What is a Repertory Grid?
A Repertory Grid is a device invented by George Kelly to elicit personal constructs. He made use of the very general principle that our concepts, ideas, notions, attitudes are based on “comparing”, i. e. looking for similarities and differences. The method uses comparisons of (normally) triads of relevant items (e. g.persons who are important for the respondent) to elicit bipolar (two-ended) descriptions that are interpreted as indications of the “constructs” he/she uses in dealing with the world. This is repeated several times with other triads, resulting in a two-dimensional matrix (the “grid”) of numbers where every number stands for the assessment of a person with respect to a construct. This is than open to various interpretations, either directly or with the help of statistical procedures. In a way, a repertory grid is like a questionnaire that the respondent has devised him/herself – guided by the interviewer, where the self-defined constructs function as test items.
