Are YOU open and agreeable? You’ve got a high chance of going vegan: Fascinating study reveals how our personality traits shape the food we eat
- Vegans and vegetarians are more likely to be open and friendly
- Like a vegan lifestyle, openness is generally associated with egalitarian beliefs
- READ MORE: Your stomach CAN really explode if you eat too much
If you find that you are open to trying new things and are a warm, polite person, then you are more likely to become vegan.
Whereas if you are someone who is more closed off, sticks to your own ways and is a bit obnoxious at times, you are essentially a carnivore.
This is evident from an overview of studies by researchers at the University of Zurich in Switzerland.
They reviewed 17 studies on personality traits and nutrition to determine the traits that determine the food you eat.
“We are interested in the factors that motivate vegetarian and vegan diets because of their potential to have positive impacts on sustainability, animal rights, reducing the risks of zoonotic diseases and public health,” said study author Christopher Hopwood, professor of psychology at the University of Zurich.
Non-meat eaters scored higher on the personality traits of openness and friendliness compared to omnivores, researchers found
Openness reflects curiosity for knowledge and willingness to try new things and is generally linked to liberal or egalitarian political views.
It is also related to solidarity and compassion for animals and a pro-environmental attitude, which translates into veganism.
Agreeableness involves a tendency to be warm-hearted, compassionate and polite, the researchers said, which, like openness, correlates with concerns about animal welfare and the environment.
The researchers found that vegans were even more open compared to vegetarians.
The Swedish team conducted a meta-analysis of studies that looked at personality traits in relation to dietary habits.
A total of 17 studies were included, involving almost 70,000 participants from Germany, the US and New Zealand, among others.
All studies used the Big Five inventory, which measures five personality traits: openness, agreeableness, neuroticism, extraversion, and conscientiousness.
Participants rate on a scale of one to five the extent to which they agree or disagree, based on about fifty short statements, such as ‘I feel at ease with people’ and ‘I have a friendly attitude towards everyone’. word.’
Researchers found that individuals who identified as vegan or vegetarian scored higher on the personality traits of openness and friendliness.
Openness was higher among vegans than among vegetarians and also higher among vegans than among omnivores, while agreeableness was higher among vegans than among omnivores.
The study found no consistent associations between neuroticism, extraversion, conscientiousness and dietary style, suggesting that only openness and agreeableness made a difference.
“We expected that people who were more neurotic would also be more likely to be vegetarians, but we didn’t find that,” Hopwood told PsyPost.
Like a vegan lifestyle, openness is generally associated with left-wing political leanings and egalitarian beliefs.
Women are also more likely to be friendly and more likely to choose a vegan diet.
Kindness is also related to compassion and empathy, as well as concerns about animal welfare and the environment, which could lead someone to lean toward a vegetarian or vegan diet.
The research was published in the journal Pull.
In the US, about five percent of people are vegetarian and three percent are vegan.