High School Achievement and the Bell Adjustment Inventory

Abstract

High school achievement, or the lack of it, has been related to various nonintellectual variables, including personality and psychopathology as measured by personality inventories. The personaliry instruments chosen have typically been the Bernreuter, the Bell, andthe MMPI. Two studies (Finch, 1932; Sappenfield, 1938) found no relationship between achievement and adjustment as measured by the Bermeuter inventory. Two studies with the Bell inventory were contradictory, with a positive report by Resnick (1951) and negative findings by Griffiths ( 1945 ). Gough (1949) was unable to predict achievement from selected MMPI items. The present study was designed to clarify the status of the Bell Adjustment lnverxory as a predictor of high school achievement. METHOD There were separate validation and cross-validation studies of Bell items predictive of high school achievemenr. The validation study included 470 male and female juniors and seniors from rwo high schools.' The students were selected from an equal number of high and low achievement sections in two required courses, History and Political Science. The cross-validation study contained 239 junior dass Ss selected in the same manner. All Ss were administered the Bell Adjustment Inventory. A 6-mo. interval (i.e., May to October, 1959) separated rhe validation and cross-validation testings. Grade-point-averages (GPA) were obtained for all Ss from grades during the immediately preceding semester. Distributions were then made in terms of GPA, where the letter grade A=l and F=5. Three validation groups were formed, Group 1 , the 100 Ss with the highest GPA; Group 2, the 50 cases on either side of the median GPA; and Group 3, those 100 Ss with the lowest GPA. Three cross-validation groups were formed in the same manner, with 50 Ss per group. Only juniors were used for the cross-