Changing for the Better? Longitudinal Associations Between Volitional Personality Change and Psychological Well Being
Recent research has found that a vast majority of people want to change their personality traits and they may be able to find some degree of success in doing so. However, desires for self change have been theoretically and empirically linked to reduced well being. The present study utilized a longitudinal design to better understand the associations between people's desires and attempts to change their personality traits and their psychological well being. Results indicated that possessing change goals did not necessarily predict growing deficits in well being over time. In contrast, people who were able to change their personality traits in ways that aligned with their desires tended to experience increases in well being over time. These findings are consistent with theory that dissatisfaction can precipitate change goals, and successful change can ameliorate dissatisfaction.
Personality social psychology bulletin