Did the pandemic change our personalities?
Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP via Getty Images
New research found Americans are grumpier thanks to the pandemic.
Usually, disasters make people kinder and more willing to help, but COVID-19 had the opposite effect on the population.
People’s Big Five personality traits changed in just 2 years at a level that usually happens over the course of 10 years.
If it seems like everyone around you is more on edge lately — ready to snap at friends, family, and strangers — well, they most likely are.
New research looked into our so-called Big Five personality traits: agreeableness, conscientiousness, extraversion, neuroticism, and openness. The study found those traits changed during the pandemic — for the worse.
Insider’s Adam Rogers talked with The Refresh about why this crisis was different than others, and what it could mean for our future.
Take a listen here:
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