Understanding the term psychological construct requires one to understand the basic definition of the term construct. A construct is something formed or constructed by the mind. Constructs do not exist without people to construct them. Psychological constructs are, therefore, psychological constructions of psychological constructs—the mind finding a way to study itself by using psychological constructs such as anger, anxiety, impulsivity, and depression. These constructs were developed to describe people’s psychological characteristics, but it is important to understand that they are psychological constructions created by people. Such constructs do not exist on their own as preexisting prototypes or ideal forms.

A major difference between what psychological scientists and physical scientists (e.g., chemists and physicists) study is the nonphysical versus the physical nature of the subject matter, ...

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