The A-List Effect: How a Name Might Shape Your Place in the World

While I was at USC this summer, studying psychology with an anthropological lens, I thought about a research question that felt both deeply personal and a bit quirky. My question: are people whose names start with the first letters of the alphabet more extroverted?

My theory was simple.

In school, attendance lists and seating charts are often alphabetical. Teachers call on students from the top down, which means “Adams” or “Anderson” or “Alexander” (here! ) might get more attention than “Zimmerman” right off the bat. Then I thought, well maybe more spotlight could lead to more confidence, right? 

As I dug in, my hypothesis didn’t hold up….there wasn’t a consistent link between alphabetical order and extroversion. Plenty of “Z” names were outgoing, and plenty of “A” names kept to themselves. (Except I’m pretty outgoing so there’s that!) 

The reason the study did not pan out was due to a couple of factors. First, our pool of participants was too small and not diverse enough. We didn't have individuals to represent all the letters of the alphabet, so some data were left incomplete. Additionally, we used participants from all around the world, which left room for error due to other countries having different alphabets.  

 Extroversion is influenced by a lot of factors—genetics, early attachment styles, cultural expectations, and situational context and not just small structural things like alphabetical seating. In some classrooms, teachers start at different points on the list each time, or use random selection methods. And in cultures or teaching styles where group participation isn’t emphasized, alphabetical order may not have much impact at all.

But here’s what I learned: sometimes the most interesting studies start with something personal. My last name starts with an A, and in my world, I’ve always been near the top of the list. Maybe that’s why I wondered if early attention shapes personality because it shaped how I experienced school.

Anthropology teaches us that seemingly random patterns in life can create micro-cultures. Alphabetical order is one of them. It influences who sits where, who gets called on first, and even whose work is reviewed sooner in class presentations. And while this might not determine personality, it can influence how people see themselves in relation to others.

From a mental health angle, it’s a reminder that early experiences of visibility or invisibility can stick with us. If you’re always first, you might learn to expect attention. If you’re always last, you might get comfortable observing from the back. Neither is inherently better, but they shape the stories we tell ourselves about where we belong.

Sometimes, research teaches us less about a universal truth and more about why we notice certain patterns in the first place. And that’s a finding worth keeping.