Abstract
Free-written descriptions of self and various others were obtained from 190 adolescent boys and girls. Descriptions of persons became longer, more “psychological,” and more organized over adolescence. Modes of construing persons were positively correlated across different stimulus persons. Selfdescriptions tended to be more person-centered than descriptions of others. However, more dispositional terms were ascribed to others than to the self. In contrast with previous research, substantial sex differences were found. Girls had more to say about persons and this was expressed more in psychological terms; girls qualified and organized descriptions more than did boys.
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Received Ph.D. from University of Dublin. Main interests are in social cognition and service delivery.
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O'Mahony, J.F. Development of person description over adolescence. J Youth Adolescence 15, 389–403 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02143521
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02143521