The shape and characteristics of this organ are linked to five basic traits of human personalityPersonality characteristics may be related to the shape of the brain, revealed a study that measured the correlation between structural differences in the organ and the five main personality types.
"The shape of our brains can provide surprising insights into our behavior and our risk of developing mental disorders," the University of Cambridge, which participated in the study, said in a statement.
For the research, a group of American, British and Italian psychologists identified five basic elements of personality: the level of neuroticism, extroversion, open-mindedness, agreeableness and conscientiousness.
Researchers looked at scans of 500 people between the ages of 22 and 36 to examine differences in the cortex, the brain's cortex where gray matter is located.
The experts focused on measuring the thickness, area and number of folds that different people had.
“We found that the level of neurosis (…) is related to a thicker cortex with a smaller area and fewer folds in some regions,” said Roberta Riccelli, a professor at Italy’s Magna Graecia University and co-author of the study.
Conversely, open-mindedness “was associated with a thinner cortex, a larger area, and more folds.”
In addition to being scanned, all participants completed questionnaires that scientists used to determine their perceptions of their personalities, focusing on the five personality areas studied.
“A crucial step”
This study is the first to link these five traits with differences in brain shape, Riccelli told AFP.
This is “a crucial step in improving our understanding of mental illness,” the expert said.
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"This may give us the opportunity to preemptively identify people at high risk of developing mental illness, which has obvious implications for rapid intervention," he said.
The researchers addressed a question that has occupied philosophers and scientists for centuries: whether humans are a product of genetics or nurture and environment.
The study, published in the Journal Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, however, did not conclusively show a link between brain shape and personality type, the authors noted.
"We can't answer the question of what comes first, the chicken or the egg," said Riccelli, who stressed that brain shape is determined by genetics as well as environmental factors.
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Researchers are aware that further studies are needed to continue the discoveries made. In fact, one of the authors of this work, Michael Anderson, considered that although the study was successful, it was difficult to carry out and interpret, due to the complexity involved in analyzing the human brain.
Source: Based on AFP
