A factor-analytic study of reasoning abilities

A battery of 32 tests was administered to a sample including 144 Air Force Officer Candidates and 139 Air Cadets. The factor analysis, using Thurstone's complete centroid method and Zimmerman's graphic method of orthogonal rotations, revealed 12 interpretable factors. The non-reasoning factors were interpreted asverbal comprehension, numerical facility, perceptual speed, visualization, andspatial orientation. The factors derived from reasoning tests were identified asgeneral reasoning, logical reasoning, education of perceptual relations, education of conceptual relations, education of conceptual patterns, education of correlates, andsymbol substitution. The logical-reasoning factor corresponds to what has been called deduction, but eduction of correlates is perhaps closer to an ability actually to make deductions. The area called induction appears to resolve into three eduction-of-relations factors. Reasoning factors do not appear always to transcend the type of test material used.Under Contract N6onr-23810 with the Office of Naval Research. The views expressed here are not nesessarily shared by the Office of Naval Research. These studies are under the general direction of J. P. Guilford. P. R. Christensen is assistant director. A. L. Comrey was in direct charge of this study during its early stages and R. F. Green during most of its progress.     

Factor analysis and scale revision

This article reviews methodological issues that arise in the application of exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to scale revision and refinement. The authors begin by discussing how the appropriate use of EFA in scale revision is influenced by both the hierarchical nature of psychological constructs and the motivations underlying the revision. Then they specifically address (a) important issues that arise prior to data collection (e.g., selecting an appropriate sample), (b) technical aspects of factor analysis (e.g., determining the number of factors to retain), and (c) procedures used to evaluate the outcome of the scale revision (e.g., determining whether the new measure functions equivalently for different populations).     

Personality characteristics of Hare Krishnas

Personality characteristics of 132 males and 94 females of the Hare Krishna movement were assessed using the Comrey Personality Scales (CPS). Subjects were sampled from eight U.S. sites. Their age averaged about 30 years, and their time in the movement averaged 8.6 years. The most prominent and surprising finding is the hallmark characteristic of the Hare Krishna personality, a strong compulsivity trait common to both genders, which is slightly stronger in males. Reduced trust in society was exhibited by both gender averages, with slightly less trust among females. Both these averages, however, were within the normal range for individuals. With the exception of compulsivity, average male CPS scores were within the normal psychological range but differed significantly from the normative male group indicating idiosyncratic traits. Average female CPS scores did not differ significantly from the normative female group except for compulsivity and trust. Study of CPS score distributions about group means supported these findings.     

Personality structure of Mexican Americans using the Comrey Personality Scales

The Comrey Personality Scales (CPS) were used to examine the personality structure of 176 Mexican American college students. A majority of the eight factors maintained substantial loadings and corresponded closely with Comrey's normative sample as well as with Brazilian and New Zealand samples. Two factors, Conformity and Orderliness, showed the weakest fit across all four groups. Overall, the CPS shows adequate measurement properties for "normal" personality assessment among Mexican Americans and is preferable to instruments such as the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI). However, the external validity of the CPS with clinical populations must first be determined prior to its use to assess psychopathology among Mexican Americans.     

Tandem criteria for analytic rotation in factor analysis

Two related orthogonal analytic rotation criteria for factor analysis are proposed. Criterion I is based upon the principle that variables which appear on the same factor should be correlated. Criterion II is based upon the principle that variables which are uncorrelated should not appear on the same factor. The recommended procedure is to rotate first by criterion I, eliminate the minor factors, and then rerotate the remaining major factors by criterion II. An example is presented in which this procedure produced a rotational solution very close to expectations whereas a varimax solution exhibited certain distortions. A computer program is provided.