The itemetric properties of the Eysenck personality questionnaire: A reply to Helmes

Helmes (1980) presented results demonstrating that the purported factors of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) did not emerge in a sample of 191 undergraduates. However, this conclusion was reached using incorrect factor analytic methodology. Helmes not only used an idiosyncratic version of Eysenck's original methodology but also failed to take into account recent evidence on factor analytic procedures. To illustrate the remarkable clarity of the EPQ factors, the results from three samples of data are presented here. The sample data are diverse, taken from three different populations: 1198 British adults, 406 British students and 116 Thai students. The consistency of various psychometric parameters adds further evidence justifying the existence of these factors.