were able to resist their impulse, or break their habit, of simply looking for hidden food under the sand. Instead, they switched to the new better food option, even though it was in a transparent glass vial, so not so easily accessible.</p>
<p>Foraging flexibility is important for survival, but this is the first time it has been linked to self-control in animals.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Great tit sand foraging for food in a lab experiment" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432187/original/file-20211116-17-ecnh0g.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432187/original/file-20211116-17-ecnh0g.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=296&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432187/original/file-20211116-17-ecnh0g.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=296&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432187/original/file-20211116-17-ecnh0g.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=296&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432187/original/file-20211116-17-ecnh0g.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432187/original/file-20211116-17-ecnh0g.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432187/original/file-20211116-17-ecnh0g.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The sand foraging experiment with great tits.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jenny Coomes / UCC</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Personality also influenced flexibility</h2>
<p>However, we also wanted to explore whether personality played a role in their foraging flexibility.</p>
<p>To measure personality in the great tit, we used a standard test of exploration behaviour – the tendency to explore new environments. </p>
<p>This bears a strong <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1467-8721.00017?casa_token=giClFFsLyWQAAAAA:2tQ_bU0PAHY10j-rNQaUoMLkktmGvzr3QVczyMbLd88GARnZkMdMSLEyrGWTzFkj7kbCs0_iiso">resemblance</a> to the “openness to new experiences” personality scale in humans. </p>
<p>Exploration behaviour is measured easily by assessing how much birds move around when put in a new environment, in our case a room with five artificial trees that they had never seen before. </p>
<p>Some birds were faster explorers than others. Previous studies have shown that this simple personality trait is inherited from parents and predicts all sorts of life outcomes in great tits, including sexual promiscuity (which can increase the <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2011.1820">paternity</a> a male acquires at other nests but can also lead to a loss of paternity at their own nest) and length of life. </p>
<p>It also predicts the tendency to take risks. Fast explorers are risk takers.</p>
<p>So when the sand foraging experiment was repeated under predation risk, achieved by placing a stuffed hawk briefly in the same room at a safe distance from the birds, the fast explorers were far more willing to switch to the new food on the surface. </p>
<p>It is well known that animals do not like novelty when there is a threat from a predator, and we suspect this is why the slow explorers, those that avoid taking risks, stayed with choosing the hidden but familiar food, while the fast explorers were happy to increase their risk of being eaten, so they could exploit a new, and potentially better, food source.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432182/original/file-20211116-15-on76qt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432182/original/file-20211116-15-on76qt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=420&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432182/original/file-20211116-15-on76qt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=420&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432182/original/file-20211116-15-on76qt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=420&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432182/original/file-20211116-15-on76qt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=528&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432182/original/file-20211116-15-on76qt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=528&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/432182/original/file-20211116-15-on76qt.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=528&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Greater control and exploration led to increased flexibility in food foraging behaviour.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jennifer Coomes / UCC</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The complexity of animal behaviour</h2>
<p>Our findings suggest that these two quite different behavioural traits – exploration behaviour and risk-taking (personality) and self-control – together explain how flexible birds are when choosing food. This illustrates how complex animal behaviour can be. </p>
<p>Since survival and reproduction depend enormously on food, our results suggest that self-control and personality may well be influential determinants of Darwinian fitness, that is, the ability to pass on genes to the next generation. </p>
<p>However, the implications for fitness are not easy to predict. In the same way that impulsive behaviour can also be <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/teen-angst/201510/the-blessings-and-curses-impulsiveness">good</a> for people in specific circumstances – it may benefit innovation and entrepreneurship – the costs and benefits of having good or poor self-control, or indeed of being a fast or slow explorer is also likely to vary in the wild. </p>
<p>Humanity would do well to remember that we are controlled by the same behavioural traits that determine whether wild animals prosper or become extinct, and ensure that we apply our ability for flexible thinking to the most important challenges facing our planet.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/171780/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jenny Coomes received funding from the European Research Council for her PhD. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>John Quinn does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>We discovered that the ability to be flexible and change behaviour in certain circumstances is just as important for birds as people.John Quinn, Professor in Zoology, University College CorkJenny Coomes, PhD Candidate, Biological Sciences, University College CorkLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1702512021-10-27T13:19:52Z2021-10-27T13:19:52ZFrom Tarantino to Squid Game: why do so many people enjoy violence?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/428205/original/file-20211025-19-1i8tbwi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=22%2C0%2C3811%2C2155&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Is it a form of masochism?</span> </figcaption></figure><p>Last month, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2021/oct/13/squid-game-is-netflixs-biggest-debut-hit-reaching-111m-viewers-worldwide">more than 100 million people</a> watched the gory Netflix show, Squid Game. Whether or not screen violence is bad for us has been extensively studied. The <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2015-29260-002">consensus is</a> that it can have negative effects. But the question of <em>why</em> we are drawn to watch violence has received much less attention. </p>
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<p>Death, blood and violence have always pulled a crowd. Ancient Romans flocked to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1234-981X(199710)5:4%3C401::AID-EURO205%3E3.0.CO;2-C">carnage in the Colosseum</a>. In later centuries, <a href="https://oxford.universitypressscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199592692.001.0001/acprof-9780199592692">public executions were big box-office</a>. In the modern era, the film director Quentin Tarantino believes that: “<a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2013/01/quentin-tarantino-violence-quotes/319586/">In movies, violence is cool. I like it</a>”. Many of us seem to agree with him. A study of high-grossing movies found <a href="https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/133/1/71">90% had a segment</a> where the main character was involved in violence. Similarly, most Americans <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2018-58515-001">enjoy horror films</a> and watch them several times a year. </p>
<h2>Who is watching this stuff?</h2>
<p>Some people are more likely to enjoy violent media than others. Being male, aggressive and having less empathy all <a href="https://doi.org/10.1207/S1532785XMEP0702_5">make you more likely</a> to enjoy watching screen violence. There are also certain personality traits associated liking violent media. Extroverted people, who seek excitement, and people who are more open to aesthetic experiences, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1207/S1532785XMEP0704_5">like watching violent movies more</a>. </p>
<p>Conversely, people high in agreeableness - characterised by humility and sympathy for others - tend to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1207/S1532785XMEP0704_5">like violent media less</a>.</p>
<h2>…but why?</h2>
<p>One theory is that watching violence is cathartic, draining out our excess aggression. However, this idea is <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4698/3/4/491">not well supported by evidence</a>. When angry people watch violent content, they <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Media-Entertainment-The-Psychology-of-Its-Appeal/Zillmann-Vorderer/p/book/9780805833256">tend to get angrier</a>.</p>
<p>More recent research, derived from studies of horror films, suggests there may be three categories of people who enjoy watching violence, each with their own reasons. </p>
<p>One group has been dubbed “<a href="https://psyarxiv.com/sdxe6/">adrenaline junkies</a>”. These sensation seekers want new and intense experiences, and are more likely <a href="https://doi.org/10.1207/S1532785XMEP0702_5">to get a rush</a> from watching violence. Part of this group may be people who like seeing others suffer. Sadists feel other people’s pain <a href="https://theconversation.com/from-psychopaths-to-everyday-sadists-why-do-humans-harm-the-harmless-144017">more than normal</a>, and enjoy it.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/from-psychopaths-to-everyday-sadists-why-do-humans-harm-the-harmless-144017">From psychopaths to 'everyday sadists': why do humans harm the harmless?</a>
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<p>Another group enjoys watching violence because they feel they learn something from it. In horror studies, such people are called “<a href="https://psyarxiv.com/sdxe6/">white knucklers</a>”. Like adrenaline junkies, they feel intense emotions from watching horror. But they dislike these emotions. They tolerate it because they feel it helps them learn something about how to survive. </p>
<p>This is a bit like <a href="https://digitalcommons.wcupa.edu/musichtc_facpub/26">benign masochism</a>, the enjoyment of aversive, painful experiences in a safe context. If we can tolerate some pains, we may gain something. Just as “painful” <a href="https://tidsskrift.dk/lev/article/view/104693">cringe comedies may teach us social skills</a>, watching violence may teach us survival skills.</p>
<p>A final group seems to get both sets of benefits. They enjoy the sensations generated by watching violence and feel they learn something. In the horror genre, such people have been called “<a href="https://psyarxiv.com/sdxe6/">dark copers</a>”.</p>
<p>The idea that people enjoy watching safe, on-screen violence because it can teach us something is called “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/ebs0000152">threat simulation theory</a>”. This fits with the observation that the people who seem most attracted to watching violence (aggressive young men) are also those most likely to be encountering or dishing out such violence.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A scene from Squid Game." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427996/original/file-20211022-15-m8hoz4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427996/original/file-20211022-15-m8hoz4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=383&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427996/original/file-20211022-15-m8hoz4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=383&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427996/original/file-20211022-15-m8hoz4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=383&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427996/original/file-20211022-15-m8hoz4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=481&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427996/original/file-20211022-15-m8hoz4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=481&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427996/original/file-20211022-15-m8hoz4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=481&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A scene from Squid Game: the game of red light, green light.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Netflix</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>Watching violence from the safety of our sofa may be a way to prepare ourselves for a violent and dangerous world. Violence hence appeals for a good reason. Interestingly, a recent study found that horror fans and morbidly curious individuals were <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0191886920305882">more psychologically resilient</a> during the COVID-19 pandemic. </p>
<h2>Is it really the violence we like?</h2>
<p>There are reasons to reconsider how much we like watching violence <em>per se</em>. For example, in one study <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/08934210500084198">researchers showed</a> two groups of people the 1993 movie, <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106977/">The Fugitive</a>. One group were shown an unedited movie, while another saw a version with all violence edited out. Despite this, both groups liked the film equally. </p>
<p>This finding has been supported by other studies which have also found that removing graphic violence from a film <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/00224549909598417">does not make people like it less</a>. There is even evidence that people <a href="https://academic.oup.com/hcr/article-abstract/35/3/442/4107507">enjoy non-violent versions</a> of films more than violent versions.</p>
<p>Many people may be enjoying something that coincides with violence, rather than violence itself. For example, violence creates <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/jcom.12112">tension and suspense</a>, which may be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/08838150701626446">what people find appealing</a>. </p>
<p>Another possibility is that it is <a href="http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.1087.404&rep=rep1&type=pdf">action, not violence</a>, which people enjoy. Watching violence also offers a great chance for <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/jcom.12112">making meaning</a> about finding meaning in life. Seeing violence allows us to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/jcom.12112">reflect on the human condition</a>, an experience we value. </p>
<p>Other theories are also out there. “<a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/9781405186407.wbiece049">Excitation transfer theory</a>” suggests that watching violence makes us aroused, a feeling that persists until the end of the show, making the end feel more pleasing. The “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/08838151.2011.570826">forbidden fruit hypothesis</a>” proposes that it is violence being deemed off-limits that makes it appealing. Consistent with this, warning labels <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1996-06304-002">increase people’s interest</a> in violent programmes.</p>
<p>Finally, it may be that it is justified punishment, rather than violence, that we enjoy watching. Indeed, whenever people anticipate being able to punish wrongdoers, the <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/abs/10.1126/science.1100735">reward centres of their brain</a> light up like fairgrounds. That said, <a href="https://academic.oup.com/hcr/article-abstract/35/3/442/4107507">less than half the violence</a> on TV is inflicted on baddies by goodies. </p>
<h2>Political motives?</h2>
<p>All this suggests that media companies may be giving us violence that many of us <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/08838151.2011.570826">don’t want or need</a>. We should hence consider what other corporate, political or ideological pressures may be encouraging onscreen violence globally.</p>
<p>For example, the US government has a close interest in, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/washington-dcs-role-behind-the-scenes-in-hollywood-goes-deeper-than-you-think-80587">influence over Hollywood</a>. Portrayals of violence can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0896920517739093">manufacture our consent</a> with government policies, encourage us to endorse the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/10509208.2015.1086614">legitimacy of state power and state violence</a>, and help <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/78912/manufacturing-consent-by-edward-s-herman-and-noam-chomsky/">determine who are “worthy victims”</a>. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/washington-dcs-role-behind-the-scenes-in-hollywood-goes-deeper-than-you-think-80587">Washington DC's role behind the scenes in Hollywood goes deeper than you think</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<p>The messages onscreen violence send can, however, cause us to become disconnected with reality. <a href="https://stevenpinker.com/publications/better-angels-our-nature">When crime rates fall</a>, <a href="https://publisher.abc-clio.com/9780313015977/">onscreen violence</a> can make us think that crime is increasing. Movies also lie about the real <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1071054/">impact of violence</a> on the human body – with almost 90% of violent actions showing no realistic physical consequences to the victim. Movies can also <a href="https://doi.org/10.18357/ijcyfs101201918809">disguise the reality of male violence</a> against women and children.</p>
<p>The American political scientist <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/84573/the-clash-of-civilizations-and-the-remaking-of-world-order-by-samuel-p-huntington/">Samuel Huntington once wrote that</a>, “The west won the world not by the superiority of its ideas … but rather by its superiority in applying organised violence. Westerners often forget this fact; non-Westerners never do.” We should be constantly aware of how fake violence on our screens serves real violence in our world.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/170251/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Simon McCarthy-Jones receives funding from the Irish Research Council.</span></em></p>We may not be attracted to movie violence as much as people think.Simon McCarthy-Jones, Associate Professor in Clinical Psychology and Neuropsychology, Trinity College DublinLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1656362021-08-05T12:39:00Z2021-08-05T12:39:00ZNarcissists: there’s more than one type – and our research reveals what makes each tick<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/414545/original/file-20210804-15-syx8fm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=50%2C84%2C5615%2C3631&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Not all narcissists are loud.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/fashionable-woman-admires-herself-reflection-shop-657462577"> By K Petro/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Chances are you’ve met a narcissist. Someone who thinks they’re better than everyone else, dominates the conversation and loves the limelight. But scientists are increasingly realising that not all narcissists are the same – some are, in fact, extremely insecure.</p>
<p>In our new paper, <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/01461672211021189">published in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin</a>, we describe the distinct types – and what motivates them.</p>
<hr>
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<p><em>You can listen to more articles from The Conversation, narrated by Noa, <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/audio-narrated-99682">here</a>.</em></p>
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<p>In classical Greek mythology, the hunter Narcissus was the son of the river god Cephissus and the nymph Liriope. He was known for his exceptional beauty and physique. One day when Narcissus was walking in the forest, the beautiful nymph Echo saw him and fell in love with him. However, he rejected her affections, leaving her heartbroken. </p>
<p>As a punishment, Nemesis, the goddess of revenge, lured him to a pool of water where he encountered his own reflection for the first time. Narcissus fell in love with his reflection, and, eventually realising that his love could not be reciprocated, pined away to his death.</p>
<p>The myth of Narcissus warns us of the dangers of excessive self-love, self-absorption and lack of empathy for others. It has had a profound influence on western culture, art and literature. </p>
<p>Narcissism is also a popular topic in psychology. The English physician <a href="https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/facilities/cadbury/rarebooks/havelockellis.aspx">Havelock Ellis</a> first identified narcissism as a mental disorder in the late 19th century. Sigmund Freud considered narcissism to be a <a href="https://psychcentral.com/pro/freud-and-the-nature-of-narcissism#1">normal part of a child’s development</a>, but argued that it could become a disorder if it persisted after puberty into adulthood.</p>
<p>In modern psychology, narcissism is usually conceptualised as a <a href="https://doi.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037/a0018229">personality trait</a>, which lies on a spectrum. Some people are more narcissistic, others less so. Narcissism <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1207/S15327965PLI1204_1">typically involves</a> an inflated view of oneself, a sense of superiority and entitlement and a lack of concern for others. The above portrait of a narcissist is a familiar one. But it isn’t the only one.</p>
<h2>Grandiose versus vulnerable</h2>
<p>In our research, we investigated two types of previously identified narcissism: <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1467-6494.2010.00711.x">grandiose and vulnerable</a>. Grandiose narcissists are arrogant, dominant and extroverted. They tend to have high self-esteem, be bold and assertive and feel happy and confident about their lives. </p>
<p>Vulnerable narcissists, on the other hand, are withdrawn, neurotic and insecure. They tend to have low self-esteem, be hypersensitive and feel anxious and depressed. However, these two types of narcissists also have something in common. Both are selfish, feel entitled to special treatment and privileges and relate to others in antagonistic ways.</p>
<p>You might be able to recognise the two types of narcissists by how they behave in social situations. Grandiose narcissists are socially competent. They are likely to be dominant and charming. Vulnerable narcissists, on the other hand, are less socially skilled. They are likely to be shy and anxious in social situations. What’s more, while grandiose narcissists are forthright and assertive in pursuing in their goals, seeking to maximise success, vulnerable narcissists are timid and defensive, <a href="https://guilfordjournals.com/doi/pdf/10.1521/pedi_2017_31_318">seeking to minimise failure</a>. </p>
<p>In our research, we examined the social motives and perceptions of both grandiose and vulnerable narcissists. In particular, we investigated their desires to attain social status and social inclusion. We also looked at whether they felt they had been successful in attaining <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037/a0038781">social status</a> and <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037/0022-3514.68.3.518">social inclusion</a>. </p>
<p>Social status refers to being respected and admired by others. It involves standing out and being seen as an important person in the social hierarchy. In contrast, social inclusion refers to being liked and accepted by others. It involves fitting in well with others as part of the social community. </p>
<p>Any given person may have or desire both status and inclusion, only one of the two, or neither. For example, in the TV show <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096697/">The Simpsons</a>, the character of Mr Burns has high status but is not particularly liked and accepted, whereas the character of Homer Simpson is well liked and accepted but does not have high status.</p>
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<img alt="Silhouette of a man pointing at himself at the mirror, his reflection wearing a crown." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/414547/original/file-20210804-19-1869wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/414547/original/file-20210804-19-1869wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414547/original/file-20210804-19-1869wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414547/original/file-20210804-19-1869wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414547/original/file-20210804-19-1869wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=510&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414547/original/file-20210804-19-1869wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=510&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414547/original/file-20210804-19-1869wv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=510&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Grandiose narcissists are arrogant, dominant and extroverted.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-illustration/concept-narcissistic-egoistic-man-silhouette-standing-703750441">Prazis Images/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>We conducted two studies, recruiting 676 adults based in the United States. We assessed their levels of both grandiose and vulnerable narcissism. We also assessed the extent to which they desired status and inclusion as well as the extent to which they felt they had attained their goals.</p>
<p>We found that both grandiose and vulnerable narcissists strongly desired social status. Interestingly, whereas grandiose narcissists felt they were successful in attaining this status, vulnerable narcissists felt they did not get the status they deserved. </p>
<p>What’s more, grandiose narcissists did not feel they had attained social inclusion but did not particularly desire it either. In contrast, vulnerable narcissists also did not feel they had attained social inclusion but strongly desired it. Grandiose narcissists therefore felt they had met their social goals, but vulnerable narcissists did not.</p>
<p>Both types of narcissists crave the respect and admiration of others. But while grandiose narcissists may be stars on the interpersonal stage, triumphantly capturing the spotlight, their vulnerable counterpart may be a bit player lurking on the sidelines, resentfully seeking, but failing to obtain, the applause they crave.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/165636/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nikhila Mahadevan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Some narcissists want to feel included in by the group whereas others don’t really care.Nikhila Mahadevan, Lecturer in Psychology, University of EssexLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1646862021-07-29T12:23:40Z2021-07-29T12:23:40ZLead exposure during childhood may influence adult personality, and not for the better<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/413162/original/file-20210726-23-1t9x3iv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4717%2C3036&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Lead pollution may have wider ranging adverse effects on health than previously thought.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/double-exposure-portrait-of-face-of-young-man-royalty-free-image/1219500833">Busà Photography/Moment via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/research-brief-83231">Research Brief</a> is a short take about interesting academic work.</em></p>
<h2>The big idea</h2>
<p>Children raised in areas with more atmospheric lead pollution grew up to have less <a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2020104118">adaptive and less mature personalities</a>, according to a study I led of over 1.5 million people across the U.S. and Europe. As adults, they were less conscientious, less agreeable and, in some cases, more neurotic.</p>
<p>Researchers have known for many years that childhood lead exposure has <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2020.19998">harmful effects on brain development</a>. It causes <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.1996.03530290033034">mental health problems</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.2202/1935-1682.1796">criminal behavior</a> that costs the U.S. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/archpediatrics.2009.128">over US$1.2 trillion</a>. And lead-related problems may be much greater and more widespread than researchers previously thought because lead exposure may also affect <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2018.4192">everyday personality traits</a>.</p>
<p>To determine whether lead exposure causes personality changes, my team and I examined personality differences before and after the U.S. <a href="https://www.epa.gov/clean-air-act-overview/evolution-clean-air-act">1970 Clean Air Act</a>. This law forced companies to remove lead from gasoline and led to massive reductions in atmospheric lead. </p>
<p>We compared local changes in atmospheric lead levels with changes in that area’s average personality trait scores, using data from an online personality questionnaire assessing <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/big-5-personality-traits">Big Five personality traits</a>: openness to experience (intellectual curiosity and creative imagination), extraversion (sociability and assertiveness), conscientiousness (organization and responsibility), agreeableness (compassion and respectfulness) and neuroticism (tendency toward anxiety, depression and hostility). We found that people born after lead levels began to decline had more mature personalities than those born when lead levels were high. They were slightly more conscientious, more agreeable and less neurotic. This suggests that lead may actually cause personality changes.</p>
<p>We also tested whether there were similar effects of lead exposure in Europe, where <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2015.01.036">lead was phased out from gasoline more gradually</a> than in the U.S. As in the U.S., we found that Europeans exposed to greater amounts of atmospheric lead were also less agreeable and more neurotic. However, they were not less conscientious. These results are an example of how <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.81.2.322">psychological findings often differ across cultures</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/413165/original/file-20210726-27-1monz4b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Factory smokestacks emitting clouds of pollution over a hazy skyline." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/413165/original/file-20210726-27-1monz4b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/413165/original/file-20210726-27-1monz4b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413165/original/file-20210726-27-1monz4b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413165/original/file-20210726-27-1monz4b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413165/original/file-20210726-27-1monz4b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413165/original/file-20210726-27-1monz4b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/413165/original/file-20210726-27-1monz4b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The 1970 Clean Air Act scrubbed both lead out of the sky and its negative influences on personality development.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/pollution-royalty-free-image/575346013">Dirk Meister/Moment via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Why it matters</h2>
<p>Personality traits <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111%2Fj.1745-6916.2007.00047.x">influence nearly every aspect of people’s lives</a>, from happiness to career success to longevity. This means that the effects of lead exposure on personality are likely to have widespread consequences.</p>
<p>Thankfully, we found that lead exposure had a relatively small effect. But because <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1097%2FPHH.0000000000000889">so many millions of people have been exposed</a> to some amount of lead throughout their lives, these effects add up at the societal level.</p>
<p>Lead exposure is also a social justice issue. For example, Black children are <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4605011/">twice as likely to have high levels of lead in their blood</a> as white children. Because <a href="https://doi.org/10.1097/PHH.0000000000000891">vulnerable groups tend to have higher levels of lead exposure</a>, reducing childhood lead exposure is one step toward a more equitable society.</p>
<h2>What still isn’t known</h2>
<p>Since the Clean Air Act, children have <a href="https://www.epa.gov/americaschildrenenvironment/ace-biomonitoring-lead">much less lead exposure than in the 1960s and 1970s</a>. But more research is needed on other sources of exposure, like <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2011.556556">lead pipes and contaminated groundwater</a>. Examining modern sources of lead exposure could help scientists better understand how they may be linked to personality change.</p>
<h2>What’s next</h2>
<p>Personality traits are generally <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2017.08.034">quite stable</a> across time. But researchers have found that personality can change in response to life experiences. Because <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000503">personality change has widespread consequences</a>, my team and I plan to continue studying how other experiences like traveling abroad in college or learning to use the internet in old age affect personality.</p>
<p>[<em>The Conversation’s science, health and technology editors pick their favorite stories.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/science-editors-picks-71/?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=science-favorite">Weekly on Wednesdays</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/164686/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ted Schwaba does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Early exposure to lead pollution may lead to less mature personality traits as an adult.Ted Schwaba, Postdoctoral Researcher in Psychology, The University of Texas at AustinLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1588002021-04-12T13:40:10Z2021-04-12T13:40:10ZHave introverts really fared better in lockdown?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/394479/original/file-20210412-15-1s245sy.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=191%2C0%2C6050%2C3643&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/introvert-mindset-asian-kids-happy-music-1865624851">MR.Yanukit/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Since the onset of the pandemic, everyone from newspaper columnists to Twitter users has advanced the idea that extroverts and introverts are handling the crisis differently. </p>
<p>Many claim that introverts adapt to social distancing and isolation better than extroverts, with some even suggesting that introverts are practically “<a href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/rendezview/hey-introverts-stop-loving-this-crisis-so-much/news-story/a519a8644d149222b0c22c97aa2c28c2">loving</a>” the crisis, as it offers them a rare chance to play to their <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/may/02/for-introverts-lockdown-is-a-chance-to-play-to-our-strengths">strengths</a>. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1233489965587275776"}"></div></p>
<p>According to personality theories, <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2018-63285-007">extroversion-introversion</a> constitutes one of the fundamental psychological axes along which people differ. Extroverts typically exhibit higher levels of energy and sociability compared to introverts, enjoying a boost in mood after social interactions. <a href="https://psyarxiv.com/8ze6w/">Introverts</a> do not tend to experience such benefits. </p>
<p>It therefore seems intuitive that introverts will fare better than extroverts during periods of lockdown isolation. Some <a href="https://www.scotsman.com/news/opinion/columnists/why-lockdown-heaven-introverts-me-jim-duffy-3019045">anecdotal evidence</a> supports this contention, but scientific evidence is now stacking up to dismiss the idea that introverts love lockdowns. In any case, it’s worth bearing in mind how complex and multifaceted our personalities are – with many other traits determining how we’ve fared during the pandemic.</p>
<h2>Coping with lockdown</h2>
<p>In psychology, extroversion is associated with better wellbeing, happiness and mental health. Despite the social isolation we’ve been experiencing during the pandemic – something said to suit introverts – evidence suggests that extroverts’ wellbeing has held remarkably firm during successive lockdowns.</p>
<p>Indeed, recent studies have found that <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.561609">introversion was predictive</a> of more severe loneliness, anxiety and depression after the circumstantial changes brought about by the pandemic. Extroversion, meanwhile, was correlated with lower levels <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2020.10.053">of anxiety</a> and a lower likelihood of experiencing <a href="https://greaterdivide.com/2020/04/30/the-resilience-of-extroverts-in-a-time-of-lock-downs/">mental health issues</a> during lockdown. </p>
<p>These results were further supported by a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0248895">recent longitudinal study</a> that followed 484 US college students through their 2020 spring term. As the pandemic progressed, introverts experienced increases in stress, while more extrovert students reported slight decreases in stress.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/young-people-reveal-the-struggles-of-lockdown-and-how-they-coped-149603">Young people reveal the struggles of lockdown – and how they coped</a>
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<p>Interestingly, the trend was reversed for positive mood: extroverts tended to experience a decline in mood during the early pandemic period, while introverts experienced a slightly improved mood. </p>
<p>If this finding appears to validate claims that introverts fare better than extroverts in a lockdown, it’s important to note that despite the decline in mood among extroverts, they still reported an overall more positive mood than their introverted peers.</p>
<h2>Explaining extroverts</h2>
<p>Certain lifestyle factors may partly explain these findings. As the pandemic unfolded, even extroverts who lived alone may have found communication apps like Zoom, <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/31/tech/houseparty-coronavirus-lockdown-scli-intl/index.html">Houseparty</a> and <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-56180581">Clubhouse</a> adequate in maintaining their social lives. </p>
<p>Equally, introverts who had greeted lockdown with a certain amount of glee may have soon discovered that being <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/04/02/998440/lockdown-was-supposed-to-be-an-introverts-paradise-its-not/">locked in with housemates</a> or family hardly delivered the solitude they’d been looking forward to.</p>
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<p>But recent findings are also consistent with what psychologists would expect of extroverts – even during a crisis. Many theories have been proposed to explain why they tend to enjoy higher levels of wellbeing, with some researchers pointing to the support offered by extroverts’ wider social network, while others highlight links between extroversion and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2003.08.001">healthy activities</a></p>
<p>A particularly relevant study recently investigated the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2020.110398">coping responses</a> of extroverts at times of crises, and found that extroversion was related to more problem-solving coping strategies such as seeking emotional support. These patterns are consistent with the well-documented association of extroversion with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1088868306294907">greater optimism</a>. </p>
<h2>Additional traits</h2>
<p>Behind these diverse explanations lies a further consensual principle held by psychologists: personality is multifaceted, and it’s the different combinations of personality traits that ultimately determines our behaviour and wellbeing.</p>
<p>Let’s take the <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2008-11667-005">five-factor theory of personality</a>, one of the most popular personality theories, as an example. In addition to the extroversion-introversion spectrum, the theory also accounts for four other traits: openness (being open to new experiences, feelings and ideas); conscientiousness (being organised, self-disciplined and goal-driven); agreeableness (being helpful, cooperative and good-natured); and neuroticism (being emotionally unstable). </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A pawn chess piece in the middle of a circular diagram featuring the words of the five personality traits" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/394483/original/file-20210412-13-9e7guo.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/394483/original/file-20210412-13-9e7guo.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=342&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/394483/original/file-20210412-13-9e7guo.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=342&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/394483/original/file-20210412-13-9e7guo.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=342&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/394483/original/file-20210412-13-9e7guo.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=430&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/394483/original/file-20210412-13-9e7guo.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=430&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/394483/original/file-20210412-13-9e7guo.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=430&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">A common theory in psychology holds that our personalities can be broken down to five main traits.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-illustration/3d-illustration-pawn-center-big-five-1747403999">Olivier Le Moal/Shutterstock</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>These other traits will also have influenced how people have reacted to the pandemic. While extroversion is often associated with healthy activities, it is <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/buy/2004-20177-003">conscientiousness</a> that predicts health-related behaviours best. Similarly, while extroverts tend to have a larger social network than introverts, it is <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378873313000415?via%253Dihub">agreeableness</a> that ultimately predicts the quality of that social network.</p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/personalities-that-thrive-in-isolation-and-what-we-can-all-learn-from-time-alone-135307">Personalities that thrive in isolation and what we can all learn from time alone</a>
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<p>In other words, extroversion-introversion on its own is far too simplistic a measure for us to use when thinking about people’s response to the pandemic. When it comes to coping with lockdown, different combinations of personality traits could entail very different behaviours.</p>
<h2>Beyond personality</h2>
<p>Aside from personality traits, we all follow motivational forces, usually guided by values and beliefs, that could also influence our behaviour and wellbeing during lockdown.</p>
<p>Even someone with high levels of extroversion and conscientiousness, which would predict a healthy set of behaviours during lockdown, could have found their wellbeing affected by their values.</p>
<p>A materialistic person, for instance, might be compelled to follow maladaptive coping behaviours such as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1521/jscp.2007.26.3.334">impulsive online shopping</a>, which one study revealed to have <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7893314/">increased</a> during the pandemic – as a coping mechanism for negative emotional states. </p>
<p>Such motivational forces can guide our behaviour as much as our personalities, and our wellbeing during the pandemic will be determined by how all these forces intersect and interact.</p>
<p>Even though extroversion-introversion can be a revealing measure of our lives, it’s missing the much more complex and intriguing picture of human behaviour that psychologists are continuing to study with interest during the pandemic.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/158800/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lis Ku receives funding from the British Academy. </span></em></p>Popular opinion has it that introverts are thriving in lockdown – but studies paint a different picture.Lis Ku, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, De Montfort UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1497402020-11-10T01:02:43Z2020-11-10T01:02:43ZWhy can’t some people admit defeat when they lose?<p>When US President-Elect Joe Biden and Deputy Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris gave their victory speeches on Saturday evening, local time, the tally of Electoral College votes showed they had decisively passed the crucial 270-vote threshold, delivering them to the White House this January.</p>
<p>Tradition dictates the losing candidate also gives their own speech to concede defeat. But their vanquished opponent, Donald Trump, hasn’t done that.</p>
<p>We cannot psychoanalyse Trump from a distance, though I am sure many of us have tried. We can, however, apply psychological theories and models to understand the denial of defeat. My area of research — personality psychology — may prove particularly useful here.</p>
<p>Reluctance to admit defeat, even when the battle is hopelessly lost, is a surprisingly understudied phenomenon. But there is some research that can help give an insight into why some people, particularly those who display a trait called “grandiose narcissism”, might struggle to accept losing. Put simply, these people may be unable to accept, or even comprehend, that they have not won. </p>
<p>Other psychological theories, such as cognitive dissonance (resulting from the discrepancy between what we believe and what happens) can also help explain why we double down on our beliefs in the face of overwhelming contrasting evidence.</p>
<h2>If you think you’re better than everyone, what would losing mean?</h2>
<p>Personality traits may provide insight as to why someone could be unwilling to accept defeat.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S0092-6566(02)00505-6">Narcissism</a> is one such trait. There is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6494.2010.00711.x">evidence to suggest</a> there are two main forms of narcissism: grandiose narcissism and vulnerable narcissism.</p>
<p>In this article, we’ll focus on grandiose narcissism, as characteristics of this trait seem most relevant to subsequent denial of defeat. People who show hallmarks of grandiose narcissism are likely to exhibit grandiosity, aggression, and dominance over others. According to researchers from Pennsylvania State University, publishing in the Journal of Personality Disorders, this type of narcissism is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1521/pedi.17.3.188.22146">associated with</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>…overt self-enhancement, denial of weaknesses, intimidating demands of entitlement … and devaluation of people that threaten self-esteem.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The grandiose narcissist is competitive, dominant, and has an inflated positive self-image regarding their own skills, abilities, and attributes. What’s more, grandiose narcissists <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2015.02.027">tend to have higher self-esteem</a> and inflated self-worth.</p>
<p>For the grandiose narcissist, defeat may compromise this inflated self-worth. According to researchers from Israel, these people find setbacks in achievement particularly threatening, as these setbacks could indicate a “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1521/jscp.2010.29.8.874">failure to keep up with the competition</a>”.</p>
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<p>Instead of accepting personal responsibility for failure and defeat, these individuals externalise blame, attributing personal setbacks and failures <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2020.110280">to the shortcomings of others</a>. They do not, or even cannot, recognise and acknowledge the failure could be their own. </p>
<p>Based on the profile of the grandiose narcissist, the inability to accept defeat may best be characterised by an attempt to protect the grandiose positive self-image. Their dominance, denial of weaknesses, and tendency to devalue others results in a lack of comprehension it’s even possible for them to lose. </p>
<h2>Why do some people double down despite evidence to the contrary?</h2>
<p>In the 1950s, renowned psychologist Leon Festinger published <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/When_Prophecy_Fails">When Prophecy Fails</a>, documenting the actions of a cult called The Seekers who believed in an imminent apocalypse on a set date. </p>
<p>Following the date when the apocalypse did not occur, The Seekers did not question their beliefs. Rather, they provided alternative explanations — doubling down on their ideas. To explain this strengthened denial in the face of evidence, <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/24936719">Festinger proposed cognitive dissonance</a>. </p>
<p>Cognitive dissonance occurs when we encounter events that are inconsistent with our attitudes, beliefs, and behaviour. This dissonance is uncomfortable as it challenges what we believe to be true. To reduce this discomfort, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12362">we engage in strategies</a> such as ignoring new evidence and justifying our behaviour. </p>
<p>Here’s an example of dissonance and reduction strategies.</p>
<p>Louise believes she is an excellent chess player. Louise invites a new friend, who has barely played chess, to play a game of chess with her. Rather than the easy win Louise thought it might be, her new friend plays a very challenging game and Louise ends up losing. This loss is evidence that contradicts Louise’s belief that she is an excellent chess player. However, to avoid challenging these beliefs, Louise tells herself that it was beginner’s luck, and that she was just having an off day. </p>
<p>Some researchers think experiencing dissonance has an <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X19002176">adaptive purpose</a>, as our strategies to overcome dissonance help us navigate an uncertain world and reduce distress. </p>
<p>However, the strategies we use to reduce dissonance can also make us unyielding in our beliefs. Ongoing rigid acceptance of our beliefs could make us unable to accept outcomes even in the face of damning evidence.</p>
<p>Let’s consider how grandiose narcissism might interact with cognitive dissonance in the face of defeat. </p>
<p>The grandiose narcissistic has an inflated positive self-image. When presented with contrary evidence, such as defeat or failure, the grandiose narcissist is likely to experience cognitive dissonance. In an attempt to reduce the discomfort of this dissonance, the grandiose narcissist redirects and externalises the blame. This strategy of reducing dissonance allows the grandiose narcissists’ self-image to stay intact.</p>
<p>Finally, the act of not apologising for one’s behaviour could also be a dissonance strategy. <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ejsp.1901">One study by researchers in Australia</a> found refusing to apologise after doing something wrong allowed the perpetrator to keep their self-esteem intact. </p>
<p>It might be safe to say that, if Donald Trump’s denial of the election loss is a product of grandiose narcissism and dissonance, don’t hold your breath for an apology, let alone a graceful concession speech.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/149740/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Evita March does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Grandiose narcissists do not, or even cannot, recognise and acknowledge a failure could be their own.Evita March, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Federation University AustraliaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1479492020-10-15T11:17:16Z2020-10-15T11:17:16ZHow we discovered that VR can profile your personality<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/363382/original/file-20201014-21-11r9pgc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=47%2C53%2C4446%2C3078&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cheerful-girl-hands-wearing-virtual-reality-603345986">Mark Nazh/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://theconversation.com/facebooks-virtual-reality-push-is-about-data-not-gaming-145730">Virtual reality</a> (VR) has the power to take us out of our surroundings and transport us to far-off lands. From a quick round of golf, to fighting monsters or going for a skydive, all of this can be achieved from the comfort of your home. </p>
<p>But it’s not just gamers who love VR and see its potential. VR is used a lot in psychology research to investigate areas such as <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0226805">social anxiety</a>, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-13909-9">moral decision-making</a> and <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0223881">emotional responses</a>. And in our <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-74421-1">new research</a> we used VR to explore how people respond emotionally to a potential threat.</p>
<p>We knew from <a href="https://bmcbiol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12915-017-0463-6">earlier work</a> that being high up in VR provokes strong feelings of fear and anxiety. So we asked participants to walk across a grid of ice blocks suspended 200 metres above a snowy alpine valley. </p>
<p>We found that as we increased the precariousness of the ice block path, participants’ behaviour became more cautious and considered – as you would expect. But we also found that how people behave in virtual reality can provide clear evidence of their personality. In that we were able to pinpoint participants with a certain personality trait based on the way they behaved in the VR scenario.</p>
<p>While this may be an interesting finding, it obviously raises concerns in terms of <a href="https://theconversation.com/think-facebook-can-manipulate-you-look-out-for-virtual-reality-93118">people’s data</a>. As technology companies could profile people’s personality via their VR interactions and then use this information to target advertising, for example. And this clearly raises concerns about how data collected through VR platforms can be used.</p>
<h2>Virtual fall</h2>
<p>As part of our study, we used head-mounted VR displays and handheld controllers, but we also attached sensors to people’s feet. These sensors allowed participants to test out a block before stepping onto it with both feet. </p>
<p>As participants made their way across the ice, some blocks would crack and change colour when participants stepped onto them with one foot or both feet. As the experiment progressed, the number of crack blocks increased. </p>
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<p>We also included a few fall blocks. These treacherous blocks were identical to crack blocks until activated with both feet, when they shattered and participants experienced a short but uncomfortable virtual fall.</p>
<p>We found that as we increased the number of crack and fall blocks, participants’ behaviour became more cautious and considered. We saw a lot more testing with one foot to identify and avoid the cracks and more time spent considering the next move.</p>
<p>But this tendency towards risk-averse behaviour was more pronounced for participants with a higher level of a personality trait called neuroticism. People with high neuroticism are more sensitive to negative stimuli and potential threat. </p>
<h2>Personality and privacy</h2>
<p>We had participants complete a personality scale before performing the study. We specifically looked at neuroticism, as this measures the extent to which each person is likely to experience negative emotions such as anxiety and fear. And we found that participants with higher levels of neuroticism could be identified in our sample based on their behaviour. These people did more testing with one foot and spent longer standing on “safe” solid blocks when the threat was high.</p>
<p>Neuroticism is one of the five major personality traits most commonly used to profile people. These traits are normally assessed by a self-report questionnaire, but can also be assessed based on behaviour – as demonstrated in our experiment. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Excited teen hipster girl playing virtual reality video game wear vr goggles headset." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/363384/original/file-20201014-13-1xopeqm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/363384/original/file-20201014-13-1xopeqm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363384/original/file-20201014-13-1xopeqm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363384/original/file-20201014-13-1xopeqm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363384/original/file-20201014-13-1xopeqm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363384/original/file-20201014-13-1xopeqm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363384/original/file-20201014-13-1xopeqm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">As advances in technology continue to develop, so too does the power of surveillance.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/excited-teen-hipster-girl-playing-virtual-1739807582">insta_photos/Shutterstock</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>Our findings show how users of VR could have their personality profiled in a virtual world. This approach, where private traits are predicted based on implicit monitoring of digital behaviour, was demonstrated with a <a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/110/15/5802">dataset</a> derived from Facebook likes back in 2013. This paved the way for controversial commercial applications and the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/04/us/politics/cambridge-analytica-scandal-fallout.html">Cambridge Analytica scandal</a> – when psychological profiles of users were allegedly harvested and sold to political campaigns. And our work demonstrates how the same approach could be applied to users of commercial VR headsets, which raises major concerns for people’s privacy. </p>
<p>Users should know if their data is being tracked, whether historical records are kept, whether data can be traced to individual accounts, along with what the data is used for and who it can be shared with. After all, we wouldn’t settle for anything less if such a comprehensive level of surveillance could be achieved in the real world.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/147949/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stephen Fairclough received funding from Emteq Labs and Liverpool John Moores University for this work.</span></em></p>How much does your virtual reality headset know about your life?Stephen Fairclough, Professor of Psychophysiology in the School of Psychology, Liverpool John Moores UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1423642020-07-15T12:13:30Z2020-07-15T12:13:30ZPersonality can predict who’s a rule-follower and who flouts COVID-19 social distancing guidelines<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347340/original/file-20200714-139854-1wyiypp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=107%2C86%2C3368%2C2069&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Who will wait on the checkout line footprints and who will rage against them?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/vons-shopper-maintain-safe-distance-in-the-checkout-line-at-news-photo/1212798930">Al Seib/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As states struggle to get the COVID-19 balance right – between eased restrictions and rising infection rates – it falls to individuals to abide by mask-wearing rules and to maintain six feet of distance between themselves and others when out and about.</p>
<p>Some people dutifully endure the hardships of coronavirus lockdown, while others can’t be bothered to keep their distance. Why?</p>
<p><a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=fXwMNNMAAAAJ&hl=en">As a cognitive researcher</a>, I’m interested in how what psychologists call the <a href="https://www.verywellmind.com/the-big-five-personality-dimensions-2795422">“Big Five” personality traits</a> influence the ways individuals deal with social distancing rules in daily life. Who is more likely to mask up every time they leave their home? And who is more likely to flout these evolving behavioral expectations?</p>
<h2>Personal space, territorial invasion</h2>
<p>How comfortable you are being near to other people has a big cultural component. Anthropologist Edward T. Hall made a study of <a href="https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-proxemics-definition-examples.html">what he called proxemics</a>, measuring personal space expectations around the world.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347172/original/file-20200713-50-13b1guu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347172/original/file-20200713-50-13b1guu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347172/original/file-20200713-50-13b1guu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=457&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347172/original/file-20200713-50-13b1guu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=457&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347172/original/file-20200713-50-13b1guu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=457&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347172/original/file-20200713-50-13b1guu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=575&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347172/original/file-20200713-50-13b1guu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=575&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347172/original/file-20200713-50-13b1guu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=575&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Pandemic response means the personal space bubble is now bigger than the previous norm.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Personal_Spaces_in_Proxemics.svg">Jean-Louis Grall/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>Touching or whispering happens in the closest zone. From about 1.5 to 4 feet away is the distance reserved for communicating with friends. Now public health recommendations have extended that zone to 6 feet or more, the distance that had been normal for interactions with those you don’t know well.</p>
<p>When people violate proximity norms, it can feel like they’re invading your territory. And nowadays, the stakes are higher than just your personal comfort – these distance guidelines are meant to protect you from infectious germs.</p>
<p>Subconsciously, everyone knows the traditional spatial zones. The “wait here” foot emblems now found at a store’s checkout line are necessary to help rewrite the cognitive script for where you stand until it becomes a mindless habit. You are forced to “unlearn” subconscious behavior; old dogs must learn new tricks. </p>
<p>Strangers who invade your social distance are being aggressive if they’re aware of what they’re doing. But if it’s done mindlessly or subconsciously, then personality traits are helping drive the behavior.</p>
<p>[<em>Deep knowledge, daily.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=deepknowledge">Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter</a>.]</p>
<h2>Predictions based on personality traits</h2>
<p>For more than four decades, psychology researchers have divvied people up by personality types based on an individual’s <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781849200479.n9">combination of five key traits</a>. They’re used to predict how people make purchases, <a href="https://www.floridatechonline.com/blog/business/how-the-big-five-personality-traits-influence-work-behavior/">behave at work</a>, even <a href="https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/releases/personality-traits-life-outcomes-replication.html">long-term life outcomes</a> like marriage stability and career achievement. <a href="http://psychology.iresearchnet.com/counseling-psychology/history-of-counseling/paul-costa-and-robert-mccrae/">Paul Costa and Robert McRae</a> popularized the acronym OCEAN, for openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness and neuroticism.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347342/original/file-20200714-38-fdgfjd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347342/original/file-20200714-38-fdgfjd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347342/original/file-20200714-38-fdgfjd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=342&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347342/original/file-20200714-38-fdgfjd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=342&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347342/original/file-20200714-38-fdgfjd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=342&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347342/original/file-20200714-38-fdgfjd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=430&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347342/original/file-20200714-38-fdgfjd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=430&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347342/original/file-20200714-38-fdgfjd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=430&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Everyone varies from high to low on each of the five personality traits.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/big-five-personality-traits-psychology-concept-royalty-free-image/1242962102">Olivier Le Moal/iStock via Getty Images Plus</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>An open individual is inclined to be curious, imaginative, creative, original, artistic and flexible. Openness reflects a tendency to think in abstract, complex ways. People high in openness tend to be adventurous and intellectual and enjoy the arts, while those on the opposite end of the spectrum tend to be practical, conventional and focused on the concrete. The more open your personality is, the better you might cope with uncertainty over a long, sustained period – as in the case of a global pandemic.</p>
<p>Conscientiousness is the tendency to be habitually careful, reliable, hard-working, well-organized and purposeful. A conscientious person controls, regulates and directs their impulses. They would likely be early adopters of mask-wearing, even without direction to do so. This trait makes someone less willing to violate territorial space and social distancing guidelines.</p>
<p>Extroversion is characterized by being outgoing and drawing energy from interacting with others, compared to introverts who get their energy from within themselves. Behavioral neuroscience research has <a href="https://doi.org/10.3758/s13415-014-0331-6">revealed two subtypes of this trait</a>.</p>
<p>Agentic extroversion is about being comfortable in the limelight and taking a leadership position. These people are less likely to feel a strong bond with others and have more interest in going for rewards in social or workplace contexts.</p>
<p>On the other hand, affiliative extroverts don’t seek out leadership roles as much and have close social bonds with a lot of people from which they gather happiness and meaning.</p>
<p>Both types of extroverts would likely enjoy virtual networking during isolation, while probably struggling with isolation if sheltering alone.</p>
<p>Agreeableness reflects compliance. It is the opposite pole of antagonism and reflects a tendency to be good-natured, acquiescent, courteous, helpful and trusting. People high in this trait would probably go along with mask-wearing right away and be more likely to follow social distancing guidelines as soon as they’re announced without grumbling about the rules.</p>
<p>Neuroticism is characterized by impulsivity and a tendency to experience negative emotions including anxiety, worry, fear, anger, depression or sadness, hostility, self-consciousness and loneliness. This trait is associated with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.093008.100352">wishful thinking and disengagement</a> in order to escape feelings of distress. Presumably people high on neuroticism would tend to react to the pandemic with avoidance and denial.</p>
<h2>The dark triad of personality traits</h2>
<p>Personalities can have their dark sides, too.</p>
<p>Narcissism involves loving oneself obsessively; it goes along with grandiosity and vanity.</p>
<p>Machiavellianism is about manipulating others; it’s characterized by cynicism and long-term, calculating strategies.</p>
<p>Finally there’s psychopathy, meaning a lack of empathy. Psychopathic people are usually impulsive and have cold interpersonal relations. Individuals at the higher end of the continuum are deceptive, aggressive, sexually promiscuous and coercive.</p>
<p>All of these dark triad traits, as psychologists group them, would likely be associated with more social distancing violations.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347344/original/file-20200714-22-102fpcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347344/original/file-20200714-22-102fpcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347344/original/file-20200714-22-102fpcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=437&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347344/original/file-20200714-22-102fpcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=437&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347344/original/file-20200714-22-102fpcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=437&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347344/original/file-20200714-22-102fpcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=549&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347344/original/file-20200714-22-102fpcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=549&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347344/original/file-20200714-22-102fpcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=549&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Personality traits influence who’s fine with masks and who isn’t.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/taxi-driver-with-thumbs-up-and-wearing-a-facemask-royalty-free-image/1223488542">andresr/E+ via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Personality influences your behavior</h2>
<p>Everyone varies on all of those personality traits from high to low. It’s possible to deduce a personality profile for someone more likely to rampantly violate social distancing guidelines.</p>
<p>Pulling from meta-analyses of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/psrm.2017.14">how personality affects pro-social behaviors</a>, I’ve come up with this formulation. I have in mind coronavirus-mitigating behaviors in the U.S., but it could be tested cross-culturally and in other contexts.</p>
<p>Social distancing violator = Low openness + Low conscientiousness + Low agreeableness + High neuroticism + High Machiavellianism + High narcissism + High psychopathy + Error</p>
<p>My model predicts that a person who scores lower in openness, conscientiousness and agreeableness would be more likely to violate social distancing guidelines. Same for someone higher in neuroticism, Machiavellianism, narcissism and psychopathy.</p>
<p>The error term in the equation is a bit of a fudge factor; it represents all the variation in social distancing that is not explained by the personality traits. For example, political ideology influences social distancing compliance, with <a href="https://voxeu.org/article/political-beliefs-and-compliance-social-distancing-orders">Republicans less likely to adhere</a> to social distancing orders.</p>
<p>Psychology researchers are starting to collect data during the pandemic that supports this model. In one study, for instance, Pavel Blagov found that people with lower levels of agreeableness and conscientiousness were less likely to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550620936439">endorse health recommendations</a> related to social distancing and hygiene during the coronavirus pandemic. </p>
<p>Personality is not fixed; it <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8721.2008.00543.x">can evolve over one’s lifespan</a>. As the coronavirus crisis drags on, I’ll be interested to see how adherence to social distancing guidelines changes over time – and wondering how much personality traits are changing too.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/142364/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>James M. Honeycutt does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Psychologists call these traits the ‘Big Five’: openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness and neuroticism. A researcher suggests your profile implies your response to social distancing.James M. Honeycutt, Lecturer in Executive Education; Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Communication Studies from Louisiana State University, University of Texas at DallasLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1402882020-06-10T12:05:48Z2020-06-10T12:05:48ZHow sensitive you are may be partly down to your genes – new research<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340886/original/file-20200610-34710-kq86y7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=6%2C25%2C4243%2C2796&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">By looking at twins, we were able to see whether sensitivity is an inherited trait.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/father-carrying-twin-babies-car-seats-1128705452">Zoia Kostina/ Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>People differ substantially in how much they’re affected by experiences in their lives. Some people seem to be more affected by daily stress, or the loss of someone close to them. On the other hand, some people seem to get through the same experiences relatively unscathed. Similarly, some people benefit strongly from counselling, or having a support system of close family and friends. Others seem better able to manage on their own.</p>
<p>But understanding why some people are more sensitive than others isn’t just a question of how they were raised, and the experiences they’ve been through. In fact, previous research has found that some people in general seem <a href="https://content.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2Fa0017376">more sensitive</a> to what they experience – and some are generally less sensitive.</p>
<p>According to psychological theories, differences in such “<a href="https://srcd.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/cdep.12120">environmental sensitivity</a>” reflect how able a person is to perceive and process information about the events in their life. Essentially, this is how sensitive you are. A person’s sensitivity level can be measured by a short questionnaire.</p>
<p>But many also believe that sensitivity has a genetic basis. Previous studies have investigated whether <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/mp200944">specific genes</a> make some people more sensitive. However, no study so far has provided an estimate for how much genetic factors contribute to how sensitive a person is. </p>
<p>In our <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41380-020-0783-8">latest research</a>, we looked at data collected from more than 2,800 identical and non-identical twins from the UK who have taken part in the <a href="http://www.teds.ac.uk/about-teds">Twins Early Development Study</a> in order to investigate the heritability of sensitivity and how it relates to other personality traits. Heritability describes what proportion of the differences between people in relation to a particular trait can be attributed to genetic factors alone.</p>
<p>Participants were asked to <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2017-42386-001">fill out a questionnaire</a> that measured their sensitivity levels. The questionnaire asked them how much they usually get affected by a various psychological and sensory experiences. For example, they were asked how much they notice when small things around them have changed, whether loud noises make them feel uncomfortable, and whether they dislike watching violent TV programmes. The participants were about 17 years old when the data were collected. </p>
<p>Comparing the similarity of identical with non-identical twin pairs allowed us to estimate the degree to which a trait is inherited. Identical twins share the same genes, but non-identical twins only share half of their genes. However, both types of twins share the same environment. If siblings in identical twin pairs are more similar to each other than non-identical twins, this indicates the existence of a genetic basis for the examined trait. Twin studies have long been used to estimate heritability.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340887/original/file-20200610-34678-1d3a0zb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/340887/original/file-20200610-34678-1d3a0zb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340887/original/file-20200610-34678-1d3a0zb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340887/original/file-20200610-34678-1d3a0zb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340887/original/file-20200610-34678-1d3a0zb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340887/original/file-20200610-34678-1d3a0zb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/340887/original/file-20200610-34678-1d3a0zb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sensitive people can thank their genes.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/supportive-african-husband-embracing-crying-wife-1283870137">fizkes/ Shutterstock</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>However, these types of studies have also been <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0049089X13001397?via%3Dihub">criticised for their limitations</a>. For example, identical twins’ experiences, such as how they’re raised, or the environment they’re raised in, may be different than that of non-identical twins, which can lead to an overestimation of heritability estimates. This could mean that the heritability is not as high as sometimes indicated when using this type of research method.</p>
<h2>Genetics versus environment</h2>
<p>We found that 47% of the differences in peoples’ sensitivity are indeed explained by genetic factors. But the remaining 53% of a person’s level of sensitivity is shaped by life experiences. In other words, genetics accounts for just under half of the reason you may be a more sensitive person.</p>
<p>Importantly, our research examined the genetic basis of sensitivity in more detail. We wondered whether sensitivity was made up of one genetic component or multiple ones. We found that sensitivity is composed of multiple genetic components that together make up a person’s specific shape of sensitivity. </p>
<p>Besides a general genetic component for sensitivity, we also found a component associated with sensitivity to negative experiences and a component that reflects sensitivity to more positive experiences. This means that genetics influence why some people may be more sensitive in general, while others may be more sensitive to either the positive or negative things that happen to them.</p>
<p>Finally, we also investigated how inherited genetic sensitivity relates to other common personality traits: openness, conscientiousness, agreeableness, extraversion and neuroticism. We found that the genetic component of sensitivity was related to neuroticism and extraversion but not with any of the other personality traits. </p>
<p>Although this study didn’t examine what the specific genes are that make some people more sensitive than others, it did show that sensitivity is a heritable trait with a substantial genetic basis. We also found that a large part of this heritability is shared with other common personality traits, such as neuroticism and extraversion.</p>
<p>Future studies on sensitivity may look at identifying the specific genes that underlie this complex trait. Uncovering how genes shape sensitivity is important in our understanding of why some individuals fare worse in response to traumas and stressors – and why some benefit more from interventions aimed at promoting resilience and health.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/140288/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Elham Assary receives funding from The Wellcome Trust.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael Pluess receives funding from Jacobs Foundation, National Institutes of Health, and Elrha. </span></em></p>Our study looked at both identical and non-identical sets of twins. We found that how sensitive you are is actually inherited genetically.Elham Assary, Postdoctoral researcher, psychopathology and resilience, Queen Mary University of LondonMichael Pluess, Professor of Psychology, Queen Mary University of LondonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1391882020-05-27T12:23:30Z2020-05-27T12:23:30ZAs states reopen, tensions flare between the rule followers and rule breakers<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/337741/original/file-20200526-106819-msfwln.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1120%2C894%2C2818%2C2128&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Different mindsets about rules can lead to different behaviors.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Virus-Outbreak-Florida/9f0d9dac750e46029417c51aed77febe/77/0">AP Photo/Lynne Sladky</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Since Republicans, on average, are <a href="https://docs.cdn.yougov.com/q0t43bjops/econTabReport.pdf">five times more likely</a> than Democrats to believe it’s safe now to resume normal business activity, reopening the economy has often been framed as a partisan issue.</p>
<p>But within households, many families are having their own arguments about how lax or strict they should be about the threat of the virus. Is it OK to have friends over? Can we invite Aunt Sally to our birthday party? Can dad slip away to the golf course? Can mom get a haircut? </p>
<p>These conflicts reflect two very different mindsets: Some are uneasy about opening up and going against official guidance like wearing masks. Better be safe than sorry, the thinking goes. Others balk at being told what to do, and feel anxious or even angry about the constrictions being put in place.</p>
<p>These differences aren’t just random personality types; <a href="https://www.michelegelfand.com/rule-makers-rule-breakers">they reflect our primal social mindsets</a>. And unless these differences are better understood, it will be that much more difficult to navigate life under COVID-19.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.michelegelfand.com">As a cultural psychologist</a>, I’ve spent the last 25 years researching <a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1197754">the relationship people have toward rules</a>. </p>
<p>Some tend to have what I call a “<a href="https://www.michelegelfand.com/tl-quiz">tight</a>” mindset. They notice rules around them, have a strong desire to avoid mistakes, have a lot of impulse control and love structure and order. </p>
<p>Others have “<a href="https://www.michelegelfand.com/tl-quiz">loose</a>” predispositions. They can be skeptical about rules, they’re willing to take risks, and they’re comfortable with disorder and ambiguity. Neither of these mindsets are intrinsically good or bad. But they can influence the behavior of individuals – even nations.</p>
<h2>An evolutionary adaptation</h2>
<p>At a macro level, think about the immense cultural differences between Singapore and Brazil. According to our research, the former is a tight country. This means that there are many laws and rules in places, and punishments are liberally meted out if people step out of line. In Singapore, you can be fined for spitting and <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-32090420">bringing chewing gum into the country is forbidden</a>.</p>
<p>Brazil, on the other hand, tends to be a loose country and is much more permissive. Loose cultures can seem more disordered, even chaotic, but they also tend to be more tolerant of differences and celebrate creative expression – just look at <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/slideshow/rockin-rio-s-annual-carnival-celebrations-light-sambadrome-n979356">images from the country’s annual Carnival</a>. </p>
<p>At a micro level, think of all the ways these tight-loose tensions play out in households. Are you a helicopter parent or more laid-back? Do your children follow the rules or do they challenge them frequently? Do you leave wet towels on the bed or are they hung neat as a sheet? Do you get “feedback” for the way you haphazardly load the dishwasher, as I do?</p>
<p>These tight-loose differences <a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1197754">can reflect the history of a nation or an individual</a> – whether they’ve experienced war, famine and disease, or higher stress and trauma. In a nutshell, the greater the history of experiencing these threats, the higher likelihood of adopting a tighter mindset. At an evolutionary level, this makes sense: Structure and strong social order can be a bulwark against potential danger.</p>
<p>The sweeping lockdowns related to COVID-19 have accentuated these inclinations. Embracing order and constraint in the face of threat, tight-leaning friends and family members are even more fastidious: They may be disinfecting groceries by hand or wiping down door knobs incessantly. Our looser family members and friends, however, are feeling claustrophobic. A mask feels alien to them, and they may view sweeping public health regulations as overreactions.</p>
<p>It’s no wonder some families <a href="https://happinesson.com/how-to-deal-with-family-conflicts-during-covid-19/">are experiencing</a> high levels of anxiety and friction in their homes. In addition to the stress of a global pandemic, they’re struggling to adapt a new set of social norms that may run counter to their deepest instincts.</p>
<h2>The tight-loose dance</h2>
<p>This struggle need not be paralyzing, though. Instead, understanding where each side is coming from can help society successfully negotiate these differences.</p>
<p>A basic principle – <a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1197754">backed by a lot of evidence</a> – is that when there is real threat, tightening can serve a purpose. For example, when a community has an increasing number of COVID-19 cases that can potentially overwhelm its health system, it’s critical to collectively abide by rules regarding social distancing, masks and hand-washing. People with loose mindsets, who take encroachments on their personal autonomy very seriously, may find this challenging. </p>
<p>But shaming them, judging them or <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/11/arts/social-distance-shaming.html">holding them in contempt</a> isn’t going to be effective. It’s more useful to remind everyone that these constraints are temporary and that the more diligently they’re practiced, the sooner they can be relaxed. Loose-minded citizens can also have a role to play. With their “out of the box” thinking, they can help create new ways to stay connected while distancing – <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRwsHPwz3mA">or invent fun things to do at home</a>.</p>
<p>On the flipside, when the threat subsides, people can loosen up with vigilance. Tight-minded citizens struggle with this because the relaxation of rules makes them feel vulnerable. Indeed, <a href="http://www.cs.umd.edu/%7Enau/papers/roos2015societal.pdf">our research shows</a> that it takes longer for tighter groups to loosen than the reverse. There may be some evolutionary basis for this, since it’s a way to mitigate risk after experiencing threats. </p>
<p>The key here is gradual steps. Tighter folks may panic at a crowded mall or beach. But slowly acclimating them to visits with a trusted friend or neighbor could make the process of reopening smoother. </p>
<p>As countries begin the long journey back to a new normal of economic activity, we’ll all be doing the equivalent of a tight-loose dance with our friends, colleagues and fellow grocery store shoppers. Above all, learning to appreciate the basis for our social differences will go a long way toward defusing potential conflicts. </p>
<p>And the more we can be ambidextrous – tightening when there’s threat and loosening when it’s safe – the better off we’ll all be.</p>
<p>[<em>Get facts about coronavirus and the latest research.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=upper-coronavirus-facts">Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter.</a>]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/139188/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michele Gelfand receives funding from the Department of Defense, FBI, and NSF. </span></em></p>The divide transcends partisan bickering. Some people really do recoil at the imposition of strict rules, while others become anxious when rules aren’t followed.Michele Gelfand, Distinguished University Professor, Department of Psychology, University of MarylandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1373662020-05-04T12:10:20Z2020-05-04T12:10:20ZHow people react to the threat of disease could mean COVID-19 is reshaping personalities<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/332049/original/file-20200501-42929-1vycrp0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=426%2C0%2C4033%2C3037&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Your body wants you to freak out about germs so you avoid them.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/woman-wearing-a-facemask-uses-hand-sanitizer-on-arrival-at-news-photo/1206885636">FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The effects of the coronavirus pandemic will be “<a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/04/01/anthony-fauci-coronavirus-pandemic-159158">imprinted on the personality of our nation for a very long time</a>,” predicted Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.</p>
<p>No doubt in the future people will mourn those who’ve died and remember the challenges of this period. But how would COVID-19 shape people’s personalities – and into what?</p>
<p><a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&authuser=2&user=avPvL6oAAAAJ">I am a psychology researcher</a> interested in how people’s minds shape, and are shaped by, their life circumstances. Human beings are born into this world ready to deal with basic problems – forming close relationships, maintaining status in groups, finding mates and avoiding disease. People are adaptable, though, and react to the circumstances they find themselves in.</p>
<p>Psychological research suggests that concerns about COVID-19 and social distancing are likely to affect how much people want to socialize with others, what they desire in partners and relationships, and their preferences for more conventional thinking over openness to new experiences.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/332050/original/file-20200501-42918-4hfxcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/332050/original/file-20200501-42918-4hfxcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/332050/original/file-20200501-42918-4hfxcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332050/original/file-20200501-42918-4hfxcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332050/original/file-20200501-42918-4hfxcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332050/original/file-20200501-42918-4hfxcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332050/original/file-20200501-42918-4hfxcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332050/original/file-20200501-42918-4hfxcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Viruses, bacteria, parasites – pathogens are all around.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/coronavirus-structure-royalty-free-image/1209865322">Andriy Onufriyenko/Moment via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Psychological traits to keep you safe</h2>
<p>Infectious diseases have <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK114494/">always posed a threat</a>.</p>
<p>As a result, human beings have evolved a <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/immunity-and-the-invertebrates/">physiological immune system</a> designed to detect and defend against pathogens. This is the realm of antibodies, white blood cells and fevers.</p>
<p>But combating disease requires a lot of physiological effort. This <a href="https://doi.org/10.1034/j.1600-0706.2000.880110.x">can be a costly trade-off</a> for a body, leaving fewer resources for other life demands, including growth and reproduction.</p>
<p>These physiological defenses are also a reactive strategy with risks. At worst, the immune system can fail, leading to disability or even death. But it can also weaken and become ineffective or even paradoxically work against you, leading to autoimmune disorders. </p>
<p>To deal with pathogen threats in a proactive and less costly way, human beings also have evolved <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721411402596">psychological mechanisms to detect and defend</a> against the threat of infectious disease prior to infection. This system is vigilant to cues that signal the possibility of infection. When activated, it triggers strong cognitive, emotional and behavioral reactions to help you avoid pathogens – and the people and situations that may harbor them. Reactions <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/a0030778">such as the disgust</a> you’d feel upon the sight of a decaying carcass, for example, reflect these evolved systems that motivate you to steer clear of germs.</p>
<p>Although spending time with others is generally <a href="https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-122216-011902">beneficial to mental and physical health</a>, when there’s a risk of infectious disease, it might have a downside. Interacting with others <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0278-6133.21.3.294">increases exposure to deadly pathogens</a> and could decrease survival. This, after all, is the impetus for social distancing practices.</p>
<p>Like the physiological immune system, the psychological behavioral immune system is flexible – when you perceive some infection risk, it triggers responses to minimize the danger. One such response is withdrawing from other people and becoming less social.</p>
<p>An outbreak also affects how people date and mate. Of all social activities, sexual acts are obviously the most physically intimate, making one most vulnerable to exposure to transmitted diseases (nonsexual as well as sexual). An outbreak also signals a world that is dangerous and more uncertain, potentially coloring your views of suitable partners.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/332051/original/file-20200501-42903-s8f3ds.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/332051/original/file-20200501-42903-s8f3ds.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/332051/original/file-20200501-42903-s8f3ds.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332051/original/file-20200501-42903-s8f3ds.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332051/original/file-20200501-42903-s8f3ds.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332051/original/file-20200501-42903-s8f3ds.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332051/original/file-20200501-42903-s8f3ds.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332051/original/file-20200501-42903-s8f3ds.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">What changes when the infection threat from being around others outweighs the benefits of socializing?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/people-wait-their-turn-to-get-food-at-the-hope-rescue-news-photo/1221075710">MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Avoiding disease motivates changes</h2>
<p>Psychological studies have found that people who perceive themselves as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2009.05.001">vulnerable to infection are more likely to report</a> being less extroverted, less open to new experiences and having more restricted sociosexual attitudes. They are also <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/08870446.2016.1161194">more likely to have fewer partners</a>, reflecting a preference for long-term relationships over casual hookups.</p>
<p>But even momentary exposure to information about infectious disease can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797610361706">shape personality, preferences and behavior</a>. </p>
<p>In experiments, psychologists randomly assigned participants to view a slide show featuring information about germs and transmission of contagious disease or, as an innocuous comparison, a presentation about architecture.</p>
<p>Then, ostensibly as part of another, unrelated study, participants completed a personality test. Those who had been exposed to information about pathogens reported being less extroverted. People who perceived themselves as vulnerable to the disease also became less open to experiences and less agreeable after viewing the pathogen information.</p>
<p>In another study, participants who viewed pathogen information, especially those who perceived themselves as vulnerable, showed evidence of automatically avoiding unknown others. When <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167299025002007">assessing their reflexive, unconscious responses</a>, the researchers found that heightened concerns about pathogens led participants to evaluate strangers more negatively and have heightened tendencies to avoid them.</p>
<p>Other research has shown that exposure to pathogen information <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/ebs0000139">shapes preferences for opposite-sex partners</a>. Both men and women showed greater attraction to pictures of people with facial symmetry – a cue of good health and a strong immune system. Psychologists have linked concerns about pathogen infection with a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2012.08.021">preference for long-term committed relationships</a> over casual flings – an inclination that becomes more pronounced after viewing pathogen information.</p>
<p>These findings are not limited to experimental settings. Scientists have collected some evidence that these in-the-moment responses seem to settle into longer-lasting personality traits.</p>
<p>For example, psychology researchers have investigated the relationship between regions with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.95.1.212">many endemic infectious diseases and personality traits</a>. Those living in a region with a historically high prevalence of infectious disease showed lower levels of extroversion and were less open to new experiences. In these areas, people also were more restricted in their sociosexual style; they preferred fewer partners and fewer sexual encounters and generally reported being more cautious and inhibited in their sexual interactions.</p>
<p>Other research also converges on how basic preferences about suitable partners reflect changes in the prevalence of infectious disease. Psychologists found that across 29 cultures, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/0162-3095(93)90009-7">parasite prevalence predicted</a> the degree to which individuals prioritized physical attractiveness in mate choice, an observable cue signaling that potential partners are pathogen-free and have strong immune systems that can be passed down to offspring.</p>
<p>Findings like these support the idea that personality – the ways in which you interact with others and the world – is shaped by how your behavioral immune system manages the risk of infectious diseases.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/332053/original/file-20200501-42908-4vdo3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/332053/original/file-20200501-42908-4vdo3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/332053/original/file-20200501-42908-4vdo3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332053/original/file-20200501-42908-4vdo3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332053/original/file-20200501-42908-4vdo3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332053/original/file-20200501-42908-4vdo3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=511&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332053/original/file-20200501-42908-4vdo3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=511&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/332053/original/file-20200501-42908-4vdo3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=511&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A socially distanced protest in Washington, D.C.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/in-a-protest-designed-to-adhere-to-social-distancing-and-news-photo/1219388360">Paul Morigi/Getty Images Entertainment via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>COVID-19’s influence</h2>
<p>Cultural norms and practices provide guidelines for how to behave to prevent the spread of disease. Whereas prior to COVID-19 a person sneezing in public might receive a polite “gesundheit,” now it elicits fear. Break the “six feet” rule and you risk an angry exchange, or worse. </p>
<p>The risk of coronavirus is highlighting people’s ability and willingness to follow guidelines for the sake of the community, promoting individuals’ collectivistic side. At the same time, the trade-off is less curiosity, experimentation and willingness to deviate from the status quo – all behaviors that in the face of COVID-19 can increase exposure to pathogens and decrease survival.</p>
<p>The U.S. is only a couple months into social distancing. But COVID-19 is already shaping behavior. People are less social. Dating patterns are disrupted. Effects are emerging even in people’s closest, most established relationships.</p>
<p>Overall the psychological literature supports Fauci’s conclusion that COVID-19 will have enduring effects on the basic ways in which Americans interact with others and the world. Living during a period with a high risk of infection is likely to shape how people view themselves in relation to their <a href="https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2008.0094">community</a>, their feelings and behaviors <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/08870446.2016.1161194">about dating and sex</a>, their <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0022022114532356">preferences toward conventional thinking and behaviors</a> and their <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/ebs0000160">risk-taking in general</a>.</p>
<p>The longer the coronavirus threat lingers, the more these changes may reflect not just changes in momentary behaviors, but changes to more enduring aspects of people’s personalities.</p>
<p>[<em>Get facts about coronavirus and the latest research.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=upper-coronavirus-facts">Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter.</a>]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/137366/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Vivian Zayas receives funding from National Science Foundation. </span></em></p>Human psychology has evolved to avoid situations that could lead to infection. Behavioral choices now could have long-term effects on how people interact with others and the world.Vivian Zayas, Associate Professor of Psychology, Cornell UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1353072020-04-09T02:28:35Z2020-04-09T02:28:35ZPersonalities that thrive in isolation and what we can all learn from time alone<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326384/original/file-20200408-125020-1ydssrl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=15%2C23%2C5147%2C3423&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Anthony Tran/Unsplash</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The coronavirus pandemic has caused tens of thousands of deaths around the world and pushed major economies into a tailspin. Beyond those impacts, almost all of us will face psychological challenges – trying to maintain a responsible social distancing regimen without sliding into psychological <a href="https://theconversation.com/social-distancing-can-make-you-lonely-heres-how-to-stay-connected-when-youre-in-lockdown-133693">isolation and loneliness</a>. </p>
<p>At least we’re all in the same boat, and misery loves company, right?</p>
<p>Actually, we’re not all in the same boat. Generalisations about how the COVID-19 lockdown will affect us overlook the fact people have different personalities. We’re all going to respond in different ways to our changing situation. </p>
<h2>Extraverts and introverts</h2>
<p>Take Bob, for example. After two days working from home Bob couldn’t wait to try a social drinking session over Zoom. But drinking a beer in front of his laptop just wasn’t the same. He’s wondering how he’ll cope in the coming weeks and months, cooped up inside and away from his friends. </p>
<p>He wonders this on a call to his sister, Jan: “I might not get coronavirus but I’m going to get <a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-self-isolation-a-psychologist-explains-how-to-avoid-cabin-fever-133317">cabin fever</a>!”</p>
<p>Jan doesn’t understand Bob’s agitation or why he’s so worried about staying at home. If Jan is feeling bad about anything, it is the guilt of realising she might actually be enjoying the apocalypse – quiet evenings to herself, far from the madding crowd. Bliss! </p>
<p>Jan and Bob are archetypes of people we all know well. Bob represents the classic extravert. He’s talkative, gregarious and highly social. Jan is an introvert. She enjoys solitude and finds rowdy Bob a bit too much. </p>
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<h2>Different people, different responses</h2>
<p>Differences in extraversion-introversion <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2018-63285-007">emerge in early life and are relatively stable over the lifespan</a>. They influence which environments we seek out and how we respond to those environments. </p>
<p>In a <a href="https://theconversation.com/happiness-hinges-on-personality-so-initiatives-to-improve-well-being-need-to-be-tailor-made-102341">recent study</a>, extraverts and introverts were asked to spend a week engaging in higher levels of extravert-typical behaviour (being talkative, sociable, etc). Extraverts reaped several benefits including enhanced mood and feelings of authenticity. Conversely, introverts experienced no benefits, and reported feeling tired and irritable. </p>
<p>The social distancing rules to which we’re all trying to adhere are like a mirror image of this intervention. Now it’s the extraverts who are acting out of character, and who will likely experience decreased well-being in the coming weeks and months. Introverts, on the other hand, have been training for this moment their whole lives.</p>
<p>Why might introverts find isolation easier to deal with than extraverts? Most obviously, they tend to be <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/239522412_Person_and_Thing_Orientations_Psychological_Correlates_and_Predictive_Utility">less motivated to seek out social engagement</a>. Introverts also tend to feel <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236156661_What_you_wish_is_what_you_get_The_meaning_of_individual_variability_in_desired_affect_and_affective_discrepancy">less need to experience pleasure and excitement</a>. This may make them less prone to the boredom that will afflict many of us as social distancing drags on.</p>
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<h2>Looking deeper</h2>
<p>Other aspects of our personalities may also shape our coping during isolation. Consider the remaining four traits in the <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/basics/big-5-personality-traits">Big Five personality model</a>: </p>
<p>People high in <em>conscientiousness</em>, who are <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4492903/">more organised, less distractable and also more adaptable</a>, will find it easier to set up and stick to a structured daily schedule, as many experts recommend. </p>
<p>People high in <em>agreeableness</em>, who tend to be <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-science-of-being-nice-how-politeness-is-different-from-compassion-81819">polite, compassionate and cooperative</a>, will be better equipped to negotiate life in the pockets of family members or housemates. </p>
<p>People high in <em>openness to experience</em>, who tend to be <a href="https://theconversation.com/people-with-creative-personalities-really-do-see-the-world-differently-77083">curious and imaginative</a>, will likely become absorbed in books, music and creative solutions to the humdrum of lockdown. </p>
<p>In contrast, people high in <em>neuroticism</em>, who are more <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2792076/">susceptible to stress and negative emotions</a> than their more stable peers, will be most at risk for anxiety and depression during these challenging times.</p>
<p>Of course, these are all generalisations. Introverts are not immune to loneliness, and those with more vulnerable personalities can thrive with the right resources and social support.</p>
<h2>Life in a capsule</h2>
<p>For some, living under lockdown might feel like working on a space station or Antarctic research facility. What lessons can we draw from personality research in these extreme environments?</p>
<p><a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/pdf/10.1146/annurev.psych.51.1.227">That research shows</a> people who are emotionally stable, self-reliant and autonomous, goal-oriented, friendly, patient and open tend to cope better in conditions of extreme isolation. In particular, it has been observed that “‘sociable [read agreeable] introverts’ – who enjoy, but do not need, social interaction – seem optimally suited for capsule living”.</p>
<p>To manage as best we can in our earthbound and non-polar “capsules”, we might aspire to some of the qualities noted above: to be calm and organised, determined but patient, self-reliant but connected. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/326429/original/file-20200408-179201-uoohmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">For some people, lockdown may provide time for creative pursuits.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jonathan Borba/Unsplash</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Lonelineness versus time alone</h2>
<p>The coronavirus pandemic has arrived on the heels of what some describe as a “loneliness epidemic”, but these headlines <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/loneliness-epidemic">may be overblown</a>. Again, part of what is missing in such descriptions is the fact that clouds for some are silver linings for others. </p>
<p>A counterpoint to the so-called loneliness epidemic is the study of “<a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0191886919303101">aloneliness</a>”, the negative emotions many experience as a result of insufficient time spent alone. As Anthony Storr wrote in <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2005-11953-000">Solitude: A return to the self</a>, “solitude can be as therapeutic as emotional support”, and the capacity to be alone is as much a form of emotional maturity as the capacity to form close attachments.</p>
<p>Of course, some people in lockdown are facing formidable challenges that have nothing to do with their personality. Many have lost their jobs and face economic hardship. Some are completely isolated whereas others share their homes with loved ones. Even so, our response to these challenges reflects not only our predicament, but also ourselves.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135307/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Luke Smillie does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nick Haslam receives funding from the Australian research Council. </span></em></p>The COVID-19 lockdown will affect people differently depending on their personality.Luke Smillie, Associate Professor, The University of MelbourneNick Haslam, Professor of Psychology, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.