Personality of Place: Why It Really, Really Matters Where You Live

From bustling city streets to small towns and rolling hills, each place we lay our hat has its own unique personality. Call it a vibe, an impression or simply a feeling that you can’t define, you sense it from the moment you step out of your car and breathe in the air around you.

But what creates each place’s personality? The short answer is: the people. The personality trends of the people that live in an area are at least partly responsible for creating its overall atmosphere. 

To help you visualize that reality, we’ve launched the Personality Atlas, an interactive map that shows the Big Five personality traits of a city or region. At the click of a button, you can see the major personality trends in any given region, allowing you to explore the possible vibe of that area for places all around the globe.

“With one of the most popular Big Five assessments online, we were able to gather global data from millions of test takers. By combining users’ Big Five scores with their IP address, we were able to map out personality trends across various regions,” explains Megan Malone, brand and content manager at Truity.

So, why does it matter? In the following article, we’ll be exploring why the personality of place is important, how you can use the Personality Atlas to your advantage, and everything in between.

Where in the world do you truly belong? Take Truity’s free “What City Do I Belong In?” test to discover the place that matches your unique personality.

Home is More than a Physical Place

Cast your mind back to your childhood and envision your hometown. You are instantly flooded with feelings of warmth, familiar faces and effortlessly unlocked memories. While “home” is a place that you can likely still visit, the word conjures more than merely an environment. Your sense of this place is woven into your everyday life, your character, your being.

 “Our sense of home is more than just a physical space; it's a psychological construct deeply intertwined with our personalities,” explains Dr. Jameca Woody Cooper, PhD, ABPP Board Certified in Counseling Psychology and Criminal Psychology Consultant. “Individuals are attached to their home environments because a home's comforting and reassuring surroundings, with its familiar sights, sounds and smells, provide a sense of security and stability.”

And it’s not merely comfort that we find when we think of home. The place where we were raised also made us who we are. In the nature versus nurture argument, it’s clear that the environment in which we grow up has a huge hand in who we later become.

“Home has a profound impact on shaping our personality,” continues Woody Cooper. “The individuals with whom we share our living spaces, as well as those we encounter in face-to-face interactions and on digital platforms, hold considerable sway over our beliefs, values and actions. By observing and emulating the behaviors and traditions of those in our immediate environment, we internalize social norms, linguistic intricacies and cultural practices, all of which play a part in shaping our sense of community and our identity.”

While there’s always an element of nature to go along with that nurture, we are likely to be influenced by the people around us. 

Logic therefore follows that if we grow up in a largely Agreeable city (say Dayton, Ohio, which scored highest in the US on this “friendliness” trait) we might grow up to have an Agreeable nature. Similarly, people who are raised around Extraverts (in Cincinnati, Ohio, for example) may well become a more Extraverted person. Stereotypes aside, there could be truth to the idea that your hometown defines at least a part of your personality.

“Growing up in an area with high levels of Agreeableness can help you develop a community-oriented mindset,”  explains Dr. Max Doshay, CEO and Co-Founder of Monima Wellness. “Individuals may develop traits such as kindness, empathy and cooperation due to current social norms that value harmonious and supportive interactions. These environments frequently encourage collaboration, conflict resolution and emotional intelligence.”

“Our cultural upbringing and environment influence our personality traits to an extent. It’s the old nature vs. nurture argument. There are certain traits that are innate and others that are influenced by the environment we grew up in as well as where we live now,” says Malone. “Whether it’s our neighborhood, workplace, religious institution or circle of friends, all of these external influences shape how we show up in the world.”

Family Dynamics Shape You, Too

While the personality trends in your hometown are sure to have an impact on you, it would be foolish to overlook your immediate home environment. Your parents’ or caregivers’ personalities are likely to have had an impact on how you process things and the type of person you are.

“The home environment is the first social setting in which we learn about relationships, values and behaviors,” says Doshay. “We form our first relationships with caregivers and siblings at home, which shapes how we perceive ourselves and others. A nurturing and supportive home environment, for example, can promote qualities like openness, agreeableness and emotional stability.”

Of course, there’s a dark side to this story. For people whose early childhood experiences were negative, more anxious character traits can develop and take time to unlearn. Issues like these can often be approached with therapy, allowing people to work through the experiences they had.

“In contrast, a chaotic or neglectful home environment may contribute to the development of characteristics such as anxiety, distrust or low self-esteem,” says Doshay. “These early experiences are critical because they lay the groundwork for our inner schemas—cognitive frameworks that shape how we interpret our surroundings.”

The Role of Socio-Economic Environments

It doesn’t start and end in your hometown, either. The socio-economic environment of where you live can also have a massive impact on your personality and outlook on the world. As you wander through life, you may find that this aspect of a place becomes ever-more important.

“The broader political and economic environment also influences our personalities. Economic instability, for example, can cause increased stress and anxiety, affecting personality traits like emotional stability and optimism,” says Doshay. “On the other hand, a stable economic environment can provide individuals with the resources they require to pursue personal growth and self-actualization.”

Your personality may guide you toward certain places, too. For instance, if you are interested in a particular field, you might find certain places are prime for that. That, in turn, could align with specific personality traits, meaning that a large group of people with a similar outlook live in the same area. This phenomenon may be part of the reason each place has a specific personality.

 “The economy and job market certainly seem to play a part. Certain jobs seem to attract specific personality types,” says Malone. “For example, computer science and engineering draws more analytical, introverted people, many of whom score lower in Agreeableness. This might explain why tech hubs like Portland have more introverts and why San Jose, at the heart of the tech world, is ranked as the least Agreeable city in the U.S.”

We’re All Looking for “Our People”

 If—when you look at the Personality Atlas—your first thought is that you align with the trends in your area, that may not be the coincidence you think it is. Whether you’ve decided to live in your hometown or you’ve naturally gravitated further afield, there could be a good reason.

“People are attracted to places where they can be around similar, like-minded people. For instance, people who score high in Agreeableness often prefer calmer, less crowded areas, and they might even contribute to that relaxed vibe in their neighborhoods. That could explain why this trait is more common in rural states and less in bustling cities,” says Malone.

 “Similarly, states with more rural populations, like Iowa and North Dakota, tend to rank lower in Openness,” she continues. “This fits with existing research that suggests that people in less densely populated areas are often less open to new experiences. People who are naturally higher in Openness may feel like they don’t fit in as well and opt to move to areas where Openness is more prominent.”

When you’re next looking to up sticks and find somewhere new to live, you might want to check the Personality Atlas first. The tool gives you the chance to check out the general trends in the areas you’re considering before you move there. Understanding the atmosphere of a place could be as important as knowing what amenities are nearby and checking out the crime rates. 

Conclusion

The places where you grew up and where you live now both shape your personality in profound ways. Often without realizing it, we’re drawn to environments that reflect and amplify our own traits—places where we can find “our people.” While the personality of a place can be hard to put into words, you instinctively recognize it when you experience it. Wherever you call home, there’s a deep sense of comfort in knowing that you and those around you share a similar way of being.

Curious which city truly fits you? Take Truity’s free “What City Do I Belong In?” test to discover the place that matches your unique personality. Using the Big Five personality traits, this fun and insightful quiz reveals where in the world your temperament, lifestyle and values are most at home. Whether you’re dreaming of a big move or just love learning more about yourself, this test is a great way to explore where you belong. Take the test now!