The identification of persons as supersets and subsets in free-response personality descriptions

Using a free-response format, 14 undergraduates each described 36 target persons (TPs). A set-theoretical model was proposed for representing the perceived similarities and differences among persons described. Four types of TPs were identified: supersets (SUPs), subsets (SUBs), disliked contrasts (DCs), and miscellaneous (Ms). SUPs are TPs whose perceived characteristics subsume those of many of the other persons described. SUBs are TPs described with only a limited portion of the characteristics attributed to the SUPs. DCs are those disliked TPs who were described with a set of terms almost completely different from those used to describe the other TPs. Ms are TPs who could not be identified as SUPs, SUBs, or DCs. As predicted, SUPs were persons who were perceived as least significant; SUBs and Ms could not be distinguished from one another. It is suggested that SUPs provide the perceptual categories for the construing of persons, and the correspondence of this idea with other extant psychological ideas (e.g., transference) is discussed. (25 ref)