Objective Personality Tests Research Articles

Time to Make it Personal: How Personality Testing in Law Schools Can Improve Lawyer Well-Being

“Why don’t snakes bite lawyers? Professional courtesy.” This is one of the many “jokes” that integrate the general public’s perception of lawyers as crooks, cheats, and money-hungry badgers, yet practicing lawyers and law students alike are plagued by stress, anxiety, dissatisfaction, and substance abuse. While many articles and law journals have grappled with the idea on how to improve lawyer satisfaction, there has yet to be a dramatic improvement in lawyer well-being. By incorporating personality testing in legal education, law schools can fight back against lawyer dissatisfaction by encouraging mental wellness and growth at a lawyer’s infancy. This article illustrates how personality testing in law schools can be used to improve lawyer well-being. In the first section, I list many variations of personality testing. However, objective personality tests may be the best type indicator for law schools to use. Popular test descriptions and which of these tests are the most effective, reliable, and valid are discussed in length. Then, a discussion of personality test limitations is presented, which includes the problem with tests’ reliability and validity, test takers “faking good,” and tests leading to stereotypes. The paper continues with a discussion on current lawyer and law student well-being statistics. An analysis of legal profession statistics regarding anxiety, stress, depression, and substance abuse are listed, including ways personality testing could help law students avoid such lawyer dissatisfaction. The conversation then opens into the utility of personality testing and the benefits one receives by gaining insight and understanding of themselves. The main argument centers around how personality testing can be used in law schools. There are multiple areas personality testing can be implemented to improve law school curriculum, such as the need for a new curriculum that emphasizes soft skills and interpersonal communications and improves pedagogy with the use of personality tests. Personality testing will help professors understand different learning styles, personality types’ reactions to Socratic questioning, and new methods of teaching different types. Additionally, personality testing can improve career services by providing law students direction toward potential career paths. Testing may also improve student services’ student wellness strategies, mentoring relationships, and team/group pairings. The final piece of the argument discusses how personality testing could be utilized on the front end of a student’s law school experience through either interviews, admitted students’ welcome packages, or orientation. Ultimately, the legal profession needs to stop providing lip service that there are “ways” to improve lawyer well-being and begin aiding law students at the beginning of their legal careers. This article lists a range of ways to include personality testing in law schools from legal curriculum to group exercises to extracurricular activities. Thus, law schools may implement personality testing in a myriad of ways that will benefit students educational (and ultimately legal) experience. The only way systemic lawyer dissatisfaction will continue, however, is if the legal profession continues to do nothing. It is time to make it personal.

Increased Risk of Psychopathological Abnormalities in Subjects With Unilateral Hearing Loss: A Cross-Sectional Study.

ObjectivesAlthough unilateral hearing loss (UHL) has been proven to be associated with educational and behavioral problems, few studies have investigated psychopathological abnormalities in this population. The aim of this study was to evaluate the psychopathological influence of UHL among Korean 19-year-old males.MethodsThe authors retrospectively compared the objective personality test profiles of 602 subjects with UHL with those of 23,790 peers with normal hearing. All participants in the current study were 19-year-old males who underwent a physical examination and completed the Korean Military Multiphasic Personality Inventory for conscription at the Military Manpower Administration from February 2015 to December 2016.ResultsSignificantly higher scores were found on neurosis scales in the UHL group than in the normal-hearing group (50.9± 10.8 vs. 44.9±6.0 for anxiety; 51.0±10.5 vs. 44.9±5.2 for depression; 51.1±10.4 vs. 45.1±6.81 for somatization, all P<0.001). The psychopathy scales were also significantly higher in the UHL group than in the normal-hearing group (49.3±9.4 vs. 46.3±5.7 for schizophrenia; 51.1±11.2 vs. 44.3±5.8 for personality disorders; 51.1±10.5 vs. 45.7±3.7 for paranoia, all P<0.001).ConclusionNineteen-year-old males with UHL tended to have more abnormal results on personality tests than controls with normal hearing, suggesting that UHL may be related with a higher risk of psychopathology.

Overarching personality paradigm: A neo-Cattellian psychometric model

Research into a paradigm of human personality first requires the taxonomic delineation of normal and abnormal personality trait constructs, dynamic (motivation) traits, and transitory (emotional/mood) states. The Cattellian Psychometric Model is such an empirically-derived taxonomy of factor-analytically elucidated psychological constructs. Following Kline's suggestion that Cattell's model comprising 92 primary factors needed simplification, the present paper reports on a series of programmatic factor-analytic studies reducing the model down to just 30 separate factors, enabling construction of a whole suite of modern neo-Cattellian instruments. The present paper provides the point of departure for advancing measurement and research based on a more parsimonious Neo-Cattellian Psychometric Model. Construction of modern objective (T-data) personality test measures would greatly help to minimise the subjectivity of the current plethora of introspective, item-transparent self-report questionnaires and/or rating scales. Cattell's approach (including both his elaborate VIDAS systems model as well as his modulation theory and state-liability trait theory) continues to offer a general framework for understanding many controversies still faced today in relation to specific themes and problems in personality psychology.

Ability Tests Measure Personality, Personality Tests Measure Ability: Disentangling Construct and Method in Evaluating the Relationship between Personality and Ability.

Although personality and cognitive ability are separate (sets of) constructs, we argue and demonstrate in this article that their effects are difficult to tease apart, because personality affects performance on cognitive tests and cognitive ability affects item responses on personality assessments. Cognitive ability is typically measured with tests of items with correct answers; personality is typically measured with rating-scale self-reports. Oftentimes conclusions regarding the personality–ability relationship have as much to do with measurement methods as with construct similarities and differences. In this article, we review key issues that touch on the relationship between cognitive ability and personality. These include the construct-method distinction, sources of test score variance, the maximal vs. typical performance distinction, and the special role for motivation in low-stakes testing. We review a general response model for cognitive and personality tests that recognizes those sources of test score variance. We then review approaches for measuring personality through performance (objective personality tests, grit game, coding speed, economic preferences, confidence), test and survey behavior (survey effort, response time, item position effects), and real-world behavior (study time, registration latency, behavior residue, and social media). We also discuss ability effects on personality tests, indicated by age and cognitive ability effects, anchoring vignette rating errors, and instructions to ‘fake good’. We conclude with a discussion of the implications for our understanding of personality and ability differences, and suggestions for integrating the fields.

A characterization of gestational carriers using the thematic apperception test

Objective personality tests (such as the MMPI-2 and PAI) used to screen gestational carriers (GCs) often show defensiveness. This study investigates the utility of incorporating a projective assessment measure such as the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) into the psychological screening process to better understand personality functioning of potential GCs. GC candidates' TAT protocols were scored using 3 validated scoring systems. These were compared both within the sample (accepted vs. not accepted) and against norms published for women matched for demographic characteristics. 4 cards of the TAT (1, 2, 3GF, & 13MF) were administered as part of the psychological evaluation process for 39 GC candidates. TAT protocols were then scored using multiple scoring systems as a way of quantifying the responses. Scoring systems included the Scoring Scheme for the TAT, the Rating Scales for Emotional Tone and Outcome, and Apperceptive Norms. Scores of accepted GCs (n=31) were then compared to norms published for women using both t-test and chi-square analyses. Comparisons were also made within the sample between women accepted as GCs (n=31) and those not cleared psychologically (n=8). Card 1 typically elicits themes about self-image, relationships with authority figures, and achievement. When compared to norms on Emotional Tone, women accepted as GCs were significantly more likely to report themes of sadness (p<.001). On cards that typically elicit themes of loss and depression (3GF & 13MF), accepted GCs' mean scores were significantly more positive in tone (p<.05). Comparisons on Apperceptive Norms revealed significant differences across multiple cards. When compared to norms on card 1, accepted GCs endorsed items suggesting compliance in response to authority at a significantly higher rate (p<.001). On card 2, accepted GCs were significantly more likely to endorse themes of pregnancy (p<.001) as well as themes of improving one's educational status and maintaining traditional family values (p<.05). Card 13MF typically elicits themes of sexual conflicts. Accepted GCs were significantly less likely to report negative themes of illicit sexual activity or wrongdoing and more likely to interpret images as more wholesome (p<.05). When comparisons were made within the study sample (accepted vs. not accepted), women not accepted based on their psychological evaluation showed a restricted range of emotion on all cards and a tendency towards describing outcomes that were less favorable and more indeterminate than women who had been accepted as GCs. This study shows there are unique qualities in the TAT profiles of GC candidates that distinguish them from the general population. Incorporating projective measures designed to bypass psychological defenses often present on objective tests can provide a more comprehensive profile of personality functioning and aid mental health professionals in determining the psychological appropriateness of potential GC candidates.

Neuroimaging supports behavioral personality assessment: Overlapping activations during reflective and impulsive risk taking

Personality assessment has been challenged by the fact that different assessment methods (implicit measures, behavioral measures and explicit rating scales) show little or no convergence in behavioral studies. In this neuroimaging study we address for the first time, whether different assessment methods rely on separate or overlapping neuronal systems. Fifty nine healthy adult participants completed two objective personality tests of risk propensity: the more implicit Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART) and the more explicit Game of Dice Task (GDT). Significant differences in activation, as well as connectivity patterns between both tasks were observed. In both tasks, risky decisions yielded significantly stronger activations than safe decisions in the bilateral caudate, as well as the bilateral Insula. The finding of overlapping brain areas validates different assessment methods, despite their behavioral non-convergence. This suggests that neuroimaging can be an important tool of validation in the field of personality assessment.

Assessing Collaborative Behavior in Students

Abstract. Skilful collaborative problem-solving is becoming increasingly important in various life areas. However, researchers are still seeking ways to assess and foster this skill in individuals. In this study, we developed a computer-assisted assessment for collaborative behavior (COLBAS) following the experiment-based assessment of behavior approach (objective personality tests; Cattell, 1958 ). The instrument captures participants’ collaborative behavior in problem-solving tasks using the MicroDYN approach while participants work collaboratively with a computer-agent. COLBAS can thereby assess problem-solving and collaborative behavior expressed through communication acts. To investigate its validity, we administered COLBAS to 483 German seventh graders along with MicroDYN as a measure of individual problem-solving skills and questions regarding the motivation to collaborate. A latent confirmatory factor analysis suggested a five-dimensional construct with two problem-solving dimensions (knowledge acquisition and knowledge application) and three collaboration dimensions (questioning, asserting, and requesting). The results showed that extending MicroDYN to include collaborative aspects did not considerably change the measurement of problem-solving. Finally, students who were more motivated to collaborate interacted more with the computer-agent but also obtained worse problem-solving results.

A U-shaped Association between Body Mass Index and Psychological Distress on the Multiphasic Personality Inventory: Retrospective Cross-sectional Analysis of 19-year-old Men in Korea.

Objective personality tests, such as the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), might be more sensitive to reflect subclinical personality and be more state-dependent in an individual's lifetime, so they are good scales to predict the psychological distress regarding certain states. The aim of this study was to identify the specific pattern between body mass index (BMI) and psychological distress using the objective personality test. For this study, we investigated BMI and the Korean Military Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MPI). A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted with 19-yr-old examinees who were admitted to the Military Manpower Administration in Korea from February 2007 to January 2010. Of 1,088,107 examinees, we enrolled 771,408 subjects who were psychologically apparent healthy possible-military-service groups. Afterwards, we reviewed and analyzed directly measured BMI and MPI results. In terms of the validity scales, the faking-good subscale showed an inverted U-shaped association, and faking-bad and infrequency subscales showed a U-shaped association with BMI groups. In terms of the neurosis scales, all clinical subscales (anxiety, depression, somatization, and personality disorder) also showed a U-shaped association with BMI groups. For the psychopath scales, the schizophrenia subscale showed a U-shaped association, and the paranoia subscale showed a near-positive correlation with BMI. In conclusion, a specific U-shaped pattern was observed between BMI and the MPI in 19-yr-old men in Korea. Underweight and obesity are related to psychological distress, so supportive advice and education are needed to them.

Evaluating the Construct Validity of Objective Personality Tests Using a Multitrait-Multimethod-Multioccasion-(MTMM-MO)-Approach

Although Objective Personality Tests (OPTs) have a long history in psychology and the field of psychological assessment, their validity, and reliability have not yet been sufficiently studied. In this study, we examined the convergent and discriminant validity of objective (personality) tests, Implicit Association Tests (IATs), and self-report measures for the assessment of conscientiousness and intelligence. Moreover, the convergent and discriminant validity of these measures was assessed on the trait (stable) and occasion specific (momentary) level by using the multimethod latent state-trait (MM-LST) model proposed by Courvoisier, Nussbeck, Eid, and Cole (2008) which allows for the decomposition of different sources of variance. Data from 367 students assessed on three different measurement occasions was incorporated. Results indicate generally low convergence of OPTs with data gained by other approaches. Additional analyses revealed that the OPTs used assess stable rather than momentary components of the constructs. Reliabilities of different tests ranged from .54 to .95. Furthermore, a substantial amount of trait method specificity revealed that different methods assess trait components that are not shared between OPTs and other measures. Data on the criterion validity of the objective conscientiousness test revealed that it is related to the punctuality of test takers in the laboratory.

Advances and Continuing Challenges in Objective Personality Testing

The use of objective behavioral indicators instead of selfreported behaviors and self-ratings has a long history in personality assessment. The basic idea of objective personality tests (OPTs) can be traced back to James McKeen Cattell’s proposal of mental tests in 1890. A few decades later, OPT procedures were employed by the German and US militaries during World War II (see Fitts, 1946). Until today, most tests designed for the objective assessment of personality have been based on Raymond Bernard Cattell’s comprehensive theoretical and empirical work and his well-known postulate that a complete investigation of personality requires heterogeneous data sources including self-report data (Q-data), life indicators of personality often obtained from observer reports (L-data), and objective performance

Economic Games

The psychometric properties of behaviors in economic games as indicators of stable latent dispositions of altruism and fairness were tested in two studies. Using latent state-trait analyses, we explored the factor structure of offers in the dictator game, rejection decisions in the ultimatum game, and altruistic punishment and altruistic compensation in a three-person game. Results showed that four distinct but intercorrelated latent dispositions best described the interindividual differences in these behaviors. The reliabilities and stabilities of these behaviors across 6 weeks were generally moderate to high. Correlations with self-report measures of personality suggested that offers in the dictator game and altruistic compensation reflect a concern for fairness coupled with a reluctance to harm others. Rejection decisions in the ultimatum game were correlated with competitiveness and the need for power. In sum, our results suggest that economic games have good psychometric qualities as instruments that can be used to assess stable latent dispositions and can be employed as objective personality tests sensu Cattell to gain a more complete picture of personality beyond self-reports.

A multi-method approach to studying the relationship between character strengths and vocational interests in adolescents

The relationship between character strengths and vocational interests was tested. In an online study, 197 thirteen to eighteen year-olds completed a questionnaire measuring character strengths and a multi-method measure for interests (questionnaire, nonverbal test, and objective personality tests). The main findings were that intellectual strengths yielded primarily relations with investigative and artistic interests. Social interests demonstrated relations with strengths of transcendence and other-directed strengths and enterprising interests with leadership strengths. The implications of the findings for practice are highlighted.

Context Effects on Test Performance

The effects of varied test order within a computer test battery on test performance were investigated. An experiment was performed to determine whether completing objective personality tests sensu R. B. Cattell affects test performance in subsequent cognitive ability tests and vice versa. The sample consisted of managers of an industrial corporation (an automotive supplier) in “higher management positions” (business managers, department chiefs, and team leaders) who attended an investigation of their professional potential that resembled a real selection situation. It was hypothesized that carry-over and priming effects, as well as fatigue and learning effects might occur. Results of a MANOVA showed a main effect of test order on objective personality tests, since “frustration tolerance” decreased and “decisiveness” increased when objective personality tests were presented subsequent to cognitive ability tests, while cognitive ability tests were not affected by prior objective personality tests.

Modeling Effects of Faking on an Objective Personality Test

The article investigated the effect of faking on the dimensionality and mean scores of an objective personality test measuring subjectively accepted level of risk. Various studies conducted with standardized personality questionnaires have demonstrated that faking may distort both the dimensionality and mean scores. In contrast, the empirical evidence on the effect of faking on the dimensionality and mean scores obtained with objective personality tests is still sparse. In the first study, we evaluated the effect of naturally occurring faking on the dimensionality and mean scores using a between-subject design that compared professional driver applicants to volunteers matched according to relevant sociodemographic characteristics. The results indicated that the objective personality test measures the same latent trait in both samples. Furthermore, we failed to observe a significant mean difference between volunteers and professional driver applicants. Furthermore, we failed to observe any mean score differences between both samples. The second study experimentally evaluated the effect of individual differences in respondents’ ability to infer the ideal level of the latent trait on the dimensionality and mean scores using a combined between- and within-subject design. Using modern item response theory techniques we found that a less clear description of the ideal level of the latent trait prevented a successful faking attempt. In contrast, a more clear and less difficult to implement a description of the ideal level of the latent trait allowed respondents to successfully increase their test scores. The results are discussed in light of current models of applicants response processes when working personality tests.

Convergence of Direct, Indirect, and Objective Risk-Taking Measures in Gambling

Based on dual-process models, we assumed that risk taking depends on implicit and explicit risk attitudes and risk propensity. Specifically, we predicted that the convergence between these indicators would depend on the impulsiveness versus reflectiveness of risk behavior. Two objective personality tests (OPTs) of risk taking that measure risk behavior in standardized situations were employed. We predicted that the impulsive OPT would depend more on implicit risk dispositions. The reverse effect pattern was expected for the reflective OPT. Next, we expected that self-control would amplify the weight of explicit dispositions and attenuate that of implicit dispositions. At Time 1, two direct questionnaire measures of explicit risk proneness, three indirect measures of implicit risk proneness, and a self-control measure were administered. At Time 2, participants participated in a reflective and an impulsive gambling OPT. The assumed pattern of effects was obtained. We conclude with a discussion of future research avenues.

The technique of objective personality-tests sensu R. B. Cattell nowadays: The Viennese pool of computerized tests aimed at experiment-based assessment of behavior

The technique of objective personality-tests sensu R. B. Cattell nowadays: The Viennese pool of computerized tests aimed at experiment-based assessment of behavior

A history of the early days of personality testing in American industry: An obsession with adjustment.

Objective personality testing began with Woodworth's Personal Data Sheet in 1917. That test was developed to identify soldiers prone to nervous breakdowns during enemy bombardment in World War I (WWI). Soon after, many competing personality tests were developed for use in industry. Many of these tests, like Woodworth's, focused on the construct of employee maladjustment and were deemed important in screening out applicants who would create workplace disturbances. In this article, the authors review the history of these early personality tests, especially the Bernreuter Personality Inventory and the Humm-Wadsworth Temperament Scale, and discuss the implications of personality testers' obsession with the construct of employee maladjustment. In addition, the authors discuss the industry's obsession with emotional maladjustment and how this obsession coincided with a cultural shift in norms relating to cultural expression.

Problematic Physicians: A Comparison of Personality Profiles by Offence Type

This exploratory study compares objective personality test findings among physicians exhibiting different forms of misconduct. The importance of delineating distinctive personality characteristics by type of offence is that such characterizations can direct therapy and prognosis for remediation. Eighty-eight physicians referred to the Vanderbilt Comprehensive Assessment Program for Professionals (V-CAP) completed the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2, the Personality Assessment Inventory, or both, as part of their evaluation. On the basis of referral information, physicians were partitioned into 3 groups of offenders: "sexual boundary violators," "behaviourally disruptive," and "other misconduct." On both personality measures, the sexual boundary violators generated the greatest percentage of profiles indicative of character pathology. Although all 3 groups exhibited unacceptable behaviours, the pervasive personality features of the sexual boundary violators are associated with greater therapeutic challenge, and these individuals likely pose the greater risk of reoffending.

Convergence of conventional and behavior-based measures: Towards a multimethod approach in the assessment of vocational interests

The main aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of different techniques for the assessment of vocational interests. In an empirical study (n = 264) a questionnaire, a nonverbal test, several objective personality tests, and a semi-projective test were applied in one single session in a computerized setting. All tests enable the assessment of vocational interests with regard to the theory of vocational interests by Holland (1997). Results showed that highest correlations to a Holland-type questionnaire were found for the questionnaire and the nonverbal test. In general, the objective personality tests were less homogenous and showed lower correlations to questionnaires. Nevertheless, all different measures showed potential for the assessment of vocational interests. Improvements in the test material and scoring methods of the newly constructed tests are discussed and a model for the combined use of different assessment methods is presented. Future research directions and a discussion on the role of a multimethod assessment strategy in practice are given.

Assessing behavior in standardized settings: The role of objective personality tests

In this theoretical study objective personality tests are presented as a possible means of assessing behavior in standardized settings. A new generation of objective personality tests that are directly linked to the use of computers is described. One of the prime characteristics of these tests is that they do not have any face validity and are therefore less susceptible to the faking or other answer distortions that are regularly found in the subjective assessment of personality by means of questionnaires. Recent developments in the area of objective personality tests are presented. The Hyperkinetic Syndrome Assessment Method (HKSD) is described as an example of the new generation of objective personality tests. The construction rationale, psychometric properties, and results on its validity are presented. Results from studies with clinical and non-clinical samples demonstrate the usefulness of the HKSD in practice. Objective personality tests are discussed as alternatives in the field of psychological assessment and as valid, economical instruments for the assessment of behavior.