Title: Can People Change? A Look at What's Realistic
Headings: People Can Change, But That Doesn't Mean They Will
People Can Change, But That Doesn't Mean They Will
First, a few things to keep in mind
You can’t force change
Change takes time and effort
Change doesn’t always follow a linear path
What can change
What about people who cheat or lie?
What (usually) can’t change
Core personality traits
Emotions
Mental health conditions
How change happens
Motivation
Visualization
Positive feedback and support
Effort (not ability)
Therapy
The bottom line

Content: It’s often difficult to address ingrained strategies for coping and survival, but people can, and often do, learn new behaviors with support. Considering broader behavior patterns can help. Someone who regrets their actions and expresses interest in growth may succeed at making changes. But someone who insists they’ll really change “this time” yet shows no remorse and makes no effort to do anything different? They may not be ready to address their behavior. What (usually) can’t change
While people are generally capable of change, there are some aspects that are less likely to change. Core personality traits
While personality does continue developing into adulthood, core traits tend to remain relatively stable throughout life. These traits, known as the Big Five, include: openness to experience
conscientiousness
extraversion
agreeableness
neuroticism
These key elements of personality tend to evolve in smaller ways instead of changing completely. Someone who’s fairly introverted in early adulthood, for example, probably won’t swing toward extroversion.