This target article focuses on the construct of post‐traumatic growth—positive psychological change experienced as a result of the struggle with highly challenging life circumstances. Prominent theories of post‐traumatic growth define it in terms of personality change, and as a result, this area of research should be of great interest to personality psychologists. Despite this fact, most of the research on this topic has not been sufficiently informed by relevant research in personality psychology, and much of the extant research suffers from significant methodological limitations. We review the literature on post‐traumatic growth, with a particular focus on how researchers have conceptualized it and the specific methodological issues associated with these conceptualizations. We outline some ways in which personality science can both be enriched by the study of this phenomenon and inform rigorous research on post‐traumatic growth and provide a series of guidelines for future research of post‐traumatic growth as positive personality change. Copyright © 2014 European Association of Personality Psychology

ObjectivePost‐traumatic growth typically refers to enduring positive psychological change experienced as a result of adversity, trauma, or highly challenging life circumstances. Critics have challenged insights from much of the prior research on this topic, pinpointing its significant methodological limitations. In response to these critiques, we propose that post‐traumatic growth can be more accurately captured in terms of personality change—an approach that affords a more rigorous examination of the phenomenon.MethodWe outline a set of conceptual and methodological questions and considerations for future work on the topic of post‐traumatic growth.ResultsWe provide a series of recommendations for researchers from across the disciplines of clinical/counseling, developmental, health, personality, and social psychology and beyond, who are interested in improving the quality of research examining resilience and growth in the context of adversity.ConclusionWe are hopeful that these recommendations will pave the way for a more accurate understanding of the ubiquity, durability, and causal processes underlying post‐traumatic growth.

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Posttraumatic growth typically refers to enduring positive psychological change experienced as a result of adversity, trauma, or highly challenging life circumstances. Critics have challenged insights from much of the prior research on this topic, pinpointing its significant methodological limitations. In response to these critiques, we propose that posttraumatic growth can be more accurately captured in terms of personality change—an approach that affords a more rigorous examination of the phenomenon.We outline a set of conceptual and methodological questions and considerations for future work on the topic of post-traumatic growth.We provide a series of recommendations for researchers from across the disciplines of clinical/counseling, developmental, health, personality, and social psychology and beyond, who are interested in improving the quality of research examining resilience and growth in the context of adversity.We are hopeful that these recommendations will pave the way for a more accurate understanding of the ubiquity, durability and causal processes underlying post-traumatic growth.

The aim of the current study was to investigate the extent to which individual differences in personal growth initiative (PGI) were associated with lower reports of functional impairment of daily activities among a genocide-affected population in Rwanda. PGI measures an individual's motivation to develop as a person and the extent to which he or she is active in setting goals that work toward achieving self-improvement. We found that PGI was negatively associated with functional impairment when controlling for depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, and other demographic factors. Our results suggest that PGI may constitute an important mindset for facilitating adaptive functioning in the aftermath of adversity and in the midst of psychological distress, and as such they might have practical applications for the development of intervention programs.

ObjectivesPost-traumatic growth, defined as positive psychological change experienced as a result of the struggle with challenging life circumstances, is under-researched in people with mental health problems. The aim of this study was to develop a conceptual framework for post-traumatic growth in the context of recovery for people with psychosis and other severe mental health problems.DesignQualitative thematic analysis of cross-sectional semi-structured interviews about personal experiences of mental health recovery.SettingEngland.ParticipantsParticipants were adults aged over 18 and: (1) living with psychosis and not using mental health services (n=21); (2) using mental health services and from black and minority ethnic communities (n=21); (3) underserved, operationalised as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community or complex needs or rural community (n=19); or (4) employed in peer roles using their lived experience with others (n=16). The 77 participants comprised 42 (55%) female and 44 (57%) white British.ResultsComponents of post-traumatic growth were present in 64 (83%) of recovery narratives. Six superordinate categories were identified, consistent with a view that post-traumatic growth involves learning about oneself (self-discovery) leading to a new sense of who one is (sense of self) and appreciation of life (life perspective). Observable positively valued changes comprise a greater focus on self-management (well-being) and more importance being attached to relationships (relationships) and spiritual or religious engagement (spirituality). Categories are non-ordered and individuals may start from any point in this process.ConclusionsPost-traumatic growth is often part of mental health recovery. Changes are compatible with research about growth following trauma, but with more emphasis on self-discovery, integration of illness-related experiences and active self-management of well-being. Trauma-related growth may be a preferable term for participants who identify as having experienced trauma. Trauma-informed mental healthcare could use the six identified categories as a basis for new approaches to supporting recovery.Trial registration numberISRCTN11152837

This study tested for inter-judge agreement on moral character. A sample of students and community members rated their own moral character using a measure that tapped six moral character traits. Friends, family members, and/or acquaintances rated these targets on the same traits. Self/other and inter-informant agreement was found at the trait level for both a general character factor and for residual variance explained by individual moral character traits, as well as the individual level (judges agreed on targets' "moral character profiles"). Observed inter-judge agreement constitutes evidence for the existence of moral character, and raises questions about the nature of moral character traits.

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