Not long ago, someone emailed me a new study on chocolate and temperament. The study came from a group of psychologists at North Dakota State University and Gettysburg College, and it involved personality differences between people who liked sweet foods versus bitter, spicy, sour, salty, or umami flavors. The researchers wanted to know, “Is having a sweet tooth related to having a sweeter disposition?”

Here’s a sample of what they asked their hundred or so volunteers.

Candy, caramel, chocolate cake, honey, ice cream, maple syrup, pears, raisins, strawberries, and sugar. How fond were they of these dessert flavors?

The volunteers rated their taste preferences on a scale of 1-10.

Following that, they completed an agreeableness scale. That is, they were asked to indicate the extent to which they behave in ways reflective of high (e.g., “have a soft heart”) versus low (e.g., “insult people”) levels of agreeableness.

Pleasingly, the researchers found a significant correlation. People who loved sweets were likelier to be more agreeable.

“Further proof that chocolate lovers would have sweeter babies!” my sender gushed. There’s logic here: If people with a sweet tooth really have a sweeter disposition then women who love sweets might have more agreeable babies because disposition is heritable. Equally valid, people who have sweeter dispositions would have a gentler parenting style, resulting in babies with sweeter dispositions. Ergo, chocolate lovers have sweeter babies. Natch.

Then the researchers took their study to the next level to see if sweet-toothed types not only test as more agreeable, but act sweeter too.

At the end of the session, participants were told that the study was over and that full participation credit would be awarded, thereby relieving them of any further obligations. However, it was mentioned that a colleague in the English department was collecting data on media preferences and was looking for volunteers.

Interestingly, people who had a sweet tooth were more likely to complete the voluntary survey, even though they weren’t getting any extra credit or compensation.

Such sweethearts!

I wonder: does the mere suggestion of sweet food make people act sweeter? Does sweet food make people less angry and aggressive? The researchers claim that metaphors can be predictive about behavior and personality. Because “sweet” in English applies to both taste and disposition, does the correlation still apply in different languages?

How sweet would that be?