With one group of friends, they are loud and funny. Around colleagues, they become restrained and serious. Their partner loves hiking, and suddenly they seem interested in hiking too. Another friend starts using a phrase, and within weeks they are saying it themselves. Sometimes their opinions even appear to shift according to the company they keep. It is easy to dismiss such people as “fake” or accuse them of having no personality of their own. Psychology offers a much more nuanced explanation. Self-monitoring, behavioral mimicry, Social Identity Theory and self-concept clarity all help explain why people can present different versions of themselves in different social environments. Human behavior is naturally responsive to context; the more interesting question is how much adaptation occurs and whether the person still feels connected to a stable sense of self.
