The M5-PS-35: a five-factor personality questionnaire for preschool children

The Five-factor theory of personality (FFT) has pervaded personality research in recent years. Although many reliable and valid measurement instruments exist for use with adults, adolescents, and even elementary-age children, there is a lack of available 5-factor measurement tools for use with preschool children. This article expands on previous work developing the M5-PS, a rating form for preschool children designed to be completed by classroom teachers or caregivers. A total of 621 children were rated by their teachers on the 90-item working form of the M5-PS. Through a combination of empirical and rational scale refinement methods, the number of items has been reduced to 35, yielding a revised instrument, the M5-PS-35, with substantially improved construct validity and scale internal consistency. Potential changes in external validity were evaluated by comparative reanalysis of an existing data set.     

A test of the factor structure equivalence of the 50-item IPIP Five-factor model measure across gender and ethnic groups

Personality is frequently assessed in research and applied settings, in part due to evidence that scores on measures of the Five-factor model (FFM) of personality show predictive validity for a variety of outcomes. Although researchers are increasingly using the International Personality Item Pool (IPIP; Goldberg, 1999; International Personality Item Pool, 2007b) FFM measures, investigations of the psychometric properties of these measures are unfortunately sparse. The purpose of this study was to examine the factor structure equivalence of the 50-item IPIP FFM measure across gender and ethnic groups (i.e., Whites, Latinos, Asian Americans) using multigroup confirmatory factor analysis. Results from a sample of 1,727 college students generally support the invariance of the factor structure across groups, although there was some evidence of differences across gender and ethnic groups for model parameters. We discuss these findings and their implications.     

Relations Between Adolescent Ratings of Rothbart's Temperament Questionnaire and the HEXACO Personality Inventory

Conventionally, individual differences have been assessed using temperament measures for infants and children, and personality measures for adults. We chose to explore both temperament and personality to see whether a convergence exists specifically during adolescence. A sample of 225 adolescents completed Rothbart's Early Adolescent Temperament Questionnaire–Revised (EATQ–R), a 4-factor temperament scale, and the HEXACO Personality Inventory–Revised (HEXACO PI–R), a 6-factor personality scale. As hypothesized, we found significant relations between the 2 measures. However, there were some important differences between the 2 measures regarding Honesty–Humility, Openness, and Frustration that highlight the unique contributions of both instruments to understanding and measuring adolescent individual differences. As there is a relatively scant history of measuring temperament or personality in adolescence, it is sometimes difficult for researchers to decide which instrument is most appropriate. The results reported here suggest that either the EATQ–R or the HEXACO PI–R could be appropriate, depending on the specific research questions being asked.     

Development and Initial Validation of the Five-Factor Model Adolescent Personality Questionnaire (FFM–APQ)

This research reports on the 4-phase development of the 25-item Five-Factor Model Adolescent Personality Questionnaire (FFM–APQ). The purpose was to develop and determine initial evidence for validity of a brief adolescent personality inventory using a vocabulary that could be understood by adolescents up to 18 years old. Phase 1 (N = 48) consisted of item generation and expert (N = 5) review of items; Phase 2 (N = 179) involved item analyses; in Phase 3 (N = 496) exploratory factor analysis assessed the underlying structure; in Phase 4 (N = 405) confirmatory factor analyses resulted in a 25-item inventory with 5 subscales.     

Children's behavioral manifestations of the five-factor model of personality

The present study examined relations between ratings of children's personalities using the Five-Factor Model (FFM) of personality and behaviors exhibited by children during an interaction with their parents. Ninety-four children (M age = 10.87 years) and their parents participated in a videotaped interaction; children were coded on 64 different social behaviors using a revised version of the Riverside Behavioral Q-Sort. Mothers completed ratings of their children's personalities using the NEO-Five-Factor Personality Inventory (NEO-FFI). Results indicate an intuitive and predictable pattern of relations between children's personalities and their behaviors. Findings suggest that four of the five factors included in the FFM provide an appropriate framework for describing children's personalities. These findings are discussed in terms of their relevance for helping researchers understand children's personalities.     

Spirituality: description, measurement, and relation to the five factor model of personality

The present article focused on the development and measurement of a factor model of the expressions of spirituality. Study 1 (N = 534) involved the use of factor analysis to examine the latent factor structure in a sample of 11 measures of spiritual constructs. Study 2 (N = 938) focused on the replication of Study 1 results and on the construction and initial validation of an instrument to operationalize the factor model of spirituality. Results indicate that at least 5 robust dimensions of spirituality underlie the spirituality test domain. These dimensions were labeled Cognitive Orientation Towards Spirituality (COS), Experiential/Phenomenological Dimension (EPD), Existential Well-Being (EW-B), Paranormal Beliefs (PAR), and Religiousness (REL). The measure developed, named the Expressions of Spirituality Inventory (ESI), takes the form of a 98-item instrument that generated scores demonstrating satisfactory reliability and adequate initial validity. Examination of the relation of spirituality to the Five Factor Model (FFM) as measured by the NEO Personality Inventory-Revised revealed that the dimensions of the FFM appear to differentially relate to the major elements of spirituality but are nevertheless conceptually unique, pointing to the possible existence of major aspects of personality not represented in the FFM.     

A comparison of the validity of the five-factor model (FFM) personality disorder prototypes. Using FFM self-report and interview measures

Recent studies have demonstrated that personality disorders (PDs) can be assessed via a prototype-matching technique, which enables researchers and clinicians to match an individual's five-factor model (FFM) personality profile to an expert-generated prototype. The current study examined the relations between these prototype scores, using interview and self-report data, and PD symptoms in an outpatient sample (N = 115). Both sets of PD prototype scores demonstrated significant convergent validity with PD symptom counts, suggesting that the FFM PD prototype scores are appropriate for use with both sources of data.     

Anchoring Bullying and Victimization in Children Within a Five‐Factor Model‐Based Person‐Centred Framework

Although researchers have begun to explore bullying and victimization problems from a personality perspective, more work is needed on the particular personality constellations of children and adolescents who are vulnerable to victimization or prone to bullying. The principal research goal of the present study was to anchor the robust four‐group classification of bullying and victimization (i.e. bullies, victims, bully/victims and uninvolved children) within the Five‐Factor Model‐based person‐centred framework in primary school children (N = 660), controlling for gender. We found four distinct personality types in middle childhood: a mixed type, an undercontrolled type, a moderate type and a resilient type. In line with expectations, we found that a resilient personality profile protected children and adolescents against victimization and that children and adolescents with an undercontrolled or mixed personality profile were at increased risk to be bully/victims, rather than uninvolved in bully problems or victimization, compared with children with a moderate personality profile. Implications for theory and practice are discussed. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Testing the latent factor structure and construct validity of the Ten-Item Personality Inventory

Recent efforts have aimed to develop relatively short measures of the Five-Factor Model (FFM) of personality, particularly for when time and/or space is limited. We evaluate the Ten-Item Personality Inventory (TIPI), a non-proprietary FFM measure with two items per dimension. We use a latent variable methodology to examine the TIPI’s factor structure and convergent validity with the 50-item International Personality Item Pool (IPIP) FFM measure. We provide correlations between the scale scores and latent factors, and compare each measure’s pattern of correlations with measures of other individual difference constructs. Results were favorable in terms of the factor structure and convergent validity of the TIPI, particularly regarding the correlations between the respective latent factors of the TIPI and the IPIP–FFM measures.     

Adolescent Psychopathy and the Five Factor Model: Domain and Facet Analysis

Given the consideration of callousness as a specifier for Conduct Disorder in the DSM-V, it seems imperative that researchers continue to investigate this personality style in adolescents to determine both its applicability and utility. The present study examined the Youth Psychopathic traits Inventory (YPI; Andershed et al. 2002) and the Interpersonal Adjective Scale Revised-Big 5 (IASR-B5; Trapnell and Wiggins 1990a, b) psychopathy scales in relation to the Five Factor Model (FFM) of personality. Using a sample of adolescent offenders (N = 145), the YPI and IASR-B5 psychopathy scales showed adequate reliability and strong inverse bivariate relations with the FFM domains of Agreeableness (−A) and Conscientiousness (−C). Multivariate analyses, at the facet level, revealed that Tendermindedness (−A) and Assertiveness (+E) explained the association between FFM facets and the YPI, whereas Altruism (−A), Modesty (−A), Straightforwardness (−A), Assertiveness (+E), Warmth (−E), and Deliberation (+C) all uniquely contributed to the IASR-B5 psychopathy scale. Both measures were linked with general and violent recidivism. The authors discuss the implications of these findings in terms of the use of personality to help describe conduct problem youth and the need for future research in this important area.     

Testing the latent factor structure and construct validity of the Ten-Item Personality Inventory

Recent efforts have aimed to develop relatively short measures of the Five-Factor Model (FFM) of personality, particularly for when time and/or space is limited. We evaluate the Ten-Item Personality Inventory (TIPI), a non-proprietary FFM measure with two items per dimension. We use a latent variable methodology to examine the TIPI’s factor structure and convergent validity with the 50-item International Personality Item Pool (IPIP) FFM measure. We provide correlations between the scale scores and latent factors, and compare each measure’s pattern of correlations with measures of other individual difference constructs. Results were favorable in terms of the factor structure and convergent validity of the TIPI, particularly regarding the correlations between the respective latent factors of the TIPI and the IPIP–FFM measures.     

New Frontiers for the Five-Factor Model: A Preview of the Literature

The Five-Factor Model (FFM) of personality traits has been widely adopted and applied to a diverse set of issues in psychology and related disciplines. In this article, we identify a number of unresolved questions and propose new directions for research using the FFM. In clinical psychology, research is needed on the optimal ways to utilize personality assessments in psychotherapy. Acculturation studies are crucial for an understanding of the origins of national differences in trait levels. The large literatures on personality and on the self should be better integrated, adding a process perspective to trait psychology. Personality psychology should begin to transcend the individual, examining the consequences of aggregate personality traits in dyads, organizations, and nations. Applications of the FFM appear to be limited only by the creativity and industry of researchers.     

Personality Architecture and the FFM in Organisational Psychology

Cervone, Shadel, Smith, and Fiori (2006 ) outline an approach to the study of self-regulation that is consistent with but extends research on self-regulation and motivation within organisational psychology. At the same time, their model represents a new perspective for the study of personality processes within organisations and one that conflicts with the existing personality research programmes focused on the five factor model (FFM). We outline the points of differentiation between the two approaches and suggest strategies that we believe will allow personality researchers to build the personality architectures for the trait behaviours derived from the FFM. We also categorise the mediating mechanisms studied in organisational psychology in the KAPA model of Cervone et al. and highlight the need for related frameworks covering affective units and personal competencies in personality architecture.     

How resilient are resilience scales? The Big Five scales outperform resilience scales in predicting adjustment in adolescents

Waaktaar, T. & Torgersen, S. (2009). How resilient are resilience scales? The Big Five scales outperform resilience scales in predicting adjustment in adolescents. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 51, 157–163. This study’s aim was to determine whether resilience scales could predict adjustment over and above that predicted by the five‐factor model (FFM). A sample of 1,345 adolescents completed paper‐and‐pencil scales on FFM personality (Hierarchical Personality Inventory for Children), resilience (Ego‐Resiliency Scale [ER89] by Block & Kremen, the Resilience Scale [RS] by Wagnild & Young) and adaptive behaviors (California Healthy Kids Survey, UCLA Loneliness Scale and three measures of school adaptation). The results showed that the FFM scales accounted for the highest proportion of variance in disturbance. For adaptation, the resilience scales contributed as much as the FFM. In no case did the resilience scales outperform the FFM by increasing the explained variance. The results challenge the validity of the resilience concept as an indicator of human adaptation and avoidance of disturbance, although the concept may have heuristic value in combining favorable aspects of a person’s personality endowment.     

Computer-Based Testing to Shorten the Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ): a Proof- of-Principle Study of the Lifetime and Current Forms

Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment - The Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ) is a 40-item instrument designed to screen children at risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)....     

Exploring the utility of the CPAI-2 in a South African sample: Implications for the FFM

The Cross-Cultural Personality Assessment Inventory-2 (CPAI-2) was developed as an alternative instrument to measure personality in Asian cultures based on the argument that available instruments are largely based on the Five Factor Model of personality and may not adequately assess personality in Asian cultures. Research on the CPAI-2 was extended to non-Asian particularly Western cultures but not to African cultures. In this study a sample of 425 South African university students completed both the CPAI-2 and the NEO-PI-R to consider the utility of the CPAI-2 and the four factor model in which the instrument is located in an African context. The results were did not provide conclusive support for the four factor model as conceptualised in the CPAI-2. Support for the five factors of the FFM was evident but the results from both the four and five factor models indicated empirical support for a social relational aspect of personality. Based on these results, this paper argues for the necessity of incorporating social relational elements into the existing FFM and reflects on work done in the South African context which can inform this direction.     

Scoring the DSM-IV personality disorders using the Five-Factor Model: development and validation of normative scores for North American, French, and Dutch-Flemish samples

Five-Factor Model (FFM) personality disorder (PD) counts have demonstrated significant convergent and discriminant validity with DSM-IV PD symptoms. However, these FFM PD counts are of limited clinical use without normative data because it is difficult to determine what a specific score means with regard to the relative level of elevation. The current study presents data from three large normative samples that can be used as norms for the FFM PD counts in the respective countries: United States (N = 1,000), France (N = 801), and Belgium-Netherlands (N = 549). The present study also examines the performance, with regard to diagnostic efficiency, of statistically-defined cut-offs at 1.5 standard deviations above the mean (T > or = 65) versus previously identified cut-offs using receiver-operator characteristics (ROC) analyses. These cut-offs are tested in three clinical samples-one from each of the aforementioned countries. In general, the T > or = 65 cut-offs performed similarly to those identified using ROC analyses and manifested properties relevant to a screening instrument. These normative data allow FFM data to be used in a flexible and comprehensive manner, which may include scoring this type of personality data in order to screen for DSM-IV PD constructs.