Characterology

Characterology (from Ancient Greek χαρακτήρ 'character', and ‑λογία, ‑logia) is the academic study of character which was prominent in German-speaking countries during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.[1][2] It is considered a historic branch of personality psychology, which extended into psychoanalysis and sociology.[3]

This article is about the branch of personality studies in German psychology. It is not to be confused with Physiognomy, which is sometimes referred to in similar terms.
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The name dates from 1867, having been introduced by the German philosopher Julius Bahnsen, though the discipline itself dates back to classical antiquity.[4] In German psychology, the term character was often used in place of personality. As such, characterology was the study of personality, its development, and its differences between individuals. The term personality however, which was dominant in English use, came to be preferred after the end of World War II.[1]

In the 1920s, the term characterology was appropriated by American writer Leander Hamilton McCormick to promote a physiognomical and phrenological pseudoscience. McCormick's views have further been regarded as scientific racism.

List of notable characterological psychologists

See also

References
    • "Characterology". Merriam-Webster.com Medical Dictionary. Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
    • "Characterology". Collins English Dictionary (Complete and Unabridged, 12th ed.). 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2020 – via TheFreeDictionary.com.
    • Popov, Iu. N.; Puzyrei, A. A. (1970–1979). "Characterology". The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (3rd ed.). Retrieved 28 September 2020 – via TheFreeDictionary.com.
  2. Arens, Katherine (1986). "Schnitzler and Characterology: From Empire to Third Reich". Modern Austrian Literature. 19 (3/4): 97–127. ISSN 0026-7503. JSTOR 24647600.
    • Stone, Michael H. (1980). "Traditional Psychoanalytic Characterology Reexamined in the Light of Constitutional and Cognitive Difference Between the Sexes". Journal of the American Academy of Psychoanalysis. 8 (3): 381–401. doi:10.1521/jaap.1.1980.8.3.381. PMID 7410148.
    • Heidegren, Carl-Göran (2005). "Social Characterology". Distinktion: Scandinavian Journal of Social Theory. 6 (2): 87–95. doi:10.1080/1600910X.2005.9672915. S2CID 144624603.
    • Popov, Iu. N.; Puzyrei, A. A. (1970–1979). "Characterology". The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (3rd ed.). Retrieved 28 September 2020 – via TheFreeDictionary.com.
    • Popov, Iu. N.; Puzyrei, A. A. (1970–1979). "Characterology". The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (3rd ed.). Retrieved 28 September 2020 – via TheFreeDictionary.com.
    • "Typologies". International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences. Retrieved 28 September 2020 – via Encyclopedia.com. A related historical tradition also going back to classical antiquity is the field of characterology and personality studies.
  5. Popov, Iu. N.; Puzyrei, A. A. (1970–1979). "Characterology". The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (3rd ed.). Retrieved 28 September 2020 – via TheFreeDictionary.com.
  6. Stone, Michael H. (1980). "Traditional Psychoanalytic Characterology Reexamined in the Light of Constitutional and Cognitive Difference Between the Sexes". Journal of the American Academy of Psychoanalysis. 8 (3): 381–401. doi:10.1521/jaap.1.1980.8.3.381. PMID 7410148.


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