A major international genetics study has found that one personality trait may be linked to spending more time in the hospital, highlighting the potential influence personality can have on health outcomes. Researchers identified more than 1,200 genetic variants associated with the "Big Five" personality traits: openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness and neuroticism. They also found that many of the same genetic patterns tied to personality were linked to a range of life outcomes, including health, longevity, education, career paths and income.
The study was led by the Revived Genomics of Personality Consortium and combined data from 46 research cohorts around the world. Participants provided DNA samples and completed questionnaires measuring the Big Five personality traits. While the researchers found no single gene responsible for personality, they uncovered hundreds of genetic variants that together appear to contribute to how people think, feel and behave.
"There is no single 'personality gene,'" Ted Schwaba, the lead author of the study and an assistant professor at Michigan State University's Department of Psychology, said in a statement. "Personality traits are associated with many genetic variants, but even the largest effects of individual genetic variants are still very small. However, even though any individual genetic variant makes very little difference in personality, the effects of many variants together can be more sizeable," he continued.
One of the study's findings was a link between genetic variants associated with neuroticism and spending more time in the hospital. Neuroticism is a personality trait associated with experiencing more negative emotions, such as anxiety, worry and sadness. Ayodele Ajayi, a consultant psychiatrist who was not involved in the study, about why the trait could be linked to longer hospital stays.
Schwaba said, "Genetic variants associated with neuroticism predict more time spent in the hospital, which is relevant to physicians and health researchers." Ajayi said people with higher levels of neuroticism may present with more complex or co-occurring conditions that require additional assessment, treatment or discharge planning. He continued: "Greater sensitivity to stressful events and psychological distress may also make it harder to adjust to a diagnosis, tolerate uncertainty or cope with treatment and recovery. "In addition, patterns associated with neuroticism, including a higher perceived need for care and, in some people, less adaptive coping behaviors such as smoking or excessive alcohol use, could contribute to greater service use or complicate recovery." Ajayi stressed that the findings should be interpreted as an association rather than proof of cause and effect and warrant further investigation.
"Importantly, the research as described does not delineate whether the longer hospital stays were for physical health conditions, mental health conditions, or a combination of both," he said. The research found that genetic patterns associated with personality traits overlapped with those linked to mental and physical health, longevity, education and career outcomes. Some associations involved everyday habits.
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