Life Events May Not Change Your Personality, but Life Experiences Probably Will

Bühler et al.’s meta-analytic results clarify that the mere occurrence of life events is relatively unimportant for explaining personality trait development. We make two points in this commentary. First, personality theory has already integrated the distinction between life events and subjective experiences on personality change. Second, methodological limitations of our longitudinal research may hamper our understanding of these associations. To further clarify the role of life events and subjective experiences for trait change, we advocate for intensive longitudinal designs that can reliably distinguish between temporary and enduring change.