A group of researchers (Roberts et al., 2017; check out this link for more information: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28054797) did large scale review study, called a meta-analysis, to figure out whether psychological therapy can change peoples’ personalities. A meta-analysis is simply a way of making sense of statistical findings across many studies in some particular area. For this study, the researchers specifically looked at studies that included measures of personality traits and examined the effects of some kind of intervention. To make sure any apparent personality change wasn’t simply due to improvements in symptoms (such as improved mood, reduced anxiety, etc.), they also looked at non-clinical interventions (not designed to treat a disorder). Also, to make sure changed in personality weren’t just short-term (i.e., that they didn’t just bounce back to normal in the months after therapy was over), they looked at changes in personality over long-term follow up periods. Overall, the findings indicated small to medium sized changes in personality traits comparing personality traits before and after treatment, and comparing treatment to control groups. In addition, these changes were slightly larger when the researchers compared traits at the beginning of treatment to a longer-term follow up, such as six to twelve months after treatment is over. The researchers also looked at what specific personality traits tended to change the most. Interestingly, the trait of emotional stability increased the most, followed by extroversion, which is related to sociability. Type of therapy (e.g., cognitive behavioral, psychodynamic, supportive, etc.) didn’t really make a difference, the effects for medications were generally smaller than those for therapy, and hospitalization have the smallest effect overall. People with anxiety and personality disorders show the most change in personality, contradicting the commonly held notion that people with personality disorders are rigid and difficult to treat. Moreover, personality traits tended to change quickly in therapy, with changed peaking at about 8 weeks of therapy. In fact, the researchers noted that the changes in emotional stability during therapy (often occurring in a short timeframe) were equivalent to the changes that occur across a person’s entire lifespan. So, what about the idea that therapy can change how you cope with emotions but won’t make you less emotional? Well, even though the changes were consistent, they were not huge. It’s probably most accurate to say that therapy can help you become a little more emotionally stable. More importantly, these changes in emotional stability seem to last, and they might help you become less vulnerable to anxiety, depression, and other problems in the future. If you’re a really emotional person, you might still be more emotional than your friends or family members, but your emotions could be more stable, and you might have a better idea of how to use your emotions to improve your life and that of others (such as by using the empathy, sensitivity, and passion that come along these emotions). ~ Alexander L. Chapman, Ph.D., R.Psych.