A new research study on personality type and cat ownership provides some interesting insights into how our personalities can impact our cats’ lives.

Researchers surveyed over 3,000 UK cat owners on their personality types based on the “Big Five Inventory”

• Agreeableness
• Conscientiousness
• Extroversion
• Neuroticism
• Openness

They also asked the owners several questions about how they cared for their cats.  The findings show that our personality types play a big role in how we relate to our cats.

For example, owners identified as having high neuroticism were more likely to keep their cats indoors.  They were also more likely to report behavior problems such as anxiety and obesity in their cats.

In contrast, the researchers found that extroverted owners were more likely to let their cats have access to the outdoors.

Owners identified as agreeable reported greater overall satisfaction with their cats and were also more likely to identify their cats as being at a normal weight.

Conscientious owners tended to view their cats as more outgoing and less anxious, fearful, or aloof than other owner types.

The researchers note that these findings are similar to other studies on parental personality type and child rearing practices.  Not surprisingly, parents identified as “neurotic” are more likely to have overprotective caregiving styles that can cause stress in their children.

For more information on pet parenting styles, check out this article from Science Daily.