Does your personality change as you get older?

Before having a personality with specific characteristics there is a time when even though we
do not react to stimuli we are heavily influenced by them. Therefore, by the time we reach
teenagehood, during which we form our identity, we develop a personality based on our
experiences, environment, and most importantly our genes.

It is crucial to realize that even though genetics does not control us it has a great impact on
us. Everyone is born with some predispositions for certain traits that will develop as they get
older. However it is not given how will these traits show themselves in different people.

As a person reaches their teenage years everything changes. The major difference is who
do they look up to the most. It is no surprise that it is no longer their parents but their peers.
Throughout teenagehood we form a part of various social groups, where we discover what
type of people we are compatible with, what sort of hobbies interest us and generally
discover more about our inner selves.

Even though family does not impact us in terms of decisions anymore, family dynamics as a
whole does. One of the many frequent occurrences is having divorced parents or being a
part of a dysfunctional family. If this happens during a person's teenage years it is bound to
affect them greatly in their upcoming years. It might make them unable to accept love, be
part of a healthy relationship or resolve conflicts.

Nonetheless it might seem like once we become adults our personality is non changeable, in
truth our personality is always changing and developing. At this time we have a set of
characteristics that will probably stay the same, unless we experience a truly traumatic event
or a turning point in our life.

In my opinion the base of our personality develops in our teenage years. From that point
onward we gain new experiences and knowledge therefore some parts of our personality
changes, but the core stays the same.