What your choice of snack says about your personality: study

Maybe that’s why you have a “sweet” demeanor.

Scientists have found that people with a sweet tooth generally boast a more friendly disposition, according to a study published in the Journal of Research In Personality.

“Research has shown that a preference for sweet foods is related to liking,” says the study, which was compiled by researchers at Pennsylvania’s Gettysburg College.

In fact, these findings may be why we describe fitter people as “sweet” in the Western lexicon.

While this correlation between sugar cravings and sweet-tooth behavior has previously been observed in the US, it’s unclear whether this rule applied internationally—until now.

To test whether this connection was universal, researchers recruited 1,629 participants and asked them to fill out a survey to assess their levels of openness, conscientiousness, agreeableness, extraversion and neuroticism, the Daily Mail reported.

They were then asked to rate 10 saccharine items—ranging from candy to maple syrup and raisins—on a scale of one (dislike a lot) to six (like a lot).

Finally, they ranked their taste for sweet, sour, salty, bitter and spicy foods to see where they fell on the taste spectrum.

They found that there was a cross-cultural correlation between kindness and having a sweet tooth.

“Preference for sweet foods is a universal human characteristic that is described as positive,” the researchers stated.

While there are likely many factors behind this connection, the researchers conclude that it is mostly about language rather than the psychological outcome of a sugar infusion.

“If people understand that sweetness and beauty are metaphorically linked, and people believe that they are either pleasant or like sweet foods, people may seek consistency by seeing themselves as someone who is pleasant and likes sweet foods. sweet”, they wrote. “People can resonate with experiences that ‘fit’ their personalities. Metaphors can be a way to examine this adaptation.”

Ultimately, “the exact mechanisms involved in the effects cannot be determined,” as the research is “correlative” in nature, the researchers concluded.

There’s no telling if hot sauce fans have a fiery temper, savory teeth are salty, or trail mix lovers are a little frosty.

However, past research has shown an association between psychopathic, antisocial, and sadistic personality traits and the enjoyment of bitter foods.