As we have frequently said when it comes to felines they can be rather incredible creatures. Most of the time we choose an animal that fits us and sort of matches our personality. Is this true when it comes to our cat’s behaviors though? A recent study might suggest that our cat’s behaviors may actually reflect on what you feel and your personality traits in general. Today we will be talking about this very study and what the results showed. If you have a lap cat, go ahead and bring your furry friend over with you as we discuss the relation of cat behaviors and human personality traits.
Earlier this year a study was performed and published in the scientific journal PLOS One. The study was based on cat behaviors and how they reflect their owner‘s personality traits. The research was carried out by Nottingham Trent University and the University of Lincoln. Between the two universities, they surveyed well over 3000 different kitty cat owners in the United Kingdom. The questions that were mainly asked and discussed were about their own personality and their cat’s as well. Naturally, with any good survey, there is a scoring system to help keep track of the discovered data.
In total, the owners of the cats in question were scored on five categories more commonly known as the Big Five Inventory personality traits. These five traits were agreeableness, conscientiousness, extroversion, openness, and neuroticism. When it came down to this survey those five factors were everything. Most of the scientists that conducted the survey believed that cats do indeed reflect our very own personalities, but they had to test it to make sure. After hours of research and speaking with thousands of cat owners, they all have the results. It turned out that certain traits were related to certain kitty cat behaviors.
A great example is that some of these cats exhibited some type of behavioral problem that their owner had mentioned. Whether your cat is not using their litter box, hissing or growling at you, or just generally misbehaving it is usually related back to a specific trait that you as the owner have. The owners of cats who had high neuroticism scores were usually the ones who complained of some type a behavior problem. These owners, in particular, would often have other negative traits about them as well. Just like the very first trait, these other traits showed in their kitty cats as well.
Other negative traits included stress-related illness, aggressiveness, anxiety, fear, and even being overweight. With this little bit of information that we already have, it is easy to say that the results are very fascinating. This is so interesting because humans have been known to do this as well. If you are around a person who is negative all of the time, most of the time you may begin to act similarly in ways because that is what you are used to when it comes to communication. Who knew that our fuzzy felines were so similar to us in so many ways?
The same results happened in owners with more positive traits as well. The owners of cats who are generally more positive did not really complain or mention of many, (if any), behavior problems. In this type of environment, more of the cats seemed to not be overweight, were not as aggressive, and do not show nearly as many avoidant or aloof like tendencies. It is very possible that it is your own personality or a specific trait that can set cats off. It is always a good thing to try and stay positive especially around your animals since they can pick up on your traits…
The study was also conducted on dogs and a very similar trend was noticed. The more neurotic the dog owners were, the more behavior problems they experienced with their dogs along with other negative traits. As well the more agreeable or open one of the dog owners was, the more behaved their dog was and the dog did not show really any negative traits in general. Most of us consider our pets to be our best friends and closest family member which is why we usually form such close and loving bonds with them. Due to this, it makes it very easy for our cats to be affected by the way we act in general.
