Forced-Choice Assessment of Work-Related Maladaptive Personality Traits: Preliminary Evidence From an Application of Thurstonian Item Response Modeling

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Guenole, Nigel; Brown, Anna and Cooper, Andrew. 2018. Forced-Choice Assessment of Work-Related Maladaptive Personality Traits: Preliminary Evidence From an Application of Thurstonian Item Response Modeling. Assessment, 25(4), pp. 513-526. ISSN 1073-1911 [Article]

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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1177/1073191116641181

Abstract or Description

This article describes an investigation of whether the forced-choice response format is a viable method for assessment of maladaptive traits. Thurstonian item response models were fitted to a data set of 420 responses from working adults to a broad-range maladaptive personality inventory. The Thurstonian model fit was compared with confirmatory factor analysis fit to the same item content but arranged in a single-stimulus design and administered to the same sample. Mono-trait-hetero method correlations indicated corresponding traits in the two formats overlapped substantially, although they did not measure equivalent constructs. A better statistical fit and higher factor loadings for the Thurstonian item response model, coupled with a clearer conceptual alignment to the theoretical trait definitions, suggested that the single-stimulus item responses were influenced by biases that the independent clusters confirmatory factor analysis measurement model did not account for. We recommend use of forced choice designs and appropriate item response modeling techniques for personality questionnaire applications in industrial psychology, especially when assessing maladaptive traits.

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https://doi.org/10.1177/1073191116641181