Edinburgh Research Explorer

Prof Timothy Bates

Professor

Profile photo
Phone: +44 131 651 1945

Willingness to take Ph.D. students: Yes

Behavior Genetics; Cognition and Intelligence; Personality; Positive Psychology

Education / Academic qualification

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), University of Auckland
Psychometric and Electrophysiological Markers of Schizotypal Personality

Biography

My work addresses cognitive and non-cognitive individual differences using behavior and molecular genetic approaches. Recent research includes positive psychology (the genetics of Hedonic and Eudaimonic wellbeing); Language and reasoning (the genetics of dyslexia and language impairment, memory, laterality, intelligence), and social behavior genetics: Using genetics to understand individual differences on social traits such as politics and group behavior.

Research Interests

Genetics, Cognitive epidemiology, Aging, Personality, Dyslexia, Language impairment

Research Groups

Differential Psychology

CCACE

Websites

Personal webpage

Highlighted research outputs

  1. How genes influence personality: Evidence from multi-facet twin analyses of the HEXACO dimensions

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  2. Is education associated with improvements in general cognitive ability, or in specific skills?

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  3. OpenMx 2.0: Extended Structural Equation and Statistical Modeling

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  4. The glass is half full and half empty: A population-representative twin study testing if optimism and pessimism are distinct systems

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  5. Behavior Genetic Mechanisms of infant brain development across three waves: A longitudinal examination

    Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper

  6. A Spectral Clustering Approach to the Structure of Personality: Contrasting the FFM and HEXACO Models

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  7. Grit: Distinguishing effortful persistence from conscientiousness

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  8. When does socioeconomic status (SES) moderate the heritability of IQ?: No evidence for g x SES interaction for IQ in a representative sample of 1,176 Australian adolescent twin pairs

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  9. Childhood Socioeconomic Status Amplifies Genetic Effects on Adult Intelligence

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  10. Does Learning to Read Improve Intelligence?: A Longitudinal Multivariate Analysis in Identical Twins From Age 7 to 16

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  11. Genetic Variance in a Component of the Language Acquisition Device: ROBO1 Polymorphisms Associated with Phonological Buffer Deficits

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  12. Neural correlates of the 'good life': eudaimonic well-being is associated with insular cortex volume

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  13. Genome-wide screening for DNA variants associated with reading and language traits

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  14. The structure of attributional style: Cognitive styles and optimism-pessimism bias in the Attributional Style Questionnaire

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  15. Genetic Evidence for Multiple Biological Mechanisms Underlying In-Group Favoritism

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  16. A genome-wide association study for reading and language abilities in two population cohorts

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  17. Common genetic influences underpin religiosity, community integration, and existential uncertainty

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  18. Common Heritable Effects Underpin Concerns Over Norm Maintenance and In-Group Favoritism: Evidence From Genetic Analyses of Right-Wing Authoritarianism and Traditionalism

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  19. Core Dimensions of Personality Broadly Account for the Link from Perceived Social Support to Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  20. Education Is Associated With Higher Later Life IQ Scores, but Not With Faster Cognitive Processing Speed

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  21. Moral values are associated with individual differences in regional brain volume

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  22. The relationship of reading ability to creativity: Positive, not negative associations

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

  23. The long reach of the gene

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

View all (132) »

Research activities & awards

  1. British Journal of Psychology (Journal)

    Activity: Publication peer-review and editorial work › Editorial activity

  2. British Society for the Psychology of Individual Differences

    Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Participation in conference

  3. Bonn University Dies Academicus

    Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Public Engagement – Public lecture/debate/seminar

View all (9) »

Research projects

  1. Post genomic genetics: Methods and human responses to the gene environment interplay of human agency

    Project: Funded Project › Research

  2. Challenge Investment Fund

    Project: Other Project › University Awarded Project Funding

  3. Alcohol, Depression: Understanding the Cocktail

    Project: Other Project › University Awarded Project Funding

View all (9) »

Research press coverage

  1. Timothy Bates (Psychology) comments on social media effects on IQ

    Press / Media: Expert Comment

  2. Prof Timothy Bates and Prof Stuart Ritchie (Psychology) question ‘growth mindset’ education theory

    Press / Media: Expert Comment

  3. Prof Timothy Bates says peer review doesn’t prevent poor-quality science from being published

    Press / Media: Expert Comment

View all (23) »

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