The Relations between a Self-Report Honesty Test and Personality Measures in Prison and College Samples

Abstract

Relatively little is known regarding the relations between self-report honesty measures and the personality domain. Thus, we administered a widely used overt integrity test, the Reid Report Inventory (RRI), and several personality indices, to two samples: 62 male prison inmates, and 180 male and female college students. Personality indices included the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire (MPQ), the Socialization (So) Scale of the California Psychological Inventory, and the Activity Preference Questionnaire (APQ), a measure of fearfulness. RRI total scores were correlated positively with measures of MPQ Constraint, the APQ, and the So scale, and negatively with measures of MPQ Negative Emotionality and the presence of parole violations. In almost no cases were the above relations significantly affected by social desirability. In addition, the two major RRI subscales, Punitiveness and Attitudes, exhibited differential patterns of relations with several personality measures. Finally, the RRI did not exhibit incremental validity relative to personality indices in the postdiction of parole violations. These findings help to clarify the meaning of RRI scores and provide strong support for the claim that honesty tests are not independent of personality variables.