The 5 Ways Trauma Might Change You, Based On Your Personality

A person can experience growth in each of these five domains in varying degrees.

"It may be possible that PTG is experienced in qualitatively distinct ways," the authors of the new study write. "For example, those who highly experienced PTG in Personal Strength and New Possibilities would be qualitatively different from those who moderately experienced PTG in all five domains, even though both groups may display similar levels of overall PTG."

Published in the Personality and Individual Differences journal this month, the study polled about 900 college students about their experiences with trauma, any positive changes they experienced because of that traumatic event, and their general personality types. The researchers found that trauma survivors generally fell into one of five different PTG patterns of growth, and there were some associations between the patterns (or "profiles") and certain personality traits.

Below are the five different growth profiles. (Their names aren't particularly clever or catchy, but alas.)