Personality in the Light of Identity, Reputation and Role Taking: A Review of Socioanalytic Theory

Abstract

This paper reviews Hogan’s socioanalytic theory of personality which is an integration of evolutionary psychology, depth psychology and role theory. Personality is defined both from the actor’s and the observer’s points of view: Identity is how an actor sees themselves and believes that others will perceive them; while reputation, is essentially how others evaluate a person’s behavior, summing up both collective observations. The paper describes the various Hogan tests. It also looks at the concept of mentalizing and how that may be integrated with socioanalytic theory. Finally, it considers issues around personality change.