Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey Research Articles

A General Factor of Personality in 16 sets of the Big Five, the Guilford–Zimmerman Temperament Survey, the California Psychological Inventory, and the Temperament and Character Inventory

In four studies, we tested the hypothesis that a General Factor of Personality (GFP) occupies the apex of the hierarchy. In Study 1, a GFP was found in 16 sets of Big Five inter-scale correlations ( N = 6412) which explained 54% of the variance in the two first-order factors. In Study 2, a GFP was found in validation samples from the Guilford–Zimmerman Temperament Survey ( N = 2917) which explained 36% of the variance in three first-order factors and 21% of the total reliable variance in a model that went from 10 primary traits to 3 higher-order traits to the GFP. In Study 3, a GFP was found in a validation sample of the California Psychological Inventory ( N = 6000) which explained 35% of the variance in two second-order factors, 17% of the variance in six first-order factors, and 20% of the total reliable variance in 20 primary traits. In Study 4, a GFP was found in two validation samples of the Temperament and Character Inventory ( N = 1285) which explained 49% of the variance in three first-order factors and 24% of the total reliable variance in a model that went from 7 primary traits to 3 higher-order traits to the GFP.

Personality predictors of longevity: activity, emotional stability, and conscientiousness.

To examine the association between personality traits and longevity. Using the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey, personality traits were assessed in 2359 participants (38% women; age = 17 to 98 years, mean = 50 years) from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging, starting in 1958. Over the duration of the study, 943 (40%) participants died, on average 18 years after their personality assessment. The association of each trait with longevity was examined by Cox regression controlling for demographic variables. In preliminary analyses among the deceased, those who scored 1 standard deviation (SD) above the mean on General Activity (a facet of Extraversion), Emotional Stability (low Neuroticism), or Conscientiousness lived on average 2 to 3 years longer than those scoring 1 SD below the mean. Survival analyses on the full sample confirmed the association of General Activity, Emotional Stability, and Conscientiousness with lower risk of death, such that every 1-SD increase was related to about 13%, 15%, and 27% risk reduction, respectively. The association of personality traits with longevity was largely independent from the influence of smoking and obesity. Personality predictors of longevity did not differ by sex, except for Ascendance (a facet of Extraversion). Emotional Stability was a significant predictor when the analyses were limited to deaths due to cardiovascular disease, with comparable effect sizes for General Activity and Conscientiousness. In a large sample of generally healthy individuals followed for almost five decades, longevity was associated with being conscientious, emotionally stable, and active.

Personality plasticity after age 30.

Rank-order consistency of personality traits increases from childhood to age 30. After that, different summaries of the literature predict a plateau at age 30, or at age 50, or a curvilinear peak in consistency at age 50. These predictions were evaluated at group and individual levels using longitudinal data from the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey and the Revised NEO Personality Inventory for periods of up to 42 years. Consistency declined toward a nonzero asymptote with increasing time interval. Although some scales showed increasing stability after age 30, the rank-order consistencies of the major dimensions and most facets of the Five-Factor Model were unrelated to age. Ipsative stability, assessed with the California Adult Q-Set, also was unrelated to age. These data strengthen claims of predominant personality stability after age 30.

Personality Traits as Predictors of Managerial Performance: A Study of Hotel Managers

The purpose of this study was to determine which personality traits would predict the success of general managers in the service-oriented hotel industry. It evaluated the differences in personality traits between high and low performing managers in a geographical division of a major international hotel chain. Thirty-one male participants responded to the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey, a multi-dimensional personality inventory. T-tests indicated that the high and low performing managers differed the most on three personality variables: ascendance, emotional stability, and objectivity. Comptrollers scored consistently with the low-performing general managers; thus based on these results, they are likely to be poor candidates for promotion into top management. The three personality traits found to be the best predictors in this study are comparable to three of the “Big 5” personality factors that have previously been linked to job performance. The combined prediction of these three subscales accounted for 65% of the variance between the high and low performing groups. The original Guilford-Zimmerman contains 300 questions; thus a shortened version of this instrument tailored for the hotel industry that assesses only these three traits could be developed. This method would be a practical and useful means of predicting which candidates would best be suited for top management in the hospitality industry.

Domains of the impulsivity construct: A factor analytic investigation

The impulsivity scale from the Personality Research Form (PRF), the control/impulsiveness scale from the Multidimensional Personality questionnaire (MPQ), and the restraint scale from the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey (GZTS) were each subjected to exploratory factor analysis in a sample of 252 normal adults. The replicability of the derived factor structure for each scale was tested in a sample of 230 undergraduates using confirmatory factor analysis. The relationships among impulsivity dimensions were also examined by subjecting the extracted factors from the three scales to a second order factor analysis. Although developed as unideminsional measures of the impulsivity construct, the MPQ and GZTS scales were found to have a similar multidimensional structure: a cautious versus spontaneous dimension, and a methodical versus disorganized dimension. This multidimensional model is compared with some recently proposed models for the impulsivity construct. The PRF scale was found to be a unidimensional measure that taps only a cautious/spontaneous facet of the impulsivity construct.

Effects of Teacher Experience and Selected Temperament Variables on Coping Strategies Used With Distractible Children

Twenty-two female university students representing two levels of teaching experience (no formal teaching experience vs. at least 2 years experience) were compared while interacting with one of two child confederates displaying distractible behavior. In addition to participating in a problem-solving task with a child, each adult completed the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey. Results suggested that experienced teachers tended to take a more “task-oriented” approach providing more instruction and structure and less task irrelevant conversation than did inexperienced teachers. Results of the temperament survey confirmed the hypothesis that adult temperament is an important variable mediating adult-child interaction. Adults’ self-reports of activity level, restraint, ascendance, and sociability correlated significantly with adult behavior such as numbers of irrelevant comments, instruction, attention demands, and positive feedback occurring in the laboratory setting. Implications for child placement practices are discussed.

Effects of Teacher Experience and Selected Temperament Variables on Coping Strategies Used with Distractible Children

Twenty-two female university students representing two levels of teaching experience (no formal teaching experience vs. at least 2 years experience) were compared while interacting with one of two child confederates displaying distractible behavior. In addition to participating in a problem-solving task with a child, each adult completed the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey. Results suggested that experienced teachers tended to take a more “task-oriented” approach providing more instruction and structure and less task irrelevant conversation than did inexperienced teachers. Results of the temperament survey confirmed the hypothesis that adult temperament is an important variable mediating adult-child interaction. Adults’ self-reports of activity level, restraint, ascendance, and sociability correlated significantly with adult behavior such as numbers of irrelevant comments, instruction, attention demands, and positive feedback occurring in the laboratory setting. Implications for child placement practices are discussed.

Second-order factors defined by the ISI

Sought to determine the higher-order factors in the Interpersonal Style Inventory in separate samples of male (N = 144) and female (N = 173) high school students. A principal axis factor analysis of the 15 scale intercorrelations discolosed five dimensions in each sample. These were hypothesized to represent Interpesonal Involvement, Level of Socialization, Self Control, Autonomy, and Emotional Stability. It is argued that each factor also is measured in at least two of the following multiscore inventories: Personality Research Form, the 16PF, the California Psychological Inventory, and the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey. The advantage of higher level factors lies in their greater generality and generally higher predictive validities.

A comparison of the Guilford and Eysenck factors of personality

The correlations of factor scores from the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey (GZTS) with factor scores on the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI) and the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) were compared to predictions made by Guilford and Eysenck regarding the structure of personality. Factor structure of the GZTS was consistent with Guilford's proposed model. Eysenck's Neuroticism was strongly associated with Guilford's Emotional Stability (E) and E plus Objectivity (O) factors. Eysenck's Psychoticism had no counterpart on the GZTS, although it was associated with Restraint (R). EPI-Extraversion was related to both Guilford's Social Activity (SA) and Introversion-Extraversion (IE) second-order factors, while EPQ-Extraversion was related only to SA. Findings are discussed in terms of Eysenck's evolving definition of Extraversion and the emerging importance of the Impulsivity primary factor.

Using the Personal Orientation Device to Predict Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey Scores

Levitt constructed a new projective test, primarily for use in forensic evaluations, the Personal Orientation Device (Levitt & Lester, in press). In this test, the subject is presented three sheets of papcr (one at a time), each with a circle drawn on it, and asked to draw three lines on each test stimulus. Incidental to the major purpose of the test, Levitt wrore a manual for scoring the protocols so as to predict Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey scores2 The present study was devised to test whether Levitt's suggested method for scoring and interpreting the device does predict Guilford-Zirnmerman scores. The Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey ( 1949) was administered to 21 females and 7 male students in a psychology course. Their mean age was 23.5 yr. (SD = 8.8 yr.). Subjects were also administered the Personal Orientation Device individually by one investigator. The latter protocols were then scored by the other investigator who had no knowledge of the Guilford-Zimmerman scores of the subjects, but was told the sex, age, and handedness of each subject. The predicted Guilford-Zirnmerman scores of each subject were made on 6-in. graphic rating scales. The prediction from the Personal Orientation Device of the subjects' scores on the Guilford-Zimmerrnan were correlated by the product-moment method with raw scores obtained on the Guilford-Zimmerman Survey. The personal-orientation predictions were associated with only one actual GuilfordZimmerman score of 10 (Scale A, r = 0.34, one-tailed p < 0.05). It must be concluded that the Personal Orientation Device did not predict GuilfordZimmerman Survey scores accurately.

Consistency of some personality measures as a function of stage of menstruation.

Two groups of college women were administered the Hand Test and selected scales from the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey. One group was tested in the premenstrual phase of the menstrual cycle (days 20-25); the other group at the beginning of the cycle (days 5-9). Significant differences were obtained, but the results did not corroborate earlier findings that negative personality characteristics are associated with the premenstrual phase of the cycle. The implications of the results and relevant methodological considerations are discussed.

Personal adjustment to aging: longitudinal prediction from neuroticism and extraversion.

Personal adjustment to aging as measured by scales from the Chicago Attitude Inventory (CAI) was examined longitudinally in a community-dwelling sample of 557 men aged 17 to 97. Concurrent and predictive relations between this age-appropriate measure of well-being and personality were examined by correlating the CAI variables with three factors from the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey identified as Neuroticism, Extraversion, and "Thinking Introversion." As hypothesized, Neuroticism was related negatively and Extraversion was related positively to most concurrent measures of well-being in both younger and older subsamples. "Thinking Introversion" was related only to positive attitudes toward religion. Predictive correlations between personality and subjective well-being over two-to-ten (M = 5.3) and ten-to-seventeen (M = 12.6) year intervals confirmed earlier research, and showed that enduring personality disposition antedate and predict measures of personal adjustment to aging.

Constancy of adult personality structure in males: longitudinal, cross-sectional and times-of-measurement analyses.

Constancy or change in adult personality organization can be assessed by comparing the factor structure of personality instruments at different ages, and some studies have reported cross-sectional differences in structure. The present study compares the factor structure of the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey scales longitudinally in three administrations 6 years apart and cross-sectionally in three age cohorts. Additional analyses compare first administration data collected in two successive decades to test for variation in structure resulting from cultural change over that period. Subjects were 769 male volunteers in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging, aged 17 to 97 at the time of the first administration. Three varimax-rotated principal components were extracted in each of eight analyses. Results show no systematic evidence of variation in structure in any of these groups, with coefficients of factor congruence ranging from .83 to .99. This longitudinally demonstrated invariance of personality structure is discussed in terms of the implications for the stability of personality organization throughout the adult years and for the use of personality tests in elderly groups.

Verbal listening skill in the interview and personal characteristics of the listeners

Verbal listening skill test scores were found to correlate significantly (N = 29, p < .05) and positively with scores on three tests of the Employee Aptitude Survey Battery: verbal comprehension (r =.46), numerical reasoning (r =.36), and verbal reasoning (r =.42). The multiple correlation of .52 was achieved when either reasoning test score was combined with the verbal comprehension test score to predict verbal listening accuracy. There were no significant correlations (N = 44) with verbal listening accuracy for the scales of the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey, the Thurstone Interest Schedule, or the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale.

"Heavy" and "light" drinking-drivers as separate target groups for treatment.

Because of the widely held hypothesis that the "Light" drinker and the "Heavy" drinker may respond differentially to various treatment programs, it appears of value to explore some of the basic differences between these two groups. Several hundred male drivers were studied prior to entering any one of several court-referred drinking-driver treatment programs in Orange County, California. One hundred sixty-nine "Light" drinkers and 112 "Heavy" drinkers were administered a biographical questionnaire, the Michigan Alcohol Screening Test, the Cornell Medical Index, and the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey. When compared with the "Light" drinker, the "Heavy" drinker tends to have stronger tendencies toward sociopathy, a lower educational level, and a greater tendency to not complete assigned treatment programs. Furthermore, they admit to a greater number of emotional and physical problems. These findings have implications for structuring the type of treatment program to which they may or may not respond. Since future research may indicate that the "Heavy" drinker is not responsive to existing treatment programs, we must consider the possibility of abandoning or restructuring most of our current programs if they prove not to be cost-effective.

Prenatal ‘female hormone’ administration and psychosexual development in human males

(1) Considerable data exist from animal research relating prenatal hormone levels to postnatal behaviors in the male. The data from human males are few. One strategy for testing this association is the study of humans exposed prenatally to exogenous ‘pregnancy maintaining hormones’. (2) Fifty-eight young adult males exposed to one of four hormone regimens were matched against nonhormone exposed controls. There were 17 males exposed to diethylstilbestrol (DES), 22 exposed to DES and natural progesterone, 10 to natural progesterone only, and 13 to synthetic progesterone. (3) Subjects were interviewed for various aspects of psychosexual development, and administered the Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI), the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey (GZTS), the Strong Vocational Interest Blank (SVIB), and the Embedded Figures Test (EFT). (4) Drug, total dosage, and time of drug administration were significantly associated with several aspects of boyhood, adolescent, and adult psychosexual development on interview and with differences in scales of the psychometric tests. (5) The most contrasting boyhood behaviors were between those exposed to progesterone and DES. Progesterone subjects tended to recall boyhood behaviors which departed from the conventional male mode toward ‘femininity’. The DES subjects tended to recall the most conventionally ‘masculine’ boyhoods. During adulthood, DES plus natural progesterone subjects reported a high sex drive while synthetic progesterone subjects reported a low sex drive. Erectile failure was more often reported by subjects exposed to natural progesterone only. (6) Three drug regimens were associated with elevations of the Feminine scale of the BSRI and two with elevations of the feminine scale of the GZTS. (7) The rates of homosexual behavior were comparable for drug and non-drug-exposed subjects.

Personality Correlates of Achievement in a Personnel Evaluation Course

Forty-four students enrolled in a personnel evaluation course were given three examinations on the content of Cronbach's textbook, Essentials of Psychological Testing. The sum of the three achievement test scores was correlated against the scores from the scales of the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey and from the Thurstone Interest Schedule. The total achievement test score was significantly correlated with the scores from the Emotional Stability ( r = .33) and with those from the Personal Relations ( r = .35) scales. The multiple correlation of these scales against the total achievement test score was R = .45.

Personality and job experience

Previous theory and research concerning job effects on personality are briefly reviewed. A new theoretical model is presented which proposes that individuals' life orientations and levels of emotional well-being are influenced by the stimulus complexity of their job experiences. Hypotheses derived from the model are proposed for 116 engineers, scientists, and managers employed by a large petroleum products company. Five characteristics of employees' jobs were measured using the Hackman-Oldham Job Diagnostic Survey. Longitudinal data were collected on four personality characteristics derived from the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey. Results of analyses indicate that changes in two personality characteristics (Active Orientation and Freedom from Depression) are associated with several job characteristics.

Age Changes, Cohort Differences, and Cultural Change on the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey

The relation between adult age and temperament was investigated using the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey. Between the years 1958 and 1974, the GZTS was administered to 915 men from 17 to 98 years of age in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study. Repeated measures were obtained for 336 men approximately 7 years after initial testing. Each GZTS scale was analyzed cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Sequential analyses of independent samples were also carried out in an attempt to separate the effects of maturation from those of generational and cultural change. Results showed that Masculinity declined at all ages, but General Activity declined only after age 50. Thoughtfulness and Personal Relations showed cultural declines during the time period studied, whereas Friendliness showed a long-term cultural decline. Later-born cohorts were lower in Restraint and higher in Ascendance than early-born cohorts.

Role expectations and definitions: a comparison of female transsexuals and lesbians.

A new study on female transsexuals and lesbians is reported. A matched-group comparison of 15 women in each sample suggests that the two groups do not differ in overall intelligence, although lesbians, unlike female transsexuals, tended to have a significantly higher verbal IQ than performance IQ. Both groups showed a similar response pattern on the Embedded Figures Test but differed on the Draw-A-Person Test, The Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey, and the Bem Androgyny Scale. Whereas the female transsexual group reflected a more rigid gender role stereotype, the lesbians saw their options as more androgynous.