ABSTRACT
A construct is essentially an aspect or attribute of things on which discrimination is based, a means of differentiation. The set of things to which a construct is applicable defines that construct’s “range of convenience”. Sometimes the construct cannot be extended beyond its realm of convenience simply because information is lacking. Constructs are not free-floating, but stand in relation to each other in a hierarchical structure. Constructs, which are always uni-dimensional, are identified according to their poles, that is, are essentially bipolar. One distinction among constructs is the degree to which they may be said to be pre-emptive, by which is meant the extent to which they pigeonhole elements and keep them from being construed in any other way. George Kelly’s thesis concerning the hierarchical structure of construct systems is nowadays shared with other cognitive theories, but some of his own points, and their implications, are particularly interesting.
