Psychometric properties of the Icelandic version of HEXACO-60: Cognitive interviews and confirmatory factor analysis

Abstract

HEXACO Personality Inventory (HEXACO-PI) is an instrument that assesses the six major dimensions of personality, honesty-humility (H), emotionality (E), extraversion (X), agreeableness (A), conscientiousness (C) and openness to experience (O). The aim of this research was to examine the structure of the 60 item Icelandic version of HEXACO (HEXACO-60-IS). In Study I (N = 40) cognitive interviews were used to categorize items into themes depending on the issues that arose during interviews. A total of 17 items were changed and the answer options revised. In Study II (N = 375) the revised HEXACO-60-IS was administered to a probability-based panel and data analyzed with confirmatory factor analysis. Results showed good reliability but a relatively high correlation between several factors. The factor structure was not satisfactory, as six items had low factor loadings across factors. In Study III (N = 501) the revised HEXACO-60-IS was administered to undergraduate students at the University of Iceland. Results showed good reliability and a moderately low correlation between factors. The factor structure was mostly satisfactory, with three items having a low loading. Overall, the results indicate that there are still prevalent issues that need addressing and that greater attention must be given to the composition of samples.