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By Lucy Notarantonio
Senior Reporter
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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.
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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.
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"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.
How Personality May Link to Hospital Time
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.
Newsweek spoke with Dr. T. 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.
How Personality, Genetics and Environment Interact
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. Genetic variants linked to conscientiousness were also associated with being more active during the day, while variants tied to openness to experience and extraversion were linked to a greater tendency to be a night owl.
Researchers also found evidence that personality, genetics and environment interact with one another rather than operating independently.
For example, genetic variants associated with openness to experience were linked to a greater likelihood of moving to a more cosmopolitan neighborhood. Researchers suggested that living in such an environment could then help reinforce or further shape that personality trait.
Schwaba also said, "Variants associated with openness to experience are linked to income and switching jobs, which is relevant to vocational researchers."
Genetics Are Only Part of the Story
The researchers compared participants' genetic data with differences in their personality scores to identify variants associated with each trait. Although the effect of any individual variant was small, their combined influence was more substantial and appeared consistent across different populations.
For example, genetic variants associated with extraversion in a young adult in the Netherlands could also help predict extraversion in an older retired adult in the United States. Analyses comparing relatives also suggested the associations could not simply be explained by shared environments.
Still, genetics is only part of the picture. The findings also reinforced the important role a person's environment plays in shaping personality.
"Personality seems to be relevant nearly everywhere you look. We hope this study will encourage many other scientists to incorporate personality traits into their fields of study," Schwaba said.
The findings suggest that studying the genetics of personality could have implications beyond psychology, potentially informing research in medicine, health, education and the workplace.
Reference
Schwaba, T., Clapp Sullivan, M.L., Akingbuwa, W.A., et al. (2026). Robust inference and correlates from genetic associations with personality. Nature. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-026-10992-9
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