Quirk: Brain Science Makes Sense of Your Peculiar Personality

by Hannah Holmes

Who are you? It’s the most fundamental of human questions. Are you the type of person who tilts at windmills, or the one who prefers to view them from the comfort of an air-conditioned motorcoach? Our personalities are endlessly fascinating—not just to ourselves but also to our spouses, our parents, our children, our co-workers, our neighbors. As a highly social species, humans have to navigate among an astonishing variety of personalities. But how did all these different permutations come about? And what purpose do they serve?

With her trademark wit and sly humor, Hannah Holmes takes readers into the amazing world of personality and modern brain science. Using the Five Factor Model, which slices temperaments into the major factors (Extraversion, Neuroticism, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Openness) and minor facets (such as impulsive, artistic, or cautious), Holmes demonstrates how our genes and brains dictate which factors and facets each of us displays. Are you a Nervous Nelly? Your amygdala is probably calling the shots. Hyperactive Hal? It’s all about the dopamine.

Each facet took root deep in the evolution of life on Earth, with Nature allowing enough personal variation to see a species through good times and bad. Just as there are introverted and extroverted people, there are introverted and extroverted mice, and even starfish. In fact, the personality genes we share with mice make them invaluable models for the study of disorders like depression, schizophrenia, and anxiety. Thus it is deep and ancient biases that guide your dealings with a very modern world. Your personality helps to determine the political party you support, the car you drive, the way you eat M&Ms, and the likelihood that you’ll cheat on your spouse.

Drawing on data from top research laboratories, the lives of her eccentric friends, the conflicts that plague her own household, and even the habits of her two pet mice, Hannah Holmes summarizes the factors that shape you. And what she proves is that it does take all kinds. Even the most irksome and trying personality you’ve ever encountered contributes to the diversity of our species. And diversity is the key to our survival.
 

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Psychology, Neuroscience, Audiobook, Brain, Popular Science

288 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2011

Reviews

[Eugenie Octopus · Rating 1 out of 5]

First, let me say that Holmes has the most irritating writing style I think I've ever encountered. There are an estimated twenty-five thousand idioms in the English language, and I'm guessing at least half are contained within this single book (the introduction alone contains such gems as "live fast and die young" and "keep your nose to the grind"). In fact, there is scarcely a sentence to be found that doesn't contain a (terribly constructed) writing cliche.

Additionally, Holmes appears to be writing for an audience of grade-school children. She dumbs down both structure and content while introducing juvenile similes and anecdotes, but instead of achieving greater clarity and simplicity, she obscures basic neurobiology beyond all comprehension.

There is nothing redeemable about this book. Rather, the poor reader who could get through the entirely of this trash will likely emerge knowing less than when she started.

If I could, I'd give this book negative stars. Really.

[Cynthia Van lingen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Holmes has no professional training in research or psychology. She has numerous references, articles and book, supporting her conclusions and is an writer for National Geographic and other non-research magazines and papers. However her conclusions demonstrate a misunderstanding of animal research, and the inability to separate herself from the psychology. Too bad, because I like the topic, but I do no trust the content.

[Kelley · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was just okay. I had a difficult time staying interested during the mice and how-this-possibly-evolved section(s). Holmes doesn't source anything. I found that annoying. How do I know what comes from published research and what is her opinion? I wouldn't read it again.

[B. Rule · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a book cobbled together out of cliches and tired jokes, the author's annoying narcissism about her own obnoxious personality, factual inaccuracies, and massive oversimplifications of the neuroscience behind various personality traits. I'm begrudgingly giving it a couple stars because there was a smattering of interesting facts throughout. This could have been a great read, as the topic is inherently interesting. Unfortunately, Holmes basically takes the lazy way out at every turn, and just talks about the appearance of the scientists she interviews instead of trying to explain the theories they no doubt patiently explained to her as she doodled on her notepad. The framework of the book is the Five Factor Model, but Holmes grows very repetitive on many of the sub-factors, as I think she has a hard time telling them apart. She then fills out the chapters with just-so stories, trying to come up with evolutionary accounts of how the traits came to be. The thesis of the book is that the whole spectrum of personality types are all different survival strategies which have evolutionary advantages. I thought it would be worth reading to delve beyond that to the specifics of each neurotransmitter/personality trait, but it's really not. Don't waste your time.

[Wendelle]

listened 2/3s of this audiobook... it's a very interesting title pursuing the details of the Five Factor Model of personality, with each chapter devoted to discussing the criteria for agreeableness, neuroticism, extroversion, etc. However, I also feel that it suffers a bit from the twin pitfalls that pester science writing that is pitched towards a general audience, like me, as follows:
i) in an effort to make the subject more relatable to audiences, personal anecdotes of disputable professional value are included, such as descriptions of personal events, extended valuations of the appearances and attractiveness of the scientists and scientists' offices featured
ii) unclear sourcing; it is difficult to parse where the porous boundary between the conclusions of actual scientific articles ends and where the author's explanation of her secondhand understanding of the science begins. I understand the drive to transmit tutelage 'in one's own words' but it might blur accuracy of the reader's comprehension
it's still interesting to hear about various ideas about the quirks in our personalities.

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Totally fascinating. The author talks about the different personality traits and what makes them tick. It doesn't explain why some fools pull out in front of you when you are the only car on the road but I still found the entire book very interesting. I am now waiting on her other books so I can read them.

[Liosliath · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, but I could have done without the axe-grinding in the Acknowledgments on her feelings about the necessity of animal research and how "brave" scientists who conduct it are.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating read about how much of an impact brain chemistry has on our personalities.

[DannyCat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Totally delightful. Arguably the best non fiction book I've picked up yet. Puns very much an asset.

[Deb · Rating 5 out of 5]

*Embracing our quirks*

Do you ever wonder why some people are just so peculiar? (That is, why they act differently than you.) We all see the world through our own personality lenses, so it can be challenging to truly understand and appreciate the benefits that all of the different personality types offer. Why, for example, do you thrive on stability and predictability while your partner happily improvises their way through life? How can your best friend always be so trusting and optimistic while you can clearly see the dangers in her being so agreeable? Did your boss really just say that, you can't help but wonder.

To help us understand the complexities of human behavior, Hannah Holmes sets out to "examine the human personality through the simplifying lens of science." She helps sift through our collective quirkiness by using the Five-Factor personality system to look at each of the five main personality types and their respective facets:

1. Neuroticism--anxiety and depression
2. Extraversion--impulsiveness/novelty seeking, activeness, cheerfulness, assertiveness
2. Agreeableness--trust, cooperation, sympathy, altruism, morality
3. Conscientiousness--self-discipline, orderliness
4. Openness--intellect, imagination, artistic interests, liberalism, emotionality

And, her humor, wit, and clarity makes an art out of the science of personality.

You'll have to read the whole book to really understand what facets make up your unique personality, but if you want a quick idea, here are the key indicators that Hannah provides for each personality facet:

_Neuroticism_:
Anxiety Indicators:
* I'm easily startled
* I'm a worrier
* I keep my opinions to myself

Depression Indicators:
* I can't get motivated
* Little things get me down
* The glass is half-empty

_Extraversion_ :
Impulsiveness/Novelty Seeking Indicators:
* I speak without thinking
* I buy things then regret it later
* I get bored with routines

Activeness Indicators:
* I'm up for seeing friends
* I have too much to do
* I'm not good at relaxing

Cheerfulness Indicators:
* Life is good
* Everything works out in the end
* I like people

Assertiveness Indicators:
* I ask for what I want
* I tell people if they're bothering me
* I stick to my guns

_Agreeableness_:
Trust Indicators:
* I'm gullible
* I take people at their word
* People mean well

Cooperation Indicators:
* I go along to get along
* Persuasion is better than force
* I like working in a group

Sympathy Indicators:
* I feel other people's pain
* I'm loyal
* I'm a good listener

Altruism Indicators:
* I'm a cheerleader for my friends
* I do favors without being asked
* Poverty makes me sad

Morality Indicators:
* I'm upset by cheating
* I tell the truth even when it's embarrassing
* I do what's right, not what's easy

_Conscientiousness_:
Self-Discipline Indicators:
* I keep a regular schedule
* I exercise and eat right
* I'm a perfectionist

Orderliness Indicators:
* I put things away when I'm done with them
* I'm detail oriented
* Plan your work, and work your plan

_Openness_:
Intellect Indicators:
* I like riddles and puzzles
* I don't mind figuring things out for myself
* I can improve my old ways of doing things

Imagination Indicators:
* I love to daydream
* I invent new things in my mind
* Other people's ideas inspire me

Artistic Interest Indicators:
* I love them smell of the ocean
* I'm creative
* Being in nature restores me

Liberalism Indicators:
* Some problems don't have solutions
* No group of people is better than another
* I question authority

Emotionality Indicators:
* Justice should be tempered with mercy
* People say I'm a good listener
* I prefer fiction to nonfiction books

In addition to helping you understand why you are the way you are, _Quirk_ can help you appreciate the diversity among us. As Hannah so eloquently explains: "Each lifestyle works adequately. Neither works flawlessly. But, because a diversity of personality styles gives the entire species a better chance of surviving nature's challenges, that diversity persists."

And, with this new understanding of what makes you you and everyone else everyone else, the peculiar quirks that make us human may just make a little more sense. Here's to embracing our quirks!

[Scarlett Sims · Rating 5 out of 5]

There were enough things about the book that bugged me that I'd give it 4.5 if that were an option but it's good enough for me to round up.

First thing that bugged me, it's really nit-picky I know, the author frequently used the pronoun "she" when referring to a generic person.

Anyway, the book is set up so that it goes through the five major personality traits and the facets of each. The author discusses how the traits are exhibited in mice and humans and also why evolution allowed those traits to survive. It's incredibly fascinating, she goes into the chemical details of addiction and depression and gives anecdotes from her own life to illustrate how some of the traits are displayed.

There were two sections that kinda bugged me though. When she was talking about politics, I felt like she propagated the (in my opinion false) idea that there are basically two political parties and one is completely one way and the other is completely the other way. The model she described left no room for libertarianism.

Also, when she talked about religion or religious inclination I thought she displayed a lack of knowledge of the ways in which religion is practiced today. I'm not offended by the idea that my faith is due to genetics. Calvinism certainly would allow that and it wouldn't threaten my belief. However not only did she assert that science and religion are two incompatible things (they aren't) the examples she gave of religious beliefs weren't realistic or at least were applicable only to a small subset of people. I don't assume that every misfortune is divine retribution for some pecadillo, but Holmes seemed to think that's how religion works (it isn't, at least not exclusively).

Despite my minor annoyances, though, I loved reading this book. I love the idea that my personality is a chemical cocktail, a stew of neurons and synapses that caused me to even want to read it.

[Vi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been on a quest to self-comprehension for the last few years, with my interest piqued in the subject by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Peering through unorganized stacks of books at a local bookstore, I happened upon Quirk and after a quick Google search and a peek at the great price, I made a dash for the register and made my way home with this and a couple other reads.

Holmes is a science writer, rather than am actual scientist, though I don't think we should entirely discount her authority because of this. While human beings are more complex than just a few different categories in which to place our various personality and capacity aspects, I have noticed the general pattern of scientists not being the greatest writers and writers not being the best scientists. Obviously there are many overlaps and my statement is a gross generalization, which I traditionally do not enjoy uttering, but my point is that Holmes makes the subject of brain science very accessible to laypeople.

Some of the things that come off as fact do seem questionable, though I will be the first to admit that I am not cross-referencing her assertions with her bibliography list. I like how she makes the jargon easy to grasp but there are many places in the book where I almost feel patronized by her gentle cooing. I think that the intention of making the book read more like an almost casual inner dialogue than a peer-reviewed journal article is great but I imagine that Holmes holds her own intelligence to higher esteem and should do the same with her readers.

This books garners a 3.49 rating from me, with rounding resulting in a 3-star rating. Don't let this discourage you. If you are interested in how personality is driven by the brain, give Quirk a whirl.

[Elinor Hurst · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mildly interesting. The author has her own quirks, which intrude prominently into this book. She cracks jokes, make frequent references to her own personality and that of her husband and friends, talks about her own pet mice, and adds her own musings and analyses of the science to her reporting. Some of this was charming, some irritating.

I learned some useful things about the neurophysiology of personality, and research findings relating to the Big Five personality traits of Extroversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Neuroticism, and a Openness. However I must admit that I got a bit bored with the constant focus on animal research. I don't know what I was expecting, but I had hoped to be more fascinated with the inferences drawn from the research as applied to human behaviour. As it was, the conclusions she draws seem somewhat mundane - everyone is different because it's beneficial from an evolutionary perspective for creatures to have different survival strategies. Yes, okay, but what should we do about handling the differences from a societal perspective?

I also found it irritating that she referred to animal activists as "terrorists". She seemed to have little empathy for their position of high empathy for animals in research (ironically), while emphasising her own supposed empathy for other beings as part of her high Openness and Neurioticism. Animal activists are not terrorists - the damage they do is to property, not people, and it is because of their actions that society has advanced in considering animal ethics at all in experiments.

[kelp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book taught me a couple of really valuable things. First, humans aren't the only ones who have different personalities; animals do, too, and we're more alike than a lot of people realize. Second, differences in personality are governed by our genes, our brains, and the types and amount of chemicals found there. I knew this was true for things like extraversion, but I was surprised that it was true for other qualities like morality, self-discipline, and liberalism.

I've struggled recently with those qualities and how other people differ with me in those regards; I didn't really understand why they were different from me, and I wondered why they didn't just change. I genuinely thought that I was completely right, and why couldn't everyone see that? But reading this book definitely made me realize that it goes much deeper, that people are genuinely wired differently when it comes to these things, and they don't have complete control over the way they think about those things. And that's really important to realize for me.

I also found it very interesting how the author explained the evolution behind each personality trait and how differences in personality could have helped different species in terms of survival; it was very interesting thinking about personality from an ecological/scientific standpoint.

One thing I didn't like about this book was that most of the examples came from the author's own life and people she knew; I think that made it seem not as credible to me.

[Ally Van den herik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating! Humorous yet scientific look at research into biological causes of personality traits

I was so happy to read a book that was both detailed in its scientific explanations for certain personality traits (e.g. anxiety, depression, extroversion, orderliness, etc.), as well as enjoyable to read. The author had a delightful sense of humor, and she and I have very similar personalities, which may be a reason I like the book so much. My only issue with the book is the reduction of religion to "magical thinking" that must have originated due to evolutionary forces. I was an atheist for the first thirty years of my life, but my personality must have mutated over night (perhaps my "magical thinking" gene was switched on later in life due to some experience I had?) when I became a Christian. I therefore had issue with all of the discussion of evolutionary reasons for certain traits that would rationally be considered to have "low survivability". Of course, a scientific book shouldn't be required to mention God, but those of us who believe God had a role in selecting and causing changes in genetic material will be a bit frustrated while reading this book. Otherwise, a very good read!

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

An engrossing, yet reasonable light, examination of the biological underpinnings of certain aspects in personality and survival strategy in human beings and mice. Using the Five Factor personality model, the author goes through various facets of each of these factors and the various rodent research that shows it in animal behavior.

I enjoyed how the author was willing to hypothesize reasons why certain traits would be advantageous in various situations. I also appreciate that she is open about these being personal hypotheses, rather than a given fact. It was also neat to meet some of the primary researchers in the field. Many of them get a lot of flak for experimenting on animals, but most of them were well aware of the consequences their lab work has on the animals, and they took it with gravity. It's nice to know that these are not mad scientists, and they do have a strong regard for the comfort of their animals.

This book was recommended to me by a co-worker through a Reader's Advisory training workshop. A good choice.

[Elizabeth Housewright · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quirk is … quirky. I began it with enthusiasm, stopped midway, restarted after a couple of months, again struggled with the middle but was able to finish on an upswing. The writing was interesting, the examples illuminating, but sometimes it was a stretch to make all of the attributes discussed work in her model. The brief conclusion section is a great summary after all the details—your personality rests on old, old locations and molecules, “the surprise wasn’t how simple and biological the human personality is. It was how complex and diverse mouse personality is”. Even if you are somewhat disappointed in how you map into these subcompartments of personality (an interesting exercise—how do you wish you could answer the questions?), the clear message is that your personality traits are explainable and that the diversity that you bring to the big picture also helps the society you live in. I've been following her on Twitter too-- good insights.

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a scientist who has studied behavioral genetics, I found this an enjoying read. The simplicity with which she explains this complicated topic is admirable and joyous. Personally, I read it to fill a gap in my knowledge about mouse models. I often found myself skimming the evolutionary parts, as that was too simple for me, but I found no huge, glaring inaccuracies. Capturing the wariness of animal researchers was poignant. People do need to understand how human health has benefited immensely due to animal research, the personal sacrifice that people have made to work on animal models, and that it is not a black and white issue with all animal research being all bad or all good. We will not find cures for big human diseases, such as cancer, without animal research. That is very important to understand in light of the militant view of animal rights organizations.

[Joseph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite an interesting read. Quirk is a very methodical survey of the facets of human personality and the neurological and biological forces behind them. Every section details a facet, the parts of the brain behind that faces, the appearance of that facet in both mice and humans, and ends with a theoretical scenario demonstrating the benefits and pitfalls of both sides of that facet.

Just because Quirk is methodical, though, doesn't mean it's dry. The whole book reads like a light hearted Discovery Channel documentary. Holmes liberally sprinkles her exploration with interesting narratives and silly asides, at one point spending a whole paragraph drooling over a hunky graduate researcher. These jokes don't always work, but they elicit a chuckle more often than not.

[Sarah Novak · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I chose it to brush up on personality to do a better job covering it in my courses, but instead of dwelling on the history of psych (like so many personality texts do), I was impressed by the smooth connections to neuroscience and comparative psych. It's not for everyone, but for people who are interested in psychological science, it's a great overview spanning a lot of topics and modern work. I especially like Holmes's approach to discussing seemingly negative, easy-to-stigmatize traits. She does a great job of highlighting how "normal" and valuable they are.

[sara frances · Rating 4 out of 5]

a very interesting read! before i started, i was worried that the writing style would be overly academic and a little snoozy, but Hannah writes in an very accessible (and sometimes even silly) way that is very enjoyable.

i think the chapter i found most fascinating was the one on Morality. just the thought that other creatures besides humans might have a system of morality or, even worse, that it boils down to a chemical reactions in the brain...sooo tantalizing. talk about throwing a huge part of organized religion on its ass.

however, some of the mouse talk does get old. and i feel like a few of the scientific studies get too much credit when related back to humans from mice.

[Linh · Rating 1 out of 5]

The whole time I was reading this, I was picturing the author. I imagined that Holmes was in her twenties, hence her need to write about science in a way that I could only describe as "infuriatingly cute". As I kept reading, I became more enraged at all these female scientists or science writers being so many cliches. You can imagine my surprise when I learnt that Holmes was 48 at the time of this being published.

I couldn't recommend this book any less. Unless you want to read a very long, and actually, worse than standard women's interest magazine article that's a lot of fluff.

[Kaitlyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little fluffy, but overall very readable and informative. :) The narrative, somewhat-informal style worked really well for presenting the information. I really enjoyed reading about not only the experiments themselves, but the author's whole experience of tracking down and interacting with the scientist. Sometimes this veers more into the speculative and personal than some people would like, but the author is very open about when she does this, so it didn't really bother me.

[Tracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the way that Holmes presents her research in this book, especially the sections on the evolution of each temperament. Certainly humor behavior is not easily divided and packaged in to five temperaments with a variety of facets, but the role of certain chemicals on the brain and how the different sections of the brain work to make us function was really insightful and interesting. Definitely good food for thought as an educator.

[Katya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why are we so different? How come there are altruists and egotists, neurotics and aggressive people? Do these types arbitararyly emerge among people? What is their purpose? Journalist Hanna Holmes in her new book tells us how the structure of a human brain affects one's character. Why a certain feature becomes prevalent and why all these types of personalities (and often personality disorders) exist among us.

[Barth Siemens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quirk relies more on anecdotes than I would have expected. But then this is really the 'heart' of thinking about personality, isn't it. I was fascinated to learn about the chemicals and receptors that affect who we are. I enjoyed hearing the context of Hannah Holmes' quirks, her friends and family, and the researchers that make Brain Science their life work. Well worth the read.

[Charly · Rating 4 out of 5]

A personality book based in current neruoscience. She writes personably (too personably, perhaps) but solidly. I enjoyed the predictable format. If you get this (beautifully designed - the fonts and cover were superb) book, you'll soon be quizzing your friends to find out where they lie. (Anxious, Extraverted, and Impulsive here.)

[Aryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW! The book is fantastic; humor, humanity, and a lot really accessible science on a very personable level. If you've ever wondered about personality being genetic--that whole nature/nurture thing, this is the book for you.
And the narrator is great, as well, if you do the audio version.

[Micah McCarty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting read on brain science. I found it a bit too simplistic in its belief that every aspect of personality can be explained away by science, but overall I truly enjoyed it. Most fascinating was the part about liberals vs conservatives and their dramatically different brains.

[Jessietaylortanner · Rating 4 out of 5]

This actually brought me a lot of peace of mind, knowing how much of our personality is hard-wired, and not actually my fault. :) Interesting, too. Recommended for anyone to increase empathy in others.