Can your job change your personality?

While traditionally personality has been considered fixed and stable, recent thinking indicates that this is not the case. Personality can be changed by various work and vocational experiences, such as employment conditions, career roles, job characteristics and training or interventions.

Drawing on a wide array of research in the field, Wang and Wu provide a conceptual overview on how personality can be changed at work by societal, organisational and job-related factors, while considering how individuals can take an active approach in changing their personality at work.

Ying Wang is Senior Lecturer in Management at RMIT University in Australia. Her research interests include personality and individual differences, positive organisational behaviour, and diversity management.

Chia-Huei Wu is Professor in Organizational Psychology at the University of Leeds in the UK. His research in organisational behaviour focuses on proactive behaviour, personality development, work design and employees' subjective well-being.