Acquiescence and the Bem Sex-Role Inventory

The Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI) and the Couch and Keniston Agreement Response Scale (ARS) were administered to 70 male and 72 female undergraduate students. Using the ARS scores as the dependent variable in a 2 (gender) X3 (sex-role identification) unweightedmeans factorial analysis of variance, the results showed that the two main effects and the interaction. effect were not statistically significant (F< I in each instance) indicating the lack of relationship between the BSRI and acquiescent responding.     

Acquiescence and response skewness in scale construction: a paradox

Kirton's version of the Wilson C Scale is primarily a version wherein items of the C Scale that attract very skewed responses have been eliminated. Contrary to what seems obvious, it is shown that the Kirton scale shows more, rather than less, influence from acquiescent response bias. Although such influence was not a serious problem with this particular scale, the finding does give grounds for believing that some skewed items may make a valuable contribution to an additive (‘Likert’) scale.     

Acquiescence and the Wilson conservatism scale

Data contributed by six different researchers in Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and England were assembled from seven different administrations of the Wilson Conservatism scale. The correlation between the positive and negative halves of the scale was found to be generally around -0.5. It was concluded that although the C-scale is seriously affected by acquiescent response set, the balanced structure of the scale controls for this quite satisfactorily.     

Black-white differences on the Vocational Preference Inventory

The Vocational Preference Inventory (VPI) was administered to black and white undergraduates. The overall VPI profiles of the two groups were significantly different. Seven of the 11 scales of the VPI yielded significant differences between the black students and the white students. The black students scored higher on the Social, Conventional, Enterprising, Self-Control, Status, and Infrequency scales. The white students scored higher on the Masculinity scale.     

Personality types and traits in the Vocational Preference Inventory

The relationships between the six scales on which Holland's (1973) theory is based (viz., Realistic, Investigative, Social, Conventional, Enterprising, Artistic) and the five other scales (viz., Self-control, Masculinity, Status, Infrequency, Acquiescence) of the Vocational Preference Inventory (VPI) (Holland, 1970) were investigated using canonical analysis. Considering the six personality type scales as one set of variables and the five trait scales of the VPI as the second set of variables, five significant canonical correlations were obtained for a sample of 373 mostly white undergraduate students. In a second study, three significant canonical correlations were found for a sample of 115 black college students at another school. The weights of the VPI scales suggested that three patterns of relationships among the scales are shared by the black sample and the mostly white sample.     

The Vocational Preference Inventory scores and environmental preferences

This study investigated the relationship between vocational interest as measured by the Vocational Preference Inventory and preferences of 175 undergraduates for structured or unstructured environments. Males having clear-cut preferences for structured situations had significantly higher Realistic-Conventional scores than those not having those preferences (p < .05). Additionally, males with structured preferences had significantly lower Social-Artistic scores (p < .025). Results for females were similar, but not statistically significant. Males also had significantly higher (p < .01) Realistic-Conventional scores than females. The significant relationships between VPI scores and preferences for structured and unstructured situations support Holland's contention that interest scores are expressions of personality needs.     

Pessimistic explanatory style and response to illness

Previous studies have shown that a pessimistic explanatory style is a risk factor for illness, but the factors linking explanatory style and illness are unknown. One's characteristic response to poor health may mediate this relationship. Perhaps pessimistic individuals act helplessly in the face of their symptoms, thereby exacerbating disease. In the present study, we investigated this possibility by asking 96 young adults to complete measures of explanatory style, habitual response to illness, and ways of coping during their most recent episode of illness. Subjects who explain bad events pessimistically (with internal, stable, and global causes) reported more frequent illnesses during the past year and rated their overall health more poorly than those who habitually favor external, unstable, and specific explanations. When ill, the pessimistic subjects were less likely than their optimistic counterparts to take active steps to combat their illness. Our results suggest that one pathway leading from pessimistic explanatory style to poor health is mundane: passivity in the face of disease.     

Vocational Preference Inventory High Point Codes and Educational Preferences

This study reports normative data describing the combinations of various VPI high point codes associated with educational preferences classified into one of six of Holland's occupational environments and an undecided category. Eight hundred thirty-one male and 129 female college freshmen were queried regarding their educational preferences and were administered the VPI directly prior to college enrollment. The comparisons between preferences and VPI combinations revealed that Intellectual and Realistic, Social and Enterprising, Conventional and Enterprising, and Social and Artistic, seem to go together frequently for male students. The female sample revealed that Social and Artistic VPI codes were common.     

Relationships between the Vocational Preference Inventory and the Edwards Personal Preference Schedule

The Vocational Preference Inventory and the Edwards Personal Preference Schedule were administered to 372 undergraduates. The two instruments were compared using canonical analysis. The analysis revealed three significant relationships between components of the two instruments. The relationships were viewed as supportive of Holland's theory of personality types.     

Development and Validation of the Children's Assertiveness Inventory

The development and validation of the Children's Assertiveness Inventory are reported. Psychometric properties of the scale are detailed for the normal samples of grade school children and one sample of socially withdrawn children. Initial analyses indicate that the scale possesses high test-retest reliability and acceptable stability over time. Further, it adequately discriminates between normal and withdrawn samples, has acceptable convergent and discriminant validity, and possesses a meaningful factor structure. The potential research and clinical utility of the scale is discussed, and important social and developmental issues affecting the expression of assertiveness in children are addressed.     

Development and validation of the Delaying Gratification Inventory

Deficits in gratification delay are associated with a broad range of public health problems, such as obesity, risky sexual behavior, and substance abuse. However, 6 decades of research on the construct has progressed less quickly than might be hoped, largely because of measurement issues. Although past research has implicated 5 domains of delay behavior, involving food, physical pleasures, social interactions, money, and achievement, no published measure to date has tapped all 5 components of the content domain. Existing measures have been criticized for limitations related to efficiency, reliability, and construct validity. Using an innovative Internet-mediated approach to survey construction, we developed the 35-item 5-factor Delaying Gratification Inventory (DGI). Evidence from 4 studies and a large, diverse sample of respondents (N = 10,741) provided support for the psychometric properties of the measure. Specifically, scores on the DGI demonstrated strong internal consistency and test-retest reliability for the 35-item composite, each of the 5 domains, and a 10-item short form. The 5-factor structure fit the data well and had good measurement invariance across subgroups. Construct validity was supported by correlations with scores on closely related self-control measures, behavioral ratings, Big Five personality trait measures, and measures of adjustment and psychopathology, including those on the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2-Restructured Form. DGI scores also showed incremental validity in accounting for well-being and health-related variables. The present investigation holds implications for improving public health, accelerating future research on gratification delay, and facilitating survey construction research more generally by demonstrating the suitability of an Internet-mediated strategy.     

Development and validation of the Eating Behavior Inventory

The Eating Behavior Inventory (EBI) is a self-report instrument for assessing behaviors that have been theoretically implicated in weight loss, e.g., self-monitoring of food intake and of weight, refusing offers of food, eating at only one place, shopping from a list, eating in response to emotions. Thirty items were constructed in the form of first-person statements, e.g., I eat in the middle of the night. Each item was to be rated with a 5-point scale according to how often it was true for the respondent. Items were scored such that higher scores always reflected more appropriate (theoretically facilitative of weight control) eating patterns. Validity of individual items and total score was assessed in four studies. Twenty-six of the original items appeared valid and were retained. The resulting total score demonstrated validity in these studies and in two cross-validational comparisons. Internal consistency as measured by split-half reliability and correlations of item scores with total score was acceptable. One month test-retest reliability of item and total scores was satisfactory. Clinical and research applications of the EBI are discussed.An early version of this article was presented at the Taos International Conference on Treatment of Addictive Behaviors, Taos, New Mexico, February 1979.     

Development and validation of the Illness Behavior Inventory

The development and validation of a measure of illness behavior are presented. From a large domain sample of illness-related behaviors, a 20-item self-report measure was developed, the Illness Behavior Inventory (IBI). Validation data are presented from a series of independent studies with healthy and chronically ill individuals. Results indicate that the IBI possesses acceptable levels of internal consistency, test-retest reliability, structural reliability, discriminant validity, concurrent validity, and predictive validity. The applicability of the IBI to various areas of inquiry in behavioral medicine research and practice is discussed and directions for future research are outlined.     

Development and validation of the cognitive style indicator

The authors describe the development and validation of the Cognitive Style Indicator (CoSI) using 3 diverse samples (N = 5,924; N = 1,580; and N = 635). Reliability, item, and factor analyses demonstrated the internal consistency and homogeneity of 3 cognitive styles: knowing, planning, and creating. The authors also found substantial support for the instrument's convergent and discriminant validity by including other cognitive style instruments and personality and academic performance measures in the validation process. Criterion-related validity was confirmed by examination of the relation between these cognitive styles and work-related characteristics. The main contributions of this study are (a) the further refinement of the analytic-intuitive cognitive style dimension by splitting the analytic pole in a knowing and a planning style and (b) the development of a valid and reliable cognitive style instrument for use in organizations.     

Development of an abbreviated Personal Globe Inventory using item response theory: The PGI-Short

The responses of 2813 individuals to the Personal Globe Inventory (Tracey, 2002) were examined with the goal of developing a shorter, yet valid version of the scale using item response theory to guide the process. A random sample of 1000 individuals was used to select the best items and then the remaining 1813 were used as a validation sample to examine psychometric properties. For items to be included in the shortened form, the option characteristic curves had to conform to theory and there could be no presence of differential item functioning across either gender or ethnicity. The best 80 items were retained forming the PGI-Short. This instrument demonstrated excellent reliability and adherence to a circular model, there was no differential item functioning across either gender or ethnicity. The PGI-Short was supported as an alternative to the fuller version of the PGI.     

Development and Initial Validation of the Child Routines Inventory

The importance of establishing predictable routines during childhood consistently has been emphasized in the popular parenting literature, despite a paucity of empirical evidence. The lack of research may be partially due to a lack of suitable instruments designed to measure children's routines. This study describes development and preliminary psychometric data in support of the Child Routines Inventory (CRI), an empirically derived, content-valid, parent-report measure of commonly occurring routines in school-aged children. Principal components analysis yielded a four-factor structure (composed of 36 items), accounting for 44.2% of the total variance. The CRI was found to have excellent internal consistency ( = .90), good test-retest reliability (r = .86), and preliminary evidence of construct validity, demonstrating a moderate relationship with measures of child behavior problems and family routines. These results suggest the CRI to be a promising new measure of child routines that would benefit from further validation studies.