Is your personality linked to your blood group?

In the UK we don’t talk about blood groups very often, except in medical settings. It’s a different story in some other cultures, however, where blood groups are often believed to have a big influence on our lives.

Japanese beliefs

In Japan, it is common to be asked what your blood type is. It is widely believed that there is a link between human ABO blood types and personality traits. Dating back to the 1930s, these widespread beliefs are embraced throughout Japanese culture and can influence anything from employment and how products are marketed to dating. School classes were grouped by blood type; your CV must include your blood group and so must your dating app profile; you can buy products designed for different blood types such as perfumes and bath salts; films depict the characters’ personalities based on the blood type theory and video game characters have their ABO blood type listed in their performance statistics.

Martin Maley has been interested in the link between blood type and personality for 15 years. Martin is a senior lecturer in biomedical sciences at the University of Sunderland and was previously head of the NHS Blood and Transplant Red Cell Immunohaematology Laboratory in Newcastle.

“In this country a lot of people don’t know their blood type, whereas in Japan, many people live their lives based on it,” says Martin.

The theory associates different personality traits and behaviours with each blood group. Detailed descriptions have been outlined in bestselling books in Japan.