Predicting Life Outcomes with Individual Differences in Personality and Cognitive Ability: A Longitudinal Heritability Study
(2024) PSPR14 20241Department of Psychology
- Abstract
- Numerous studies have examined personality and cognitive ability in relation to life outcomes. However, longitudinal studies examining these relationships are relatively scarce, leaving the extent to which individual differences can account for life outcomes still unclear. The focus of this study was to use the latest European twin data to study personality and cognitive ability as predictors for the life outcomes: education level, occupation, life satisfaction and friendship. Heritability analyses of the variables were performed to provide supporting context to individual differences. A sample of 842 young adults (mean age 23 at Wave 1) using data from the TwinLife project was analysed through a longitudinal within-person correlation... (More)
- Numerous studies have examined personality and cognitive ability in relation to life outcomes. However, longitudinal studies examining these relationships are relatively scarce, leaving the extent to which individual differences can account for life outcomes still unclear. The focus of this study was to use the latest European twin data to study personality and cognitive ability as predictors for the life outcomes: education level, occupation, life satisfaction and friendship. Heritability analyses of the variables were performed to provide supporting context to individual differences. A sample of 842 young adults (mean age 23 at Wave 1) using data from the TwinLife project was analysed through a longitudinal within-person correlation analysis with a four-year period between Wave 1 and Wave 2. Heritability was calculated via Falconer’s formula using data from monozygotic and dizygotic twin pairs. The results show that cognitive ability was the overall best predictor with robust correlations to education level (r = .34) and occupational outcomes (r = .31). Conscientiousness was the strongest predictor out of the personality traits and was associated to life satisfaction (r = .22), education (r = .10) and occupation (r = .11). The heritability of all predictor variables, specifically cognitive ability (h2 = .88) and extraversion (h2 = .89), was high and should be considered when interpreting the results. Limitations regarding reliability of scales and attenuation likely yielded conservative estimates on life outcomes overall. Recommendations for future research is studying the heritability with more comprehensive methods, especially the genetic variance of the correlations themselves.
Keywords: personality, cognitive ability, life outcomes, heritability (Less) - Abstract (Swedish)
- Ett flertal studier har undersökt personlighet och kognitiv förmåga i förhållande till livsutfall. Det är däremot färre longitudinella studier som undersökt dessa samband, vilket medför oklarhet i hur mycket individuella skillnader kan förklara livsutfall. Syftet med denna studie var att använda senaste europeiska tvillingdata för att undersöka personlighet och kognitiv förmåga som prediktorer för livsutfallen: utbildningsnivå, sysselsättning, livstillfredsställelse och vänskap. Heritabilitetsanalyser utfördes även för att kontextualisera individuella skillnader. Ett urval bestående av 842 unga vuxna (medelålder 23 vid första mättillfället) utifrån data från TwinLife-projektet analyserades genom en longitudinell... (More)
- Ett flertal studier har undersökt personlighet och kognitiv förmåga i förhållande till livsutfall. Det är däremot färre longitudinella studier som undersökt dessa samband, vilket medför oklarhet i hur mycket individuella skillnader kan förklara livsutfall. Syftet med denna studie var att använda senaste europeiska tvillingdata för att undersöka personlighet och kognitiv förmåga som prediktorer för livsutfallen: utbildningsnivå, sysselsättning, livstillfredsställelse och vänskap. Heritabilitetsanalyser utfördes även för att kontextualisera individuella skillnader. Ett urval bestående av 842 unga vuxna (medelålder 23 vid första mättillfället) utifrån data från TwinLife-projektet analyserades genom en longitudinell ”within-person”-korrelationsanalys med en fyraårsperiod mellan mätpunkterna. Heritabilitet beräknades med hjälp av Falconers formel genom att jämföra data från monozygota och dizygota tvillingpar. Resultaten visar att kognitiv förmåga var den bästa prediktorvariabeln med robusta korrelationer avseende utbildningsnivå (r = .34) och yrkesrelaterade variabler (r = .31). Samvetsgrannhet var den starkaste prediktorn av personlighetsvariablerna och var kopplad till livstillfredsställelse (r = .22), utbildning (r = .10) och sysselsättning (r = .11). Heritabiliteten av alla prediktorvariabler, specifikt kognitiv förmåga (h2 = .88) och extraversion (h2 = .89), var hög och bör beaktas vid tolkning av övriga resultat. Begränsningar gällande mätskalornas reliabilitet och ”attenuation” (försvagning) genererade sannolikt konservativa uppskattningar av korrelationssamband. Rekommendationer för framtida studier är att använda mer omfattande metoder för heritabilitetsanalys, exempelvis i form av att studera den genetiska variansen i korrelationssambanden. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9159943
- author
- Paulander, Filip LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- PSPR14 20241
- year
- 2024
- type
- H3 - Professional qualifications (4 Years - )
- subject
- keywords
- Personality, cognitive ability, life outcomes, heritability, personlighet, kognitiv förmåga, livsutfall, heritabilitet
- language
- English
- id
- 9159943
- date added to LUP
- 2024-06-17 10:28:20
- date last changed
- 2024-06-17 10:28:20
@misc{9159943,
abstract = {{Numerous studies have examined personality and cognitive ability in relation to life outcomes. However, longitudinal studies examining these relationships are relatively scarce, leaving the extent to which individual differences can account for life outcomes still unclear. The focus of this study was to use the latest European twin data to study personality and cognitive ability as predictors for the life outcomes: education level, occupation, life satisfaction and friendship. Heritability analyses of the variables were performed to provide supporting context to individual differences. A sample of 842 young adults (mean age 23 at Wave 1) using data from the TwinLife project was analysed through a longitudinal within-person correlation analysis with a four-year period between Wave 1 and Wave 2. Heritability was calculated via Falconer’s formula using data from monozygotic and dizygotic twin pairs. The results show that cognitive ability was the overall best predictor with robust correlations to education level (r = .34) and occupational outcomes (r = .31). Conscientiousness was the strongest predictor out of the personality traits and was associated to life satisfaction (r = .22), education (r = .10) and occupation (r = .11). The heritability of all predictor variables, specifically cognitive ability (h2 = .88) and extraversion (h2 = .89), was high and should be considered when interpreting the results. Limitations regarding reliability of scales and attenuation likely yielded conservative estimates on life outcomes overall. Recommendations for future research is studying the heritability with more comprehensive methods, especially the genetic variance of the correlations themselves.
Keywords: personality, cognitive ability, life outcomes, heritability}},
author = {{Paulander, Filip}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Predicting Life Outcomes with Individual Differences in Personality and Cognitive Ability: A Longitudinal Heritability Study}},
year = {{2024}},
}