Understanding how personality traits differ by region is more than just ‘a bit of fun’. Geographical differences are associated with a range of economic, social and health outcomes – and hence how important resources are allocated.
- Jason Rentfrow
Among its findings, it shows Scots to be among the friendliest and most co-operative residents, Londoners the most open and Welsh people the least emotionally stable.
Researchers from the University of Cambridge used the data to analyse a sample of just under 400,000 people from England, Wales or Scotland (Northern Ireland was excluded as sample sizes were too small), around two-thirds of whom were female. The results of their study are published in the journal PLOS ONE.
The study is based on data that was gathered as part of the Big Personality Test, an online survey published by the BBC in 2009 as part of a collaboration between the BBC and the scientific community, BBC Lab UK.
“Understanding how personality traits differ by region is more than just ‘a bit of fun’,” explains Dr Jason Rentfrow from the Department of Psychology at the University of Cambridge and Fellow at Fitzwilliam College. “Geographical differences are associated with a range of economic, social and health outcomes – and hence how important resources are allocated. Although participants in an online test are self-selecting, the demographic characteristics are representative of the British population, so we can develop an accurate snapshot of the psychology of the nation.”
The test looked at five personality traits: extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, emotional stability and openness.
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Image:Scotland ~ Day 2
Credit: Rick Harris
Reproduced courtesy of the University of Cambridge
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