Project Talent Mortality Study (2016-2020)

The Project Talent Personality and Mortality Study will focus on a subset of 94,000 original study participants who also took part in the 11-year follow-up, when they were aged between 29 and 34 years old. The study investigates the impact that personality traits and early life socioeconomic status have on mortality, their differing impact on racial minorities and on men and women, and the role of mediating factors, such as IQ. A more precise understanding of the correlation between personality, socioeconomic status at birth, and mortality can inform targeted health policies and interventions that are more effective at fostering responsible health behaviors and alleviating the severe health inequalities that exist across the socioeconomic spectrum. This study is being conducted with funding from the NIA (R01 AG053155-01; Chapman, Lapham).