Dual process models of personality

During the last decades, dual process models concerning reflective and impulsive pathways to behavior have been applied in many psychological domains, including personality psychology. In this chapter, we review the literature on dual processes approaches and models for the conceptualization and assessment of two broad domains of personality, self-concepts and motives. We first distinguish explicit and implicit constructs as assessed with direct and indirect measures, respectively. We then focus on measures to assess implicit representations of self-concepts and motives, with special attention to reliability and validity. Some advanced issues will also be examined, specifically novel assessment methods and scoring systems for indirect measures, developmental aspects of implicit personality characteristics, and interpersonal extensions of dual process approaches to personality. To conclude, we share some reflections on controversial issues in dual-process personality research, that is the convergence (or lack thereof) among indirect measures and between indirect and direct measures and the debate on unitary versus dualistic theories.