The Personal Script as a Unit of Analysis for the Study of Personality

Abstract

This article presents the construct of a "personal script" as an itnportant variable for the study of personality. Personal scripts are construals that individuals form to understand and deal with personally significant experiences of living. A nutnber of differences are outlined between the personal script constmct and the field's tnore predotninant trait construct. It is argued that the personal script construct can provide new perspectives on questions which have been addressed previously by the trait constmct having to do with personality description. This claim is illustrated with two studies, one addressing the issue of group differences using a nomothetic method of personal script assessment, and the other addressitig the issue of personal consistency using an idiographic method of personal script assessment. It is further suggested that the personal script construct can also allow researchers to ask new questions having to do with the dynamics of personality development and change.

The scripts and expertise of firesetters: A preliminary conceptualization

“…Procedural knowledge means that we all know what to do in a restaurant: enter, wait to be seated, get the menu, order, eat, get the bill, pay, and exit (Cornish, 1994). Scripts are mostly unconscious, socially learnt, extremely resistant to change, and influence how one attends to, organizes, and recalls information (Baldwin, 1992; Beauregard, Proulx, Rossmo, Leclerc, & Allaire, 2009;Demorest, 1995;Zadney & Gerard, 1974). Memory has been shown to be particularly susceptible to the influence of scripts (Bellezza & Bower, 1981;Bower, Black, & Turner, 1979;Gibbs & Tenney, 1980;Graesser, Woll, Kowalski, & Smith, 1980).…”

The Self and Autobiographical Memory: Correspondence and Coherence

“…For example, McAdams et al (2001) studied contamination scripts (where positive affect is followed by a negative affective outcome) and redemption scripts (where negative affect is followed by a positive affective outcome). More generally, several different investigators have provided empirical support for both the concept of scripts and the process of psychological magnification (Carlson & Carlson, 1984;Demorest, 1995;Demorest & Alexander, 1992;McAdams, Reynolds, Lewis, Patten, & Bowman, 2001;Thorne, 1995), while clinical case studies have also demonstrated the utility of the theory (Carlson, 1981;Magai, 1996 . According to script theory, SDMs are memorial representations that ground narrative sequences of actions, affects, and outcomes in specific autobiographical memories.…”

“…O'Connor, Cermak, & Seidman, 1995). The Conceptual Self is then depicted as a separate system in Figure 2 and consists of non-temporally specified conceptual self-structures, such as personal scripts (Demorest, 1995;Thorne, 1995;J.A. Singer & Salovey, 1993;Tomkins, 1979), possible selves (Markus & Nurius, 1986), self-with-other units (Ogilvie & Rose, 1995), conceptual aspects of internal working models (Bowlby, 1969(Bowlby, /1982(Bowlby, , 1973(Bowlby, , 1980, relational schemas (Baldwin, 1992), self-guides (Strauman, 1990;Strauman & Higgins, 1987), attitudes, values and beliefs.…”

Priming of Consensual and Nonconsensual Sexual Scripts: An Experimental Test of the Role of Scripts in Rape Attributions

“…Scripts operate unconsciously, are highly resistant to change (Demorest, 1995), and influence cognitive processes including attention, organization, interpretation, and recall of information (Baldwin, 1992;Zadney & Gerard, 1974).…”