Journal of personality assessment最新文献

Symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are heterogeneous, and the psychological impact of trauma varies. This underlines the need for better understanding the impact of trauma on the development of psychopathology, especially in populations where traumatic stressors are prevalent. Although there is myriad research supporting the use of MMPI measures (e.g., MMPI-2-RF) in the assessment of trauma-related psychopathology in military populations, there is limited research using the MMPI-3. In this study we aimed to address this need in a military sample (N = 190). Specifically, we evaluated how the MMPI-3 measures psychopathology among those who have been exposed to military trauma (i.e., active combat exposure and military sexual trauma) and have symptoms of PTSD. Findings reveal significant increases in psychopathology on the MMPI-3 when exposed to military traumas, with associated increased risk of elevating scores. Specifically, results highlight other areas of psychopathology that may be relevant to military experience including broad internalizing distress, cognitive/somatic difficulties, and interpersonal distancing. The MMPI-3 also demonstrated significant overlap with the PCL-5 in its ability to measure PTSD symptoms. These results support the use of the MMPI-3 as a useful tool for understanding the complex symptomology of trauma in post-9/11 military personnel.

The present investigation endorses the premise that each person can be understood in terms of particular ways of responding to particular situations. In two studies (total N = 353), participants indicated how they would respond to a wide variety of mundane and consequential life situations. These person-in-situation units were used to understand variations in miserable functioning, defined in terms of degree of match to a miserable person prototype. Participants receiving higher behavioral tendencies of misery (BT-M) scores scored lower in flourishing and higher in psychopathological symptoms. In addition, misery, as quantified, was evident to peers (Study 1) and linked to deficiencies in goal pursuit and achievement in daily life (Study 2). The results provide insights into miserable functioning while also providing support for a new approach to personality assessment that can link person-specific bottom-up units to any number of constructs through the use of prototype scoring.

The Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-IV (MCMI-IV) is a psychological assessment tool commonly used in Veteran Affairs (VA) settings. However, no research has examined the MCMI-IV symptom validity scales in the veteran population, where high rates of response bias can occur. This study examined convergent validity of the MCMI-IV scales to the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2-Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF) validity measures, identified base rates of invalid MCMI-IV validity scores in the veteran population, and explored alternative cutoff scores. All MCMI-IVs administered in the VA (04/2019 - 08/2024, N = 6,466), using data from the Corporate Data Warehouse, were examined. MCMI-IV protocols were correlated with same day administrations of the MMPI-2-RF (n = 1,401) using Spearman's correlations. Disclosure and Debasement positively correlated with overreporting validity scales and negatively correlated with underreporting scales on the MMPI-2-RF, while Desirability showed the opposite pattern (all p < .001). Additionally, the Inconsistency scale positively correlated with MMPI-2-RF non-content validity scales. Less than 1% of MCMI-IV of protocols met the test manual's criteria for invalidity, a significant departure from invalid rates reported on other measures administered to veterans. Diagnostic accuracy analyses suggested new cutoff scores, specifically that overreporting be identified by X Disclosure base rate score (BRS) ≥ 87 and Z Debasement BRS ≥ 84, and underreporting identified by X Disclosure BRS ≤ 49 and Y Desirability BRS ≥ 74. Results suggest that while the MCMI-IV validity indices measure intended constructs, more optimal cutoffs are presented for the veteran population.

The PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) is a widely used screening instrument for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. There is active debate about what the PCL-5 actually measures (i.e., PTSD specific symptoms vs general distress or other transdiagnostic factors), especially when positive screenings are observed using total sum scores. The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-3 (MMPI-3) is a broadband clinical instrument used to assess a wide array of self-reported psychological and behavioral difficulties within an established hierarchical structure. Examining the PCL-5 together with the MMPI-3 may clarify the nature of the factors underlying the PCL-5, which can separately contribute to elevated total scores on the instrument. Using a previously well-studied sample of United States veterans and their romantic partners (n = 386), we subjected the PCL-5 items and MMPI-3 scales to a series of conjoint exploratory factor analyses. In this sample, PCL-5 items could be largely explained by three correlated but relatively distinctive factors (affect/cognitions, traumatic intrusion/avoidance, and hyperarousal). Conjoint analysis with the MMPI-3 showed that the PCL-5 affective/cognitive items were differentially saturated with a nonspecific demoralization/distress factor. The PCL-5 hyperarousal factor cross-loaded primarily with MMPI-3 somatic and cognitive scales. The PCL-5 intrusions/avoidance factor cross-loaded minimally with any MMPI-3 scales, identifying that factor's content as relatively distinctive among the present indicators. We contextualize these findings within recent research and clinical trends that reconsider PTSD through a multidimensional lens. We also discuss clinical implications of these findings; in particular, examining individual PCL-5 symptom groupings may reveal insight into psychological and behavioral processes with greater specificity to posttraumatic symptomatology.

The Affective Neuroscience theory identifies seven neurobiological systems (SEEK, CARE, PLAY, SADNESS, FEAR, ANGER, and LUST) that are phylogenetically and ontogenetically determined, shared by all mammals, and localized in ancient subcortical brain regions. These systems, influenced by genetic and environmental factors, shape individual differences. A new instrument, the Affective Neuroscience Personality Scale (ANPS), was created to measure the expression of these primary emotional systems, foundational to human personality. A short version, the ANPS-SF, has been released but not validated in Italy. This study aimed to adapt and validate the ANPS-SF by examining its psychometric properties. A large sample of clinical and non-clinical young adults and adolescents (n = 827) also completed instruments assessing external validity, including the Big Five Inventory (BFI) and others. Results indicated that the ANPS-SF possesses satisfactory psychometric properties, highlighted by strong internal consistency and correlations with other measures. A two-higher-order-factors solution was identified, revealing General Positive Affect and General Negative Affect. Significant differences were noted between clinical and non-clinical groups, as well as across age and gender. Overall, the ANPS-SF can be effectively utilized in Italy, providing insights into primary emotional systems and their interaction with individual characteristics, relevant for both clinical and non-clinical populations.

The HEXACO model defines personality across six dimensions: Honesty-Humility, Emotionality, eXtraversion, Agreeableness (vs. Anger), Conscientiousness, and Openness to Experience. One of its key strengths is that it is based on linguistic research that has been consistently replicated across various cultures. The HEXACO Adjective Scale (HAS), developed in Italian, consists of 60 adjectives designed to evaluate the dimensions of personality according to the HEXACO model. The present paper presents a cross-cultural study assessing the validity of the HAS across French, Dutch, and English. We translated the HAS into each language and administered the translated scales to 319 Dutch-speaking (Belgium) participants, 317 French-speaking (France) participants, and 436 English-speaking (US) participants. CFAs confirm that each language replicates the original structure. Moreover, we obtained evidence of strong invariance across languages, providing important support in favor of measurement invariance. The internal consistency of the scales is satisfactory and in line with the Italian version. Similarly, the prediction of behavioral criteria supports the validity of the translated HAS in different languages. Overall, the HAS shows very good psychometric properties and has all the necessary characteristics to be used in future studies. The strong invariance between languages supports the replicability of the HEXACO model across cultures.

We examined the therapeutic utility of personalized psychotherapy informed by social cognitive personality assessment. Specifically, Person in Context Assessment (PICA) assesses both the social cognitive personality structures (i.e., temperament, self-schemata, goals, and moral standards) and the if-then personality processes (i.e., situation-based patterns of appraisals, affects, behaviors) characterizing an individual. Both the client and the therapist received PICA feedback and specific therapeutic recommendations targeting social cognitive personality structures and processes that appeared to contribute most to the client's distress and dysfunction. After the therapist began implementing these PICA-informed interventions, the client reported significant decreases in depressive symptoms that remained stable over two months, culminating in a successful termination of therapy. Evidence suggested that decreases in depression coincided with the client showing improvements in the personality structures and processes that were targeted by the PICA-informed therapeutic interventions. The client's perceptions of therapy credibility and expectancy, as well as their motivation to change, also appeared to improve. However, there was no evidence that the PICA feedback improved the client's self-understanding or self-efficacy. Our findings provide initial support for PICA's therapeutic utility.

Although ecological momentary assessment (EMA) is becoming increasingly popular, the approach has historically relied on unvalidated single-item assessments of constructs. The Super Brief-Pathological Narcissism Inventory (SB-PNI) assesses narcissistic grandiosity and vulnerability using 12 items and is well-suited to address this limitation in the narcissism literature. However, its validity in an EMA context has not been examined. To this end, 88 undergraduates responded to prompts 7 times a day for 10 days to assess state grandiosity and vulnerability in their daily lives. Results suggest that the two-factor structure of the SB-PNI is replicated at the between and within person levels. Although ICCs suggested that 80% of the variability in SB-PNI scales was occurring at the between person level, SB-PNI states were significantly associated with PNI traits, self-enhancing contexts, and psychological and emotional states in expected ways. Nomological homomorphy analyses suggested that the nomological networks for B-PNI and SB-PNI scales were positively and significantly correlated at the between person level. However, the network of associations was nonsignificant for the grandiosity scales at the within person level. Together, these findings provide support for the construct validity of SB-PNI scores and support the use of the SB-PNI in future studies of narcissistic dynamics.

The assessment of personality traits in children under ten has gained increasing attention in literature. Much of the interest in assessing personality traits stems from associations between Big Five traits and life outcomes. The Pictorial Personality Traits Questionnaire for Children (PPTQ-C) integrates pictorial stimuli with simplified sentences to measure the Big Five in this age group. This study aimed to evaluate the validity evidence of the Brazilian version of the PPTQ-C. We assessed 533 children (M = 8.32, SD = 1.38; 53% girls). Using multiple analytical techniques, we found weak support for the five-factor structure and response patterns indicating social desirability. We discuss the implications of these findings for pictorial personality assessment in young children.

The longitudinal dynamics of mattering, including measurement invariance across time and patterns of stability versus change within individuals, remain largely unexplored. This study investigated these properties for three mattering dimensions (general mattering, anti-mattering, and fear of not-mattering) among Chinese adolescents across different contexts, assessing their psychometric validity, test-retest reliability, developmental trajectories, and gender-specific patterns. The General Mattering Scale, Anti-Mattering Scale, and Fear of Not-Mattering Inventory were administered (N = 645; M_age = 17.02, SD = 0.63; 49.6% female) at three time points over a 5-month period. Longitudinal measurement invariance was assessed using Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). Temporal stability was evaluated through test-retest reliability. Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM) examined intraindividual changes. Gender differences were tested using gender-stratified CFAs, stability analyses, and trajectory models. As result, the longitudinal measurement invariance was supported for all three scales across time points and genders. Test-retest reliability showed moderate-to-good stability, with females consistently higher than males. HLM revealed linear increases in general mattering for both genders, but only females showed significant anti-mattering changes, peaking at school reentry. Fear of not mattering remained stable for both genders. Findings reveal gender-specific mattering dynamics: females showed higher stability with synchronized responses to transitions, whereas males displayed lower stability and more idiosyncratic fluctuations.