The 6 Universal Traits Of ‘Coolness,’ No Matter Where You Are In The World

SANTIAGO, Chile — What makes someone genuinely cool? After studying nearly 6,000 people across 13 countries spanning six continents, researchers discovered that “cool” people share remarkably similar traits worldwide from San Francisco to Seoul, Sydney to Santiago.

The international study, published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, reveals that whether you’re in Germany, Nigeria, Turkey, or Australia, cool people are consistently seen as more extraverted, powerful, hedonistic, adventurous, open to new experiences, and autonomous. However, these traits that make someone cool are distinctly different from what makes someone “good.”

“Everyone wants to be cool, or at least avoid the stigma of being uncool, and society needs cool people because they challenge norms, inspire change, and advance culture,” says co-lead researcher Todd Pezzuti, Ph.D., from the Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, in a statement.

Research shows that cool people are perceived as outgoing pleasure-seekers who enjoy taking risks and following their own path, while good people are seen as more conforming, traditional, secure, warm, agreeable, and conscientious.

“To be seen as cool, someone usually needs to be somewhat likable or admirable, which makes them similar to good people,” says co-lead author Caleb Warren, Ph.D., from the University of Arizona. “However, cool people often have other traits that aren’t necessarily considered ‘good’ in a moral sense, like being hedonistic and powerful.”

Understanding coolness matters because it shapes who we admire, how we spend money, and what we aspire to become. Cool people command respect, influence social trends, and often enjoy higher status in their communities. Studies show that being perceived as cool affects everything from how likable and attractive someone appears to their access to resources and social inclusion.

Participants came from countries as diverse as the United States, China, Mexico, South Korea, India, and Nigeria—places with different values, traditions, and social norms. Yet, regardless of whether participants came from individualistic Western societies or collectivistic Eastern cultures, tight or loose social environments, or wealthy or developing nations, the core attributes of coolness remained the same.

Researchers suspected that if coolness were simply another way of saying “good” or “favorable,” the word would have disappeared from our vocabulary long ago. The fact that “cool” has not only survived but spread globally suggests it captures something unique about human social perception.

How Scientists Studied Coolness

Researchers recruited 4,261 participants across 13 cultural regions, carefully selecting countries that varied along well-studied cultural dimensions like individualism, power distance, and social tightness. Participants came from both Western countries (the United States, Australia, Germany, Spain, South Africa) and non-Western regions (India, Turkey, Mexico, Hong Kong, mainland China, South Korea, Nigeria, and Chile).

Each participant was randomly assigned to think of a specific person they knew personally—someone they considered either cool, not cool, good, or not good. Researchers asked people to think of non-famous individuals they actually liked, which helped control for other factors that might influence their judgments.

After identifying their target person, participants rated that individual on 15 different personality traits and values using established psychological scales. These included the Big Five personality traits (extraversion, openness, conscientiousness, agreeableness, and emotional stability) and core human values like autonomy, hedonism, power, adventure-seeking, conformity, and traditionalism.

Six Traits That Define Cool

Six key attributes emerged as distinctly “cool” rather than just generally positive:

Extraversion topped the list. Cool people are seen as outgoing, enthusiastic, and socially confident rather than reserved or quiet. This aligns with research showing that people who don’t express emotion actually make negative impressions, challenging the old stereotype of the emotionally restrained “cool customer.”

Hedonism came in second, with cool people viewed as pleasure-seeking individuals who prioritize having a good time and enjoying life’s experiences. This doesn’t mean reckless behavior, but rather an appreciation for fun and sensory experiences.

Power is another key trait, with cool people perceived as influential individuals who have resources, status, and the ability to affect others’ behavior. They’re seen as people others listen to and respect.

The next quality is adventurousness. Cool people are viewed as risk-takers who seek new experiences and aren’t afraid to step outside their comfort zones.

Openness to new experiences distinguished cool people as creative, intellectually curious, and willing to consider unconventional ideas.

Finally, autonomy can make someone seem cool. This refers to the tendency to follow one’s own path rather than simply conforming to others’ expectations, separating cool people from the merely good.

These findings held true whether participants were college students in Hong Kong, professionals in Germany, or online workers in Nigeria. Cultural factors that typically create major differences in social perception, like whether a society values individual achievement or group harmony, had virtually no impact on what made people seem cool.

Good vs. Cool

Coolness clearly differs from general goodness. While nine of the 15 traits studied were associated with both cool and good people, researchers found major differences in what makes someone distinctly cool versus simply well-regarded.

Good people were more likely to be seen as conforming, traditional, secure, warm, agreeable, universalistic (caring about all people), conscientious, and calm. Cool people, by contrast, were more willing to break from convention, seek thrills, accumulate influence, and chart their own course. Only one trait, being capable or competent, was equally associated with both coolness and goodness, suggesting that basic competence is valued across the board.

This distinction helps explain why some people can be widely respected and liked without being considered cool, and why others might be seen as cool despite not always making the most morally sound choices.

Unlike traditional status markers based on wealth or family background, coolness rewards traits that drive cultural change and progress.

Cool’s Global Appeal

“Coolness has definitely evolved over time, but I don’t think it has lost its edge. It’s just become more functional,” says Pezzuti. “The concept of coolness started in small, rebellious subcultures, including Black jazz musicians in the 1940s and the beatniks in the 1950s. As society moves faster and puts more value on creativity and change, cool people are more essential than ever.”

Cool people tend to possess characteristics that make them likely to challenge convention, seek novelty, and encourage others to adopt new practices and ideas. These are exactly the qualities that prove valuable in information-based economies, where success depends more on creativity and influence than on following the norm.

This theory suggests that as societies shifted from agricultural and industrial economies to information-based ones, the traits we admire evolved accordingly. Where once we might have most valued the farmer who reliably produced crops or the factory worker who followed procedures, we now increasingly admire the entrepreneur who disrupts industries or the artist who creates new forms of expression.

Coolness is a meaningful way humans evaluate and categorize each other that has remained stable as it spread across the globe. The meaning of cool has crystallized around a consistent set of traits that signal someone’s potential to influence others and drive change.