The idea that many people grow following trauma may be a myth

Studies of posttraumatic growth are fundamentally flawed, researchers say

Two people hug outside a sign that reads ROBB ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. There are flowers all around the sign.

Mourners gather outside Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, on May 30, one week after a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers there. Research suggests that at least half of survivors of traumatic events will experience personal growth in the aftermath, but some psychologists call those findings illusory.

CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images

“What does not kill me, makes me stronger,” 19th century German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche famously wrote.