Many psychologists attempted to define and assess personality, by seeing it in terms of how others see us. George A. Kelly believed instead that we perceive our own personalities from the inside. He believed that we do so subjectively and that this shapes the way that people see us. In his theory of personal constructs, personality is not inherited, nor does it change through environmental influence. Rather, personal constructs are formed through the process of exploring the world and interpreting one’s experiences. People develop unique ways of understanding the world, and these are reflected in their personalities.
Our interpretations color our subsequent perceptions and behaviors so that we see things through our own personally constructed ‘goggles’. The better the world fits these personal expectations, the more it reinforces these views and attitudes and shapes the behavior that others perceive to be our personality. Personal Construct Theory (PCT) is therefore a complete system of psychology that can help us understand how we see the world around us and what effect our interpretation has on our relationships with others.