Cognitive Approach
GEORGE
KELLY
The Personal Construct Theory
Sambal, Rodalyn A.
THE LIFE OF KELLY (1905–1967)
George Kelly was the only child of Theodore Vincent Kelly and Elfleda Merriam Kelly.
He was born on April 28, 1905 on a farm in Perth, Kansas, United States.
Kelly’s early education was erratic and conducted as much by his parents as by
schoolteachers.
He has degree in physics and mathematics, member of debate team, has master’s
degree in educational sociology and a minor in labor relations and sociology;
then got his PhD in psychology with a dissertation about speech disability in 1931
During Great Depression, he shifted his focus on psychotherapy
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CONSTRUCTIVE
ALTERNATIVISM
Constructive alternativism is the
idea that, while there is only one
true reality, reality is always
experienced from one or another
perspective, or alternative
construction.
Presentation by Margarita Perez
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PERSONAL
CONSTRUCTS
People develop personal
constructs (subjective
explanations, interpretation,
and prediction) on how
reality works.
Presentation by Margarita Perez
LITERARY REVIEW
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01
A person’s processes are psychologically channelized by the ways in
which the person anticipate events.
02
BASIC POSTULATE
Presentation by Margarita Perez
05
11 Corollaries: How we create our Personal Constructs
11 COROLLARIES
Construction
Choice
Fragmentation
Individuality
Range
Commonality
Organization
Experience
Sociality
Dichotomy
Modulation
IMPLEMENTATION
11
COROLLARY
OF THE
BASIC
POSTULATES
CONSTRUCTION
INDIVIDUALITY
Because repeated events
are similar, we can predict
or anticipate how we will
experience such an event in
the future.
People perceive events in
different ways.
COMMONALITY
ORGANIZATION
DICHOTOMY
Although our individual
constructs are unique to us,
people in compatible
groups or cultures may hold
similar constructs.
We arrange our construct in
patterns, according to our
view of their similarities and
differences.
A person's construction
system is composed of a
finite number of
dichotomous constructs.
(Bipolar construct)
CHOICE
RANGE
EXPERIENCE
We choose the alternative
for each construct that
works best for us, the one
that allows us to predict the
outcome of anticipated
events.
Our constructs may apply to
many situations or people,
or they may be limited to a
single person or situation.
We continually test our
constructs against life’s
experiences to make sure
they remain useful.
MODULATION
FRAGMENTATION
SOCIALITY
We may modify our
constructs as a function of
new experiences.
We may sometimes have
contradictory or
inconsistent subordinate
constructs within our
overall construct system.
We try to understand how
other people think and
predict what they will do,
and we modify our behavior
accordingly.
APPLICATION OF PERSONAL
CONSTRUCT THEORY
Abnormal Behavior
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In Kelly’s view, psychologically healthy
people validate their personal
constructs against their experiences
with the real world.
Unhealthy people, on the other hand, stubbornly cling to outdated personal constructs,
fearing validation of any new constructs that would upset their present comfortable view of
the world.
Such people are similar to incompetent scientists who test unreasonable hypothesis, reject
or distort legitimate results, and refuse to amend or abandon old theories that re no longer
useful.
ABNORMAL BEHAVIOR IN
PERSONAL CONSTRUCT THEORY
THREAT
FEAR
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People experience threat when they are perceive that the stability of their basic constructs is likely to be
shaken
One can be threatened by either people or events, and sometimes the two cannot be separated
Personal constructs are personal and bringing change to these is equivalent to killing a part of a person
Fear on the other hand, is more specific and incidental.
Psychological disturbance results when either threat or fear persistently
prevents a person from feeling secure
Kelly (1955) defined anxiety as "the recognition that the events with which one is confronted lie outside
the range of convenience of one's construct system"
ANXIETY
Kelly (1970) defined guilt as "the sense of having lost one's core role structure"
That is, people feel guilty when they behave in ways that are inconsistent with their sense of who they are.
People who have never developed a core role do not feel guilty. They may be anxious or confused, but without
a sense of personal identity, they do not experience guilt.
GUILT
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APPLICATIONS OF
PERSONAL CONSTRUCT
THEORY
Psychotherapy - In Kelly's view, people should be free to choose those
courses of action most consistent with their prediction of events.
·In therapy, this approach means that clients, not the therapist, select
the goal.
As a technique for altering the clients' constructs, Kelly used a
procedure called fixed-role therapy.
The purpose of fixed-role therapy is to help clients change their
outlook on life (personal constructs) by acting out a predetermined
role, first within the relative security of the therapeutic setting and
then in the environment beyond therapy where they enact the role
continuously over a period of several weeks
01
Autocharacterization
02
The patient commits to the role
they’ve been given.
03
The therapist meets the patient to
evaluate the results.
04
The patient should write a goodbye letter
to their previous role
The stages of Kelly’s fixed-role therapy
RECOMMENDATION
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01 Applications of Personal Construct Theory
02
The Rep Test (Role Construct Repertory)
The purpose of the Rep test is to discover ways in which people construe
significant people in their lives.
The aim of this test is to see the similarities/differences on how people
construe other people in their lives
Presentation by Margarita Perez
Personal Construct Theory
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CONCEPT OF HUMANITY
Optimistic
Teleological
Conscious over unconscious
Self-influence over biology
Uniqueness of personality
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George Kelly
THANK
YOU!
Presentation by Sambal, Rodalyn A.
REFERENCES
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Schultz, D. & Schultz S. E. (2005). Chapter 13: George Kelly: Personal Construct Theory. Theories
of Personality (08th ed., pp. 355-375). Boston, USA. Cengage Learning.
JP Buduan. (2021, August 18). PSYCH Lecture | George KELLY | Personal Constructs | Theories
of Personality | Taglish. [Video].
Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHVZvFN9BHk
JP Buduan. (2021, August 29). George KELLY | Theory of Personal Constructs | 11 Corollaries |
Theories of Personality | Taglish. [Video].
Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOO5G394M7E