Get a second opinion: Comment on Bleidorn et al. (2019)

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Personality Science
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Personality traits significantly influence life outcomes.
• Treatment interventions targeting personality traits are increasingly considered.
• Self-report questionnaires are commonly used to assess personality.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the sufficiency of self-report measures for assessing personality trait change.
• To highlight the need for multimethod assessments in personality research.
• To emphasize the distinction between self-concept and underlying personality traits.

Main Methods:

• Critically reviewed the reliance on self-report data in personality change studies.
• Discussed the potential for self-concept alterations independent of true trait modification.
• Advocated for the inclusion of independent informant ratings.

Main Results:

• Self-reports alone may not provide sufficient evidence of genuine personality trait change.
• Changes in self-concept can occur without corresponding shifts in underlying personality traits.
• Independent informant ratings offer crucial supplementary data.

Conclusions:

• Multimethod assessments, incorporating independent perspectives, are essential for robustly studying personality trait change.
• Relying solely on self-reports can lead to inaccurate conclusions about intervention efficacy.
• Future research on personality interventions must adopt more rigorous assessment strategies.