Evolution of genetic variation underpinning human personality reflects changing lifestyle and environments in the European Holocene

Abstract

This paper describes the analysis of the evolution of personality traits in the European Holocene. The constantly changing environment, having risks and rewards shift alongside culture and technology, requires humans to adapt their behaviour for survival and efficient use of resources in the environment, thus leading to a lifestyle switch and personality adjustment. The thesis examines how within different time periods and geographic locations human genetic architecture of personality has evolved due to the changing environment. It analyses the main human personality dimensions across six time periods: hunter-gatherer, Neolithic, Chalcolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age, and Modern-day period. The results demonstrate how the polygenic scores for these traits have shifted, which populations according to these scores are genetically more related, and what traits are more expressed in specific regions and times. The findings of genetic variation of personality traits suggest that these modifications might be potentially adaptive to the changing lifestyles and environments in the European Holocene.