What distinguishes fear from threat according to Kelly?

In Kelly's Personal Construct Theory, the distinction between fear and threat is nuanced and centers around the concept of how personal constructs are processed. When Kelly refers to fear, he emphasizes that it is often characterized by an incidental modification of constructs. This means that fear arises when a person encounters a situation that causes them to revise or adapt their existing constructs—mental frameworks through which they interpret and predict experiences. In this context, fear acts as a cognitive response that leads an individual to reconsider their understanding of reality, often in reaction to immediate circumstances.

On the other hand, the notion of threat is more about the perceived potential for harm or danger without necessarily triggering this cognitive re-evaluation in the same immediate or intense manner. Threats might not invoke the same adaptive response as fear; instead, they may provoke a more generalized sense of anxiety or concern without the cognitive restructuring that fear necessitates. Thus, the active, constructive nature of fear through incidental modification of constructs is what distinguishes it in Kelly’s framework.