Long-term Dynamics of Personality across Ontogeny: Similarities and Differences in Biological and Psychological Research

Over the past decades, personality has been studied in an increasingly diverse range of animals, spanning taxa from insects and fish to birds and mammals. Recently, the ontogeny of personality has been of interest across both the biological and social sciences, yet little integration, let alone synergy, has occurred between these fields. The current article builds bridges across these largely disconnected research fields, focusing on three processes that occur in both human and non-human personality development: (a) adjusting the phenotype according to the environment, (b) selecting the environment according to the phenotype, and (c) constructing the environment according to the phenotype. For all three processes of long-term personality-environment dynamics, we provide insights into similarities between human and non-human individuals as well as differences, where biological and social sciences can learn from each other. In addition, we discuss links between the three processes, identify pressing questions for both biology and psychology, and offer suggestions for an integrative research approach on personality development across species. In summary, this article aims to stimulate insights for researchers studying personality development in humans or other species by critically reviewing similarities, differences, open questions, and methodological approaches to advance theoretical integration.