Archive · 4 Sep 2026
Study Links 1,200 Gene Variants to Personality and Life Outcomes
Scientists studied whether genes help influence people’s personalities.
They examined five broad traits: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness and neuroticism.
Data from 46 groups around the world were combined.
The researchers found more than 1,200 gene variants associated with these traits.
No single gene determines a person’s personality.
Each variant usually has a very small effect, but many variants together may have a larger influence.
The same genetic links to extraversion appeared in people from the Netherlands and the United States.
The study also found that genes related to personality were connected with health, education and work outcomes.
However, people’s surroundings and experiences remain important in shaping who they become.
Researchers combined 46 cohorts and identified more than 1,200 gene variants associated with the Big Five personality traits.
The traits studied were openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness and neuroticism.
Personality-related genetic variants were also associated with health, education, longevity, careers and health behaviors.
Individual variants had very small effects, while their combined influence could be more substantial.
The researchers said environment also shapes personality, including through experiences such as living in cosmopolitan neighborhoods.
- Who
- An international team in the Revived Genomics of Personality Consortium, led by Ted Schwaba, conducted the study.
- What
- The researchers analyzed genetic associations with the Big Five personality traits and their links to life outcomes.
- When
- The findings were published in the journal Nature; the articles do not provide a publication date.
- Where
- The study combined 46 cohorts from around the world, including participants in the Netherlands and the United States.
- Why
- The researchers aimed to investigate the genetic basis of personality and its relationship with consequential behaviors and life outcomes.
Genetic Influence
Environmental Influence
What shapes personality?
Genetic Influence
The study found that many genetic variants are associated with personality traits, and their combined effects can be substantial.
Environmental Influence
The researchers emphasized that genes are not the whole story and that environments and experiences continue to shape personality.
How should the findings be interpreted?
Genetic Influence
Genetic variants associated with personality were also linked to health, education, careers, longevity and other life outcomes.
Environmental Influence
The articles describe these relationships as associations or partial predictions, not as evidence that a single gene determines personality or outcomes.
Role of surroundings
Genetic Influence
Genetic links to traits appeared across different groups, including young adults in the Netherlands and older retirees in the United States.
Environmental Influence
Variants linked to openness were associated with moving to cosmopolitan neighborhoods, while living in those neighborhoods may further reinforce openness.
- Traits studied
- Openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness and neuroticism
- Genetic findings
- More than 1,200 gene variants were associated with the Big Five traits
- Research scale
- Results were combined from 46 distinct cohorts worldwide
- Individual effects
- The effects of individual genetic variants were very small
- Associated outcomes
- Health, mental and physical health, longevity, education, career paths, health behaviors and social perceptions
- Environmental influence
- Environment remained a major factor in shaping personality
- Publication
- The findings were published in Nature
