An Analysis of the Discriminant Validity of Several Repertory Grid Indices

The flexibility of G. A. Kelly's repertory grid as a methodological paradigm has facilitated its application to a diverse range of current measurement problems. However, the discriminant validity of several grid indices has become an important methodological issue. The results of the present study suggest that considerable clarification can be gained through the systematic comparison of grid measures which have been used to assess presumably ‘different’ variables. The evidence reported here generally indicates that the segregation of construct and figure comparisons in a structural analysis of repertory grids is unwarranted. Specifically, measures of ‘cognitive simplicity’, ‘identification’ and ‘constellatoriness’ were found to be functionally similar, an observation which is consistent with the internal logic of Kelly's ‘personal construct’ theory.