New Yorkers Who Enjoy These Foods May Have ‘Psychopathic’ Tendencies

If you find yourself drooling over a cup of black coffee or savoring a square of 90 percent dark chocolate, you might be interested in a study that suggests there might be a quirky link between your taste preferences and your personality traits.

In a study done by researchers from the University of Innsbruck in Austria, Americans,l including New Yorkers, were surveyed about their taste preferences and asked to spill the beans (or coffee, in this case) about their personalities. The focus of the study was mostly on the four taste categories: sweet, sour, salty, and bitter.

Lo and behold, the researchers stumbled upon an unexpected finding: people who reveled in the bitterness of certain foods seemed to have higher tendencies towards psychopathy, anti-social behavior, and...even a touch of sadism!

Wait, before you start questioning your sanity, let's put things into perspective. Bitter foods in this context include things like gin and tonics, pitch-black coffees, and intense dark chocolate. Taste preferences alone shouldn't be the judge and jury when it comes to someone's character.

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It's important to remember that just because someone enjoys bitter foods doesn't automatically mean they're plotting world domination or have an evil laugh echoing through the halls of their mind. There's a clear distinction between what people enjoy in their mouth and how they actually behave.

Here's another food for thought: our taste preferences can be influenced by various factors, like sensitivity to certain flavors or unintentional mix-ups. In fact, other studies have suggested that sweet-toothed individuals tend to be more inclined towards acts of kindness, sharing, and caring for others. So there you have it - a tasty paradox to ponder.

Your taste in food alone doesn't reveal your deepest, darkest secrets or determine your psychological makeup. It's only a small piece of the complex puzzle that is your personality. When it comes to mental health and personality traits, it's always better to seek advice from professionals who are armed with validated assessments and methodologies and not one study done out of Austria.

On the other side, if your friends are good humored and up for a good teasing and if one of them prefers the taste of bitter dark coffee, happy jabbing at them.