Rational-Experiential Inventory

Abstract

The REI (Epstein et al. 1996; Norris and Epstein 2011; Pacini and Epstein 1999) was developed to measure the extent to which an individual processes information with two systems proposed by cognitive-experiential self-theory (CEST) (Epstein 1994), which is now known as cognitive-experiential theory (CET) (Epstein 2014). According to CET, we each possess a rational information processing system that is conscious, relatively slow, analytical, primarily verbal, relatively affect-free, and based on rulebased learning and an experiential system that is preconscious, rapid, automatic, holistic, primarily nonverbal, intimately associated with affect, and based on associative learning. The two systems are proposed to operate in an independent, parallel, and interactive manner, which together influence decision-making, behavior, and well-being. CET positions these distinct ways of processing information within a global theory of personality, where the extent to which an individual tends to use each system represents a relatively stable thinking style.