Content analysis of Mark Twain's novels and letters as a biographical method

Sears, Robert R.; Lapidus, Deborah; Cozzens, C.

doi:10.1016/0304-422x(78)90034-7

Cited by 16 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…Other examples of mostly avocational usage might include (a) Thorndike's (1950) posthumously published study of the personality characteristics of 92 eminent creators and leaders; (b) Murray's psychobiographical fascination with Herman Melville (e.g., Murray, 1949Murray, /1981; (c) Sears' content analysis of the creative writings and correspondence of Mark Twain (R.R. Sears, Lapidus, & Cozzens, 1978); and (d) McGuire's (1976) cross-era analysis of eminent person- alities in a diversity of fields. None of these four studies can be considered an essential component of an ongoing research program.…”

Section: Why Do Psychologists Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Significant samples: The psychological study of eminent individuals.

Simonton

1999

Psychological Methods

134

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Psychologists occasionally study eminent individuals, such as Nobel laureates, U.S. presidents, Olympic athletes, chess grandmasters, movie stars, and even distinguished psychologists. Studies using such significant samples may be differentiated along 7 distinct dimensions: qualitative versus quantitative, single versus multiple case, nomothetic versus idiographic, confirmatory versus exploratory, crosssectional versus longitudinal, micro versus macro analytical units, and direct versus indirect assessments. However, the vast majority of psychological inquiries may be clustered into just 4 types: historiometric, psychometric, psychobiographical, and comparative. After presenting the intrinsic and extrinsic justifications for studying famous persons, the main methodological issues concerning sampling, measurement, and analysis are discussed. The future prospects of significant samples in psychological research are then briefly examined.Empirical journal articles in psychology almost invariably commence their methods section with a subsection in which the researchers define the "subjects" or "participants" of the study (American Psychological Association, 1994). This sample specification comes first because all subsequent procedures and analytical strategies are usually contingent on that choice. An experimental manipulation or psychometric instrument that is indubitably appropriate for one sample might be manifestly inappropriate for another (e.g., whether to use an intelligence test designed for children or adults). In psychology, this sample description is especially critical. Few sciences feature the same diversity of entities that might serve as subjects in psychological research: human beings of every age, gender, ethnicity, occupation, and capacity; animals ranging from mammals, birds, and fish to insects, mollusks, and worms. Yet as diverse as these various subject pools may be, they all seem to have one thing in common: The individuals that compose This article is based on a paper read at the Internationa!

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Section: Why Do Psychologists Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Significant samples: The psychological study of eminent individuals.

Simonton

1999

Psychological Methods

134

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“…To be on the safe side, two or more single‐case quantitative studies can be combined to ensure that the observed phenomenon replicates across two or more geniuses, such as was carried out in Schaller’s (1997) study of the adverse psychological consequences of creators becoming famous. At times, researchers will try to fathom the personal makeup of a single creative genius via quantitative content analyses of their creative products (e.g., Sears, Lapidus, & Cozzens, 1978; Simonton, 1989).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Creative Genius as a Personality Phenomenon: Definitions, Methods, Findings, and Issues

Simonton

2012

Social & Personality Psych

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Genius first became the subject of scientific inquiry in the early 19th century, and it has continued to attract research interest to the present day. Although genius can be defined as either superlative intelligence or achieved eminence, this review is restricted to the latter definition, and is further confined to creative achievement. The article then describes the main methods for studying creative genius as a personality phenomenon. These methods entail three central dichotomous methodological decisions: single‐case versus multiple‐case samples, qualitative versus quantitative analyses, and direct versus indirect assessments. Next, the main empirical findings are presented with respect to both generic traits and domain‐contingent traits. There follows a brief discussion of three major issues: genetic and environmental influences, additive and multiplicative effects, and individual and situational factors. Given the intrinsic importance of the phenomenon and the many questions still unanswered, creative genius certainly deserves future treatment in personality psychology.

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“…Researchers have argued that studying the individual case with techniques such as systematic content analysis can be a fruitful approach to examining complex personality processes (McAdams, 1985;Murray, 1938;Sears, Lapidus, & Cozzens, 1978;Weissbourd & Sears, 1982;White, 1966). Case materials such as personal documents can supply information that is both self-reflective and longitudinal, thus providing a unique base for in-depth analyses of ongoing processes such as identity formation.…”

Section: Fianzmentioning

confidence: 98%

A Quantitative Case Study of Longitudinal Changes in Identity, Intimacy, and Generativity

Franz

1995

Journal of Personality

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A quantitative case study of one woman's development was conducted in order to explore psychosocial change in early adulthood. A content-analytic coding system for identity, intimacy, and generativity themes derived from E. H. Erikson's writing was applied to letters and diaries of the British writer Vera Brittain written when she was 20 to 21 and 30 to 31 years old. Over time, Brittain used more intimacy and generativity themes and fewer identity themes. Even though Brittain used fewer total identity themes in her writing in her early 30s, her use of one identity subcategory-occupational role-increased in frequency, and the way in which she expressed her identity concerns indicated greater certainty about her identity.

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Content analysis of Mark Twain's novels and letters as a biographical method

Cited by 16 publications

References 7 publications

Significant samples: The psychological study of eminent individuals.

Significant samples: The psychological study of eminent individuals.

Creative Genius as a Personality Phenomenon: Definitions, Methods, Findings, and Issues

A Quantitative Case Study of Longitudinal Changes in Identity, Intimacy, and Generativity

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