Dynamic, Contextual Approaches to Studying Personality in the Social World Todd B. Kashdan and Patrick E. McKnight George Mason University ABSTRACT This special issue of Journal of Personality, composed of eight original articles, attends to the intersection of intrapersonal and interpersonal processes. Articles adopt a contextual approach to person- ality with attention to the need to belong (and the lack thereof), self- presentation concerns and styles, sexuality, curiosity, self-regulatory strength and strategies, and dynamic methodologies and analyses to study people within relationships. In this introduction, we offer chal- lenges and aspirational goals for personality science. In particular, we discuss the importance of context when conceptualizing and studying personality, the seduction of innovative methodologies and analytic pro- cedures, and the value of focusing on people and heterogeneity in groups instead of simply variables. We hope that this collection of articles deepens personality science and reminds readers that to truly understand human beings, they cannot be divorced from their social milieu. In December 2002, a special issue of Journal of Personality, edited by Dr. M. Lynne Cooper, focused on personality and close relationships. Since then there has been an explosion of advanced theories, measurement, research methodologies, and statistical analyses for conducting dynamic, fine-grained studies of how personality operates in the social world. There has never been a better time to address how personality processes affect responding in social contexts and how social contexts alter people’s personality. Instead of reviewing what can be found in the accompanying articles, we offer challenges and aspirational goals for personality Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Todd B. Kashdan, Department of Psychology, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030. Email: tkashdan@gmu.edu. Journal of Personality 79:6, December 2011 © 2011 The Authors Journal of Personality © 2011, Wiley Periodicals, Inc. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-6494.2011.00737.x