Indicators of Event Integration in Repertory Grids and Ladders

Personal Construct Psychology contends that construing events in an integrated way is conducive to better psychological functioning. However, there is a dearth of criterion validity research investigating whether PCP measures of integration are indeed associated to psychological adjustment. An online survey was designed to investigate the construing of the recent COVID-19 pandemic. The survey consisted of repertory grids, ladders and external measures of event integration and psychological wellbeing. 101 responses by UK university students were collected. The aims were to examine the association of grid intensity, number of ladder rungs and construct subjective importance to the mentioned external measures. Two grid and ladder measures were associated with positive outcomes in event integration and psychological wellbeing: overall grid construct intensity and number of ladder rungs. The data suggested that laddering a person’s less important constructs, as opposed to their more important constructs, might be an important process in fostering a more integrated construing of events. Limitations were related to data-quality issues arising from the online methodology, as well as from probable statistical underpowering.