第3003期:Does where you grow up shape your personality?

Would you be the same person if you'd grown up in different surroundings? How might you be different if you'd grown up in an urban versus a rural environment, or in a different country altogether? This is the age-old, nature-nurture debate that has had people pondering for many years. Is your personality written in your genes or shaped by your experience? Most experts agree that it is a combination of both. Let's hear about ways this can be put to the test.

如果你在不同的环境中长大，你还会是同一个人吗？ 如果你是在城市环境中长大，而不是在乡村环境中长大，或者在完全不同的国家中长大，你会有什么不同？ 这是一个古老的、先天与后天的争论，多年来一直引起人们的思考。 你的性格是由你的基因决定的还是由你的经历塑造的？ 大多数专家都认为这是两者的结合。 让我们听听可以对此进行测试的方法。

A common way is to study twin pairs, because if personality came only from genes, you might expect identical twins to have the same, or a very similar, personality. Research called 'Meta-analysis of the heritability of human traits based on fifty years of twin studies' looked at 14 million twin pairs in 39 countries. Do identical twins, who share almost identical DNA, have more similar personalities than non-identical twins, who share about half? By comparing the two, the authors concluded that about 50% of the differences between people can be explained by genetic factors, meaning that our genes play a significant role in shaping who we are, but our environment and experiences are just as important.

一种常见的方法是研究双胞胎，因为如果性格仅来自基因，您可能会期望同卵双胞胎具有相同或非常相似的性格。 名为“基于 50 年双胞胎研究的人类特征遗传性荟萃分析”的研究对 39 个国家的 1400 万对双胞胎进行了研究。 拥有几乎相同 DNA 的同卵双胞胎是否比拥有大约一半 DNA 的异卵双胞胎拥有更多相似的性格？ 通过比较两者，作者得出结论，人与人之间大约 50% 的差异可以通过遗传因素来解释，这意味着我们的基因在塑造我们是谁方面发挥着重要作用，但我们的环境和经历也同样重要。

Other studies looked to see whether personality traits were more prevalent in certain geographical regions than in others. For example, in a 2015 study called 'Regional Personality Differences in Great Britain', researchers investigated how the 'Big Five' personality traits, which include extraversion, openness and agreeableness, were geographically distributed. They found there were areas where each trait was more prevalent. For example, agreeableness, which is about friendliness and trust, was more prevalent in the Scottish Highlands and Northern England – more rural areas with lower population densities. Whereas openness, which is associated with curiosity and intellect, was more prevalent in urban, densely populated areas like London, Manchester and Brighton, suggesting that a person's environment can help to foster various traits.

其他研究旨在了解人格特质在某些地理区域是否比其他区域更普遍。 例如，在 2015 年一项名为“英国的区域人格差异”的研究中，研究人员调查了“五大”人格特征（包括外向性、开放性和宜人性）的地理分布。 他们发现每种特征在某些领域更为普遍。 例如，关于友善和信任的宜人性在苏格兰高地和英格兰北部——人口密度较低的农村地区更为普遍。 而与好奇心和智力相关的开放性在伦敦、曼彻斯特和布莱顿等人口稠密的城市地区更为普遍，这表明一个人的环境有助于培养各种特质。

While our DNA provides a starting point, it is only part of the jigsaw puzzle that makes our personality. As we go through life, we encounter obstacles, we make mistakes, and we learn what we enjoy through experience – all of which can change how we interact with the world.

虽然我们的 DNA 提供了一个起点，但它只是构成我们个性的拼图的一部分。 在我们的一生中，我们会遇到障碍，我们会犯错误，我们会通过经验了解我们喜欢什么——所有这些都可以改变我们与世界互动的方式。