General Personality Measures Research Articles

A comprehensive item-level examination of Conscientiousness' underlying structure across three large samples.

The present study examined the hierarchical structure of Conscientiousness across three large samples using item-level analyses. Conscientiousness is among the strongest predictors of individual differences in major life outcomes. Yet decades of work understanding the optimal lower-order structure of Conscientiousness has not rectified the differences that remain among existing models and measures. To precisely measure its relations to major life outcomes, it is necessary to work toward a comprehensive, replicable conceptualization of the construct's structure. The present pre-registered study used three samples (Ns = 446, 406, & 424) to explore the domain's latent structure with item-level "bass-ackward" factor analyses and evaluate the resulting structure's interpretability, parsimony, and replicability. Participants completed self-report measures of Conscientiousness and criteria in its nomological network (e.g., FFM traits, externalizing behavior, disinhibitory traits; informant reports were collected as well). The factor analyses identified five interpretable and replicable factors (i.e., deliberation, order, industriousness, self-discipline, and dependability) using predominant measures of general personality. An additional factor (i.e., traditionalism) was introduced in the six-factor solution when the item pool was expanded to include less widely used measures of general personality. The authors discuss the item composition of each factor, their relation to existing models and measures of the domain's structure, their association with relevant criteria, and the general implications of conceptualizing Conscientiousness using flexible, item-level factor analysis.

Mapping a hierarchical dimensional structure of high experiential permeability: A bass-ackward approach to linking positive schizotypy and openness to experience.

Research on dimensional models of personality pathology has achieved a good deal of consensus on the 5 broad constructs that span adaptive and maladaptive personality traits. Nonetheless, connections between the 5th domain, typically called openness to experience within general personality measures and psychoticism or schizotypy on maladaptive measures, have proven more challenging to integrate. Using experiential permeability as a guiding framework, the current study seeks to develop a hierarchical, empirically derived lower order structure with these concepts. Using a top-down "Bass-Ackward" approach, we examined the item-level structure of adaptive and maladaptive components of high experiential permeability. Results showed support for a hierarchical model with a 6-component solution including mystical beliefs/experiences, oddity, intellect, openness to aesthetics, openness to ideas, and introspection. These components from items drawn from general and maladaptive measures related to one another within and across levels, specifically oddity and openness to aesthetics. Findings also highlight the importance of using lower level analyses when examining larger, heterogeneous constructs such as schizotypal thinking and perception and openness. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

The Personality Assessment Inventory-Antisocial Features (Psychopathy) Scale: Model Fit and Convergent and Discriminant Validity

The present study examined the factor structure of the Personality Assessment Inventory Antisocial Features scale (PAI-ANT) in a non-forensic sample of 1257 undergraduate students. One to four-factor models were tested using exploratory factor analysis (EFA), with a four-factor solution exhibiting the best fitting model (Bentler 1995). Next examined was the convergent and discriminant validity of the PAI-ANT. Results indicated that the PAI-ANT four-factor model was significantly related to measures of general personality, pride, impulsivity, and attachment. Comparisons between the original three-factor model (as proposed by Morey 2007) and our derived four-factor model showed that both models generally had the expected pattern of relations for their respective factors although mixed findings were found for the sensation seeking and risk-taking scales. Findings for these scales indicated that individuals could crave excitement and also have some positive characteristics. The current findings suggest that the four-factor model of the PAI is the best way to interpret the PAI psychopathy scale, but that some caution is needed in interpreting the sensation seeking and risk-taking scales.

Construction and preliminary validation of Triarchic Psychopathy Scales from the HEXACO-100.

According to the triarchic model, psychopathy encompasses 3 distinct dispositional constructs: boldness, meanness, and disinhibition. Although the Triarchic Psychopathy Measure was designed to assess these 3 constructs, researchers have developed alternative triarchic scales using both omnibus measures of general personality and existing psychopathy scales. The components of the HEXACO model of personality may be especially capable of characterizing the dimensions of the triarchic model of psychopathy. The current study used a consensus-rating approach to create triarchic scales using items from the HEXACO-100. Data from 3 community and college student samples were used to examine the internal consistency, and convergent and discriminant validity of these newly developed HEXACO-Triarchic scales. The scales consistently demonstrated good internal consistency and displayed promising convergent and discriminant validity with theoretically predicted criterion variables. The lone exception was that HEXACO-Meanness and HEXACO-Disinhibition were similarly related to other triarchic measures of meanness. The implications of these findings for the integration of the HEXACO and triarchic models are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

The Conceptualization and Assessment of Schizotypal Traits: A Comparison of the FFSI and PID-5.

The purpose of the present study was to compare the cognitive and perceptual aberration scales from the Five-Factor Schizotypal Inventory (FFSI; Edmundson, Lynam, Miller, Gore, & Widiger, 2011) and the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (Krueger, Derringer, Markon, Watson, & Skodol,, 2012), as well as to address more generally the validity of the FFSI as a measure of both schizotypal personality traits and the FFM. Two independent samples were obtained, including 259 college students (55 of whom were preselected with elevated scores on a measure of schizotypal personality disorder [STPD]) and 346 adult MTurk participants (43% of whom had been or were currently in mental health treatment). Administered were the FFSI, the PID-5 Psychoticism scales, and alternative measures of general personality, openness, STPD, and schizotypal cognitive-perceptual aberrations. The results of the study are discussed with respect to the validity of the FFSI and PID-5 schizotypal cognitive and perception scales.

The Relationship Between Hypersexual Behavior, Sexual Excitation, Sexual Inhibition, and Personality Traits.

The term hypersexuality was introduced to describe excessive sexual behavior associated with a person's inability to control his or her sexual behavior. The main aim of the present study was to investigate the impact of different personality traits on the degree of hypersexual behavior as measured by the Hypersexual Behavior Inventory (HBI). A further aim was to evaluate the association between sexual inhibition and excitation [as described in the Dual Control Model (DCM)] and hypersexual behavior. A sample of 1,749 participants completed an internet-based survey comprised the HBI, the short form of the Sexual Inhibition/Sexual Excitation Scales (SIS/SES-SF) as well as more general personality measures: the Behavioral Inhibition System/Behavioral Activation System-scales (BIS/BAS-scales) and a short version of the Big Five Inventory (BFI-10). Using the recommended HBI cut-off, 6.0% (n=105) of the present sample could be categorized as hypersexual, which is comparable to the results of previous studies about the prevalence of hypersexual behavior in the general population. The results provided strong support for the components of the DCM-sexual excitation and inhibition-to explain hypersexual behavior, irrespective of gender and sexual orientation. Some of the general personality traits also showed significant relationships with hypersexual behavior. Taken together, the results of the present study provide further support for the relevance of research about the relationships between sexual problems and disorders, the DCM, and personality variables.

The FFOCI and other measures and models of OCPD.

The Five Factor Obsessive Compulsive Inventory (FFOCI) was developed in part to facilitate a shift from the categorical classification of personality disorder to a dimensional trait model, more specifically, the five-factor model (FFM). Questions though have been raised as to whether obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD) can be understood as a maladaptive variant of FFM conscientiousness. The present study provides a further validation of the FFOCI, emphasizing in particular its association with FFM conscientiousness, as well as comparing alternative measures and models of OCPD. A total of 380 undergraduates (obtained in two samples of 274 and 106), including 146 oversampled for OCPD traits (93 for the first sample and 53 for the second), completed the FFOCI, measures of general personality, OCPD trait scales, and alternative measures of OCPD. Results supported the validity of the FFOCI as a measure of OCPD and maladaptive variants of FFM traits, as well as identifying substantive differences among the alternative measures of OCPD, particularly with respect to their relationship with FFM conscientiousness, antagonism, and introversion.

Positively unpleasant: The Dark Triad, happiness and subjective well-being

We sought to differentiate benign and malignant narcissism using measures of general personality, positive mood, and the Dark Triad (DT) with a sample of 840 persons from the UK, USA and Canada. All measures were reliable, indicating DT constructs are easily recovered from non-offender cohorts. Two structural equation models (SEM) tested this data, one an a priori measurement model, the other involving refined DT scales. The GFI for the refined DT SEM model was higher than for the a priori SEM, and was more stable. The final model suggested the DT comprises a single latent variable largely predicted by low Agreeableness, low Emotional Stability, and higher Extroversion, whereas latent positive mood is primarily predicted by higher Emotional Stability and Extroversion. Positive mood has a direct significant pathway to narcissism. These results suggest narcissism can be differentiated from Machiavellianism and psychopathy by being more associated with positive mood.

Investigating context specificity, self-schema characteristics, and personality test validity

Research indicates that providing a specific context in personality measures (e.g., “at school”) improves predictive validity. This study examined this issue in more detail, investigating a broader range of outcomes and the moderating role of self-concept clarity and self-concept differentiation. University students (N=158) completed online general and school-specific personality measures; questionnaires assessing self-concept clarity and self-concept differentiation; and measures of grade point average, leadership, and health. Results supported the benefits of using contextualized personality measures, with evidence demonstrating incremental validity for contextualized personality measures over general personality measures as well as significantly stronger relationships between contextualized personality measures and relevant criteria. Additionally, hypotheses related to the effects of clarity and differentiation were largely unsupported; however, some patterns suggested that it may be useful to continue to explore these self-schema structural characteristics in future research.

A comparison of work-specific and general personality measures as predictors of work and non-work criteria

Previous studies on frame-of-reference effects have focused on domain-specific personality measures as predictors of performance. The current study expands on this research by comparing work-specific and general personality as predictors of non-performance work criteria. Using self-report data collected from 239 workers employed in a variety of different organizations, we found evidence that work-specific personality yielded stronger relationships with job satisfaction, work frustration, turnover intention, and absenteeism than did general personality. Furthermore, we found several instances in which work-specific personality predicted incremental variance in these criteria after general personality was controlled. Contrary to our hypothesis, general personality did not have stronger relationships with general criteria than did work-specific personality. In sum, these findings suggest that the use of work-specific personality measures can increase predictive validity when work-specific criteria are used without sacrificing one’s ability to predict general criteria.

Personality and perfectionism in chronic fatigue syndrome: A closer look

Objective: To test the hypothesis that people with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) would differ significantly from a healthy control group on measures of general personality and perfectionism, specifically on measures of neuroticism and unhealthy perfectionism. Method: A total of 27 female CFS outpatients and 30 female healthy controls completed questionnaires, including the NEO Personality Inventory-Revised, the Multi-dimensional Perfectionism Scale and measures of anxiety and depression. Results: The CFS group was significantly more fatigued, anxious and depressed than healthy controls. They scored significantly higher on neuroticism and unhealthy perfectionism. Healthy and unhealthy perfectionism were positively correlated in the CFS group, but not in the control group. Conclusion: The present study confirms the link between neuroticism and fatigue and finds a link between unhealthy perfectionism and fatigue. A ‘healthy trait’, such as healthy perfectionism, when coupled with evaluative concerns is not necessarily healthy in a fatigued population. Researchers and clinicians should note the context in which apparently benign traits are expressed, and how they interact with other traits.

Comparing Two Alternative Measures of General Personality in the Assessment of Psychopathy: A Test of the NEO PI‐R and the MPQ

This study examined the interrelations between two measures of personality, the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R; P. T. Costa & R. R. McCrae, 1992) and the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire (MPQ; Tellegen & Waller, 2008), and their relations with psychopathy in a sample of undergraduates. Results revealed good convergence between conceptually related personality traits; however, the NEO PI-R facets accounted for more variance in the MPQ subscales (mean R(2)=.49) than did MPQ subscales in NEO PI-R facets (mean R(2)=.35). Both accounted for substantial proportions of variance in psychopathy scores, although the NEO PI-R accounted for larger proportions and manifested greater incremental validity when using the broader domains of each measure; the differences decreased when the narrower facets/subscales were used. The results suggest that, although both measures assess psychopathy-related traits, the NEO PI-R provides a more complete description because of its assessment of interpersonal antagonism and the central role of this construct in psychopathy.

The relationship between the five-factor model and latent Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition personality disorder dimensions

This study compared the latent structure of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition personality disorders (PDs) with the 5-factor model (FFM) of general personality dimensions. The subjects in the study were 742 community-residing individuals who participated in the Hopkins Epidemiology of Personality Disorders Study. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition PD traits were assessed by psychologists using the International Personality Disorder Examination, and PD dimensions were derived previously using dichotomous factor analysis. The Revised NEO Personality Inventory, a measure of the FFM, was administered to all subjects. The relationship between the 2 sets of personality-related constructs was examined using a construct validity framework and also using Pearson correlation coefficients, multiple linear regression models, and spline regression models. The 5 PD factors each exhibited small to moderate correlations with several NEO dimensions; together, the NEO domain and facet scores explained a fifth to a third of the variance in PD dimensions. Examples of nonlinear relationships between the personality dimensions were identified. There is a modest correspondence between the PD dimensions and FFM traits, and the traits of FFM only partially explain the variance of the PDs. Dimensional measures of general personality may be a suitable alternative to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition. Whether additional maladaptive traits would better define the domain of PDs remains an important objective for future research.

Millon's Dimensional Model of Personality Disorders: A Comparative Study

Millon has proposed six fundamental dimensions of general personality functioning as providing the underlying structure of personality disorders. However, this widely-cited theoretical model has been the subject of few empirical studies. The purpose of the current study was to directly compare the validity of this model to the five-factor model with respect to their hypothesized relationships with personality disorder symptomatology. Participants were administered the predominant measures of general personality functioning for each theoretical model, along with an assessment of personality disorder symptomatology. The results found only weak support for the theoretical model of Millon. Limitations and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Reactive and proactive aggression: Similarities and differences

The purpose of the current study was to elaborate the nomological net surrounding the constructs of reactive (RA) and proactive aggression (PA). Typically examined in the context of children, the current study utilized a sample of 211 young adults to examine the relations between reactive and proactive aggression and measures of general personality and social information processing, as well as maladaptive behavioral correlates such as crime, substance use, and riskier sex. Both raw and residualized scores were examined. Using raw scores, the primary differences between RA and PA were related to Neuroticism (i.e., RA more strongly related) and externalizing behaviors (i.e., PA more strongly). The authors comment on the similarity of findings when using raw scores and the divergence of findings using residualized scores and argue for a cautious interpretation of differences based on residualized scores. The authors conclude that the role of Neuroticism warrants further exploration as a means for understanding the heterogeneity of aggressive behavior.

The Sexual Sensation Seeking Scale: Reliablity and Validity Within a Heterosexual College Student Sample

The Sexual Sensation Seeking Scale (SSSS; Kalichman & Rompa, 1995) is a measure of the propensity to seek out novel or risky sexual stimulation. This measure has been consistently related to HIV-risk behavior in several different samples of gay men and with behavioral correlates of sexual permissiveness in college students. Five hundred twenty-eight college students completed the SSSS and several other sexuality and personality measures. The results reveal significant gender differences on the SSSS and similar (although stronger among women) patterns of significant correlations with sexually permissive characteristics and behaviors. Furthermore, SSSS scores were more highly correlated with sexual measures, whereas a more general measure of sensation seeking was more highly correlated with general personality measures. We discuss implications for use of the SSSS by sexuality educators and sex therapists.

Assessment of Child Physical and Sexual Abuse Offenders

A variety of techniques have been used to evaluate offender characteristics thought to be related to child maltreatment. Current assessment approaches include the use of interviews, observations, general personality measures, and offender specific measures. Evaluations are needed for a variety of purposes, which include screening, report confirmation, treatment planning, treatment evaluation, and recidivism prediction. However, there is often a paucity of data on the appropriateness of using existing assessment techniques in each of the different evaluation situations. Because most child protective services providers and many health professionals use interviews and observational techniques to evaluate parents, this article will begin with a description of these approaches and associated problems, such as interviewer bias. Given the increasing use of standardized personality measures, particularly by psychologists (Straus, 1993), and the relatively recent development of offender specific measures, the present review will focus on some of the most frequently used standardized and specialized offender assessment approaches. To the extent possible, psychometric data presented will include reliability and validity information, including individual classification rates (correct classifications of offender status sensitivity , correct classifications of nonoffender status specificity, misclassifications of offender status false negative classifications , and misclassifications of nonoffender status false positive classifications ). INTERVIEWS In most cases, the interview procedure attempts to assess offender characteristics using a question and answer format. In structured interviews, information is gathered through a planned process, where an effort is made to systematically ask questions about different domains of interest (e.g., risk factors). Structured interviews, which tend to generate more reliable data than unstructured interviews, have been developed to assess individual characteristics, such as depression (Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression; Hamilton, 1986) and how parents view their children (e.g., Altemeier, O'Connor, Vietze, Sandler, & Sherrod, 1982; Kelly, 1983; Murphy, Orkow, & Nicola, 1985). The success of the structured interview depends upon a variety of factors (Milner, 1991d). General training in interviewing techniques and specific training in the evaluation of the characteristics of interest (e.g., depression, parental expectations) are needed. The interviewer must establish rapport with the client, and must adhere to the recommended interview structure, which at times may be difficult because the interview process is interactive. A criticism of interview procedures is that they frequently have lower reliability and validity than objective tests. Never-the-less, some argue that the interview process has the advantage of allowing for idiographic assessment, in that the interviewer can deviate from the planned format to obtain personality data unique to the individual. In child maltreatment assessment, there is a paucity of research on the predictive power of interviewing procedures in offender evaluations. Recently, however, there has been an interest in evaluator bias in child abuse assessment. Research suggests that factors unrelated to the abuse event can impact child maltreatment evaluations and/or reporting decisions made during the interview. For example, in a national sample, Nuttall and Jackson (1994) found that professionals (i.e., clinical social workers, pediatricians, psychiatrists, and psychologists) who had been sexually and/or physically abused as children were more likely to believe allegations of child sexual abuse. The findings did not vary by discipline. In terms of personal beliefs about the veracity of children's reports of sexual abuse, Kendall-Tackett and Watson (1991) found that professionals who believed that children do not lie about sexual abuse, compared to those who were neutral, were more likely to be convinced by case data that child sexual abuse had occurred. …

Driving experience, personality, and skill and safety-motive dimensions in drivers' self-assessments

This study was aimed at measuring skill and safety-motive dimensions in drivers' self-assessments of their driving abilities and at investigating correlations among three driving inventories and six general personality measures. The questionnaires were completed by 113 students with a driver's licence. The orthogonal model with the skill and safety-motive factors explained 35% of the variance in the questionnaire based on the work of Spolander ( Drivers' Assessment of Their Own Driving Ability, 1983) and Hatakka, Keskinen, Katila and Laapotti ( International Conference on Traffic Safety, 1991). Multiple regression analysis showed driving experience to be a significant predictor of safety and skill-oriented driving, so that with driving experience drivers assess themselves as more fluent in handling the car, but lower in safety aspects of driving. The safety-motive scale had only weak correlations with driving-specific or personality measures except the Lie-scale of the EPQ, which suggests that ‘safe driving’ expressed in questionnaires is safety jargon soon forgotten after driving school with driving experience, possibly together with the corresponding safety behavior, rather than a permanent response tendency. The skill scale correlated strongly with scales expressing an emotional attitude to driving and with a sense of coherence. Driving aggression and dislike of driving DBI scales correlated with neuroticism, Type-A behavior, self-esteem, sense of coherence, and locus of control, whereas the MDIE scales correlated only with Type-A behavior and neuroticism.

Adaptive Selling: Conceptualization, Measurement, and Nomological Validity

A 16-item scale is developed to measure the degree to which salespeople practice adaptive selling—the degree to which they alter their sales presentation across and during customer interactions in response to the perceived nature of the sales situation. This paper-and-pencil scale assesses self-reports of five facets of adaptive selling: (1) recognition that different sales approaches are needed for different customers, (2) confidence in ability to use a variety of approaches, (3) confidence in ability to alter approach during an interaction, (4) collection of information to facilitate adaptation, and (5) actual use of different approaches. The reliability of the scale is .85. Support for the nomological validity of the scale is found by failure to disconfirm relationships with an antecedent (intrinsic motivation), several general personality measures of interpersonal flexibility (self-monitoring, empathy, locus of control, and androgyny), and a consequence (self-reported performance).

Hemisphericity and personality.

Hemisphericity was originally defined with regard to cognitive processes only. This paper describes a brief personality questionnaire derived from work on personality changes in temporal lobe epilepsy as a method of demonstrating the existence of hemisphericity as a personality characteristic. A factor analysis of the Personal Inventory (Bear & Fedio, 1977) in a normal sample suggests the existence of a right and a left hemisphere component to the personality traits tapped by the scale. Three separate validity studies of a questionnaire developed from the factor analysis, utilizing cognitive, affective and general personality measures provide confirmation. Left hemisphericity types are characterized as possessing greater control over their impulses, experiencing less generalized tension, being more trusting and imaginative and viewing themselves in a positive light. Right hemisphericity types are characterized as possessing less control over their impulses, being tense, suspicious, shy and pragmatic and viewing themselves in a negative light.