Personality Changes in the First Year of Psychiatric Residency Training

The literature describes significant personality change in first-year psychiatric residents. Although the authors found no perceptible changes in basic personality patterns in a group of first-year residents at a major university, two positive findings did emerge: an intra-group similarity in MMPI profiles and a marked increase in depression. Data from several sources indicated that the "psychiatric personality" could be distinguished early in the resident's career, differing in interests and attitudes, motives, and background from that of nonpsychiatric physicians.