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The United States of Mind: Researchers Identify Regional Personality Traits Across America – WSJ.com

Different states have different personality traits. Examples: New York is less extraverted, less agreeable, and less conscientious than Pennsylvania, but more open. The two states are equally neurotic. See what your state’s like and how that correlates to other data. COOL.

Amiable states, like Minnesota, tend to be lower in crime. Dutiful states — an eclectic bunch that includes New Mexico, North Carolina and Utah — produce a disproportionate share of mathematicians. States that rank high in openness to new ideas are quite creative, as measured by per-capita patent production. But they’re also high-crime and a bit aloof. Apparently, Californians don’t much like socializing, the research suggests. As for high-anxiety states, that group includes not just Type A New York and New Jersey, but also states stressed by poverty, such as West Virginia and Mississippi. As a group, these neurotic states tend to have higher rates of heart disease and lower life expectancy.