Personality Trait Development During the Transition to Parenthood: A Test of Social Investment Theory
Abstract
Social investment theory (SIT) proposes that the transition to parenthood triggers positive personality trait change in early adulthood. Using data from a representative sample of first-time parents compared to nonparents, the results of rigorous tests do not support the propositions of SIT. Specifically, we found no evidence for the proposition that parents show more pronounced mean-level increases in emotional stability, agreeableness, and conscientiousness compared to nonparents. We did find that agreeableness and openness changed depending on how long someone was in the parent role. Finally, our results suggest that high extraversion and low openness in both genders and high conscientiousness in females predict the likelihood to enter into parenthood. Discussion focuses on why this transition seems to be unrelated to mean-level personality trait change and the implications of these results for SIT.
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Recently, studies on life events have begun to include matched control groups who did not experience the event of interest.
“Recently, studies on life events have begun to include matched control groups who did not experience the event of interest (e.g., Wagner et al., 2015; van Scheppingen et al., 2016).”
From Life Events and Personality Trait Change. (2018) · cites this paper as van Scheppingen et al., 2016
Before using propensity-score matching, parents differed significantly from non-parents with regard to change in extraversion and conscientiousness.
“Before using propensity-score matching, parents differed significantly from non-parents with regard to change in extraversion and”
From Life Events and Personality Trait Change. (2018) · cites this paper as van Scheppingen et al. (2016)
Unmatched results indicated that parents but not non-parents decreased in extraversion and conscientiousness.
“Consistent with previous studies, the unmatched results indicated that parents but not non-parents decreased in these two traits”
From Life Events and Personality Trait Change. (2018) · cites this paper as van Scheppingen et al. (2016)
After using propensity score matching, differences between parents' and non-parents' trait changes were no longer significant.
“However, after using propensity score matching, the differences between parents' and non-parents' trait changes were no longer significant.”
From Life Events and Personality Trait Change. (2018) · cites this paper as van Scheppingen et al. (2016)
New parents might experience personality trait changes already before the birth of the child, for example, when they are planning to have child or during pregnancy.
“Similarly, new parents might experience personality trait changes already before the birth of the child, for example, when they are planning to have child or during pregnancy (van Scheppingen et al., 2016).”
From Life Events and Personality Trait Change. (2018) · cites this paper as van Scheppingen et al., 2016
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Life Events and Personality Trait Change.
Bleidorn, W., Hopwood, C. J., & Lucas, R. E. (2018) · Journal of personality · doi:10.1111/jopy.12286 · Cited by 588 · see citing works
Self-citationSelf-esteem and relationship satisfaction during the transition to motherhood.
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Self-citationRetirement is associated with change in self-esteem.
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Self-citation
- Authors
- van Scheppingen, M. A., Jackson, J. J., Specht, J., Hutteman, R., Denissen, J. J. A., & Bleidorn, W.
- Affiliations
- Tilburg University, Tilburg, The Netherlands
- Washington University in St. Louis (US)
- Freie Universität Berlin (DE)
- Utrecht University (NL)
- Tilburg University (NL)
- Venue
- Social Psychological and Personality Science
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2016-02-08
- Volume
- 7
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 452-462
- ISSN
- 1948-5506 (ISSN-L)
- 1948-5514
- OpenAlex
- W2272777180
- Cited by
- 172
- References
- 12
- Citations by year
- 2026: 17 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 18 · 2021: 14 · 2020: 51 · 2019: 7 · 2018: 19 · 2017: 15 · 2016: 5
- FWCI
- 20.36
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Social Psychological and Personality Science (publishedVersion)
- Research portal (Tilburg University) (publishedVersion)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion)
- Zurich Open Repository and Archive (University of Zurich) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Australian Government
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Personality Traits and Psychology
- Social Sciences › Demography › Family Dynamics and Relationships
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
- Keywords
- transition to parenthood, new parents, emotional stability, agreeableness, conscientiousness, openness to experience, extraversion, early adulthood, gender differences
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