IOP1601_MO001_3_2016_E

Corollaries
Corollaries are explanations of the personal constructs that people build in their minds. The
construction corollary
The construction corollary takes the similarities of repeated events into account. These similarities
enable one to predict how an event will be experienced in the future. It also considers the
conservative nature of human beings, reflected in the universal need to be able to predict what the future
will hold and rule out uncertainty.
The individuality corollary
The individuality corollary points to individual differences in interpreting events. Different people interpret
events differently, because they perceive and understand events differently.
The organisation corollary
The organisation corollary points to the relationship amongst constructs, to the fact that they are not all
merely floating around, they are linked in specific ways in order for people to be able to anticipate certain
outcomes. The constructs are organised in a hierarchy, with the constructs placed on various levels
with varying importance. The important constructs are termed a superordinate, while the less influential
are termed subordinate.
The dichotomy corollary
All personal constructs are bipolar. Each one is specified in terms of two opposite poles, for example
“love versus hate" or "productive versus unproductive”.
The choice corollary
The choice corollary concerns individuals' freedom of choice. Personal constructs help a person to
predict the future. There are two ways to do this. Firstly, a person could clarify his/her present constructs,
thereby narrowing his/her world for the sake of security. Secondly, the adventurous route may be chosen
if the person explores new aspects of life.
The range corollary
A construct is only applicable to a limited range of events. Basically, this means that no one
construct can be useful for everything
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