In favor of the synthetic resolution to the person-situation debate

This article has two aims. First, we review the person-situation debate and what we believe to be its central issues. We propose that one of the most central issues in the debate was consistency, and argue that recognizing different conceptions of consistency is essential for a resolution to the debate. Second, we describe a synthesis resolution that incorporates different types of consistency and takes into account the important contributions of both the trait and social-cognitive approaches to personality. We note several current lines of research following from the synthesis, several of which are represented in the current special issue. (c) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.