Differences in psychologists’ cognitive traits are associated with scientific divides

Justin Sulik (), Nakwon Rim, Elizabeth Pontikes, James Evans and Gary Lupyan
Additional contact information
Justin Sulik: LMU Munich
Nakwon Rim: University of Chicago
Elizabeth Pontikes: University of California-Davis
James Evans: University of Chicago
Gary Lupyan: University of Wisconsin-Madison

Nature Human Behaviour, 2025, vol. 9, issue 6, 1147-1161

Abstract: Abstract Scientific research is often characterized by schools of thought. We investigate whether these divisions are associated with differences in researchers’ cognitive traits such as tolerance for ambiguity. These differences may guide researchers to prefer different problems, tackle identical problems in different ways, and even reach different conclusions when studying the same problems in the same way. We surveyed 7,973 researchers in psychological sciences and investigated links between what they research, their stances on open questions in the field, and their cognitive traits and dispositions. Our results show that researchers’ stances on scientific questions are associated with what they research and with their cognitive traits. Further, these associations are detectable in their publication histories. These findings support the idea that divisions in scientific fields reflect differences in the researchers themselves, hinting that some divisions may be more difficult to bridge than suggested by a traditional view of data-driven scientific consensus.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41562-025-02153-1

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