We like to think of our own personalities, and those of our spouses and children and friends as predictable, constant over time. This belief comforts us and gives us confidence in passing judgments on all sorts of people: from our life partners (who we tend to think of as inherently good) to violent criminals (who we tend to think of as inherently bad). But what if they aren't? What if in fact we can't point to a single thing about a person that doesn't change over time?