Personality Trait Change Across a Major Global Stressor.

The current research examined three related questions in a 21-month longitudinal study of a diverse sample of U.S. participants ( = 504): (a) How did Big Five traits change during the COVID-19 pandemic? (b) What factors were associated with individual differences in trait change? and (c) How was Big Five trait change associated with downstream well-being, mental health, and physical health? On average, across the 21-month study period, conscientiousness increased slightly, and extraversion decreased slightly.