PARIS: Personality traits such as moodiness or open-mindedness are linked to the shape of one’s brain, a study said Wednesday.
Researchers said they found a striking correlation between structural brain differences and five main personality types.
“The shape of our brain can itself provide surprising clues about how we behave — and our risk of developing mental health disorders,” said a statement from the University of Cambridge, which took part in the study.
Psychologists have previously developed a “Big Five” model of main personality types: neuroticism (how moody a person is), extraversion (how enthusiastic), open-mindedness, agreeableness (a measure of altruism) and conscientiousness (a measure of self control).
Using brain scans from over 500 people aged 22 to 36, the new study looked at differences in the cortex — the wrinkly outer layer of the brain also known as grey matter.
Specifically it focused on combinations of thickness, surface area, and the number of folds in different people.
“We found that neuroticism… was linked to a thicker cortex and a smaller area and folding in some brain regions,” said study co-author Roberta Riccelli of Italy’s Magna Graecia University.
Conversely, openness, “was associated with a thinner cortex and greater area and folding”.
Neuroticism, the team said, was a trait underlying mental illnesses such as anxiety disorders, whereas “openness” reflects curiosity and creativity.
The deep folds in the human brain were the evolutionary solution to fitting such a large, super-computer into a relatively small skull.
“It’s like stretching and folding a rubber sheet — this increases the surface area, but at the same time the sheet itself becomes thinner,” co-author Luca Passamonti of the University of Cambridge explained in a statement.
