Personality

Your personality is your usual way of thinking, feeling and acting.¹ It is the part of you that friends would describe if someone asked, "What are they like?" Maybe you are quiet and careful. Maybe you are talkative and quick to try new things.

Personality is not a mental health condition. Everyone has one, and there is no right or wrong kind. But your traits shape how you handle stress, how you get along with people and how you look after your health. Knowing them can help you understand yourself and choose what kind of help fits you. This page gives the big picture and links to our detailed pages.

What is personality?

The American Psychological Association describes personality as a lasting pattern of traits, feelings and behaviors. Together, they make up a person's own way of dealing with life. It is shaped by heredity, upbringing, culture, relationships and key life events.¹

A trait is a tendency, not a rule. Someone who is outgoing still has quiet days. Someone who is calm can still panic in a real emergency. Traits describe what you do most of the time, across many places and many years.

Personality is different from mood. A mood can change in an hour. A trait describes how you tend to be over months and years.

The Big Five: a well-tested model

The Big Five, also called the five-factor model, sorts personality into five broad traits. It is used in a large body of research. One summary of health studies alone pooled 36 research reviews that used it.⁵ In a study of 50 cultures, people rated someone they knew well. The same five-trait pattern showed up in most cultures and could be seen in all of them.³

Most people land somewhere in the middle on most traits. Very few people are at an extreme on all five. Read more in The Big Five traits. Another model, called HEXACO, adds a sixth trait about sincerity and fairness. We explain it on the same page.

Temperament: where personality starts

Babies and toddlers differ from the start. Some are bold and active. Others are shy or slow to warm up. This early style is called temperament.

In a long New Zealand study, researchers watched about 1,000 three-year-olds. They checked on almost all of them again at age 26. The children's early styles, such as being shy and inhibited or restless and hard to control, predicted their adult personality.⁸ Temperament is a starting point, not a final answer. Traits shift a lot during childhood and the teen years.⁹

How much comes from genes, and how much from life?

Both matter. A large review pooled studies of twins, families and adopted children, with more than 100,000 people in all. It found that about 40% of the differences in personality between people are linked to genes. About 60% are linked to environment.⁴ Twin studies gave higher estimates (about 47%) than family and adoption studies (about 22%).⁴

"Environment" here means much more than how your parents raised you. It includes friends, school, work, marriage, illness, loss, culture and plain chance. Genes shape tendencies. They do not decide who you will become.

How stable is personality?

Personality is fairly steady, but it is not set in stone. A large review of long-term studies looked at how much people keep their place compared with others over time. This kind of stability grows through childhood and the teen years, then levels off in young adulthood.⁹

At the same time, most people change in small, slow ways as they age. In a study of more than 130,000 adults aged 21 to 60, people became more organized and responsible across the whole age range. They also became warmer and kinder, especially in their 30s.¹⁰ Emotional stability keeps rising across life.⁹ Life events and effort can also shift traits. See Can personality change?

Why traits matter for health and mental health

Personality is linked to how people feel, how they cope and how they live. A large summary of 36 earlier reviews, covering more than 500,000 people, found that the Big Five traits were moderately linked to overall health. The links were strongest for mental health. Neuroticism, conscientiousness and agreeableness mattered most.⁵

• Neuroticism has the strongest link to common problems like depression and anxiety.¹¹
• Conscientiousness is linked to healthier habits and a longer life. Seven large studies followed about 76,000 adults. People in the lowest third for this trait had about 1.4 times the risk of dying during follow-up, compared with everyone else.⁶

These are links seen across large groups. They do not decide any one person's future. Read more in Personality and mental health.

No trait is good or bad in every situation

It is easy to think high scores are "better." Research does not support that. One scientist argued that each Big Five trait is a trade-off. Each end brings benefits in some settings and costs in others.⁷

For example, a person high in neuroticism may suffer more from worry. But the same alertness can help them spot problems early. A very agreeable person may be well liked but find it hard to say no. A quiet person may enjoy deep focus and close friendships. Your traits are a starting point for knowing what you need, not a grade.

Traits are not disorders

Strong traits are normal. A personality disorder is different. It is diagnosed when patterns are so rigid and extreme that they cause serious distress or trouble at work, at home and in relationships over a long time.¹² See Personality traits vs. personality disorders and our personality disorders topic.

Personality in later life

On average, people grow more emotionally steady with age.⁹ But a big, new personality change in an older adult is not a normal part of aging. It can be a sign of depression, a medicine side effect or a brain illness such as dementia, and it should be checked by a doctor. See Personality in later life.

Learn about your own traits

You can take our free personality test. It uses the Mini-IPIP, 20 public-domain statements that measure the Big Five. It was built as a short version of a longer test and holds up well in research.² Your answers stay in your browser.

Our MindCheck self-check includes the same 20 statements. It uses your trait scores only to fit its suggestions to you. It is not a diagnosis. To learn how to read any test result wisely, see Personality tests.

All personality pages

• The Big Five personality traits
• Personality tests: what they can and cannot tell you
• Personality and mental health
• Can personality change?
• Personality traits vs. personality disorders
• Personality in later life

Related: Personality disorders, Stress, Emotion regulation, Introvert, extrovert or ambivert quiz and Know yourself tools.

Explore personality

When to get help

You do not need help for having a certain personality. But talk with a doctor or mental health professional if:

• Worry, low mood, anger or mood swings get in the way of daily life
• The same problems keep coming back in many relationships or jobs
• You or your family notice a big change in your personality, especially after age 50

If you are thinking about suicide, call or text 988 at any time. If someone is in danger right now, call 911. See Get help now.

Education only. This page is general information written from the sources listed. It is not medical, legal or financial advice and does not replace a doctor, therapist or lawyer who knows your situation. How we write and check pages.