An Examination of a New Psychometric Method for Optimizing Multi-Faceted Assessment Instruments in the Context of Trait Emotional Intelligence

Bottom Up Construction of a Personality Taxonomy

Abstract. In pursuit of a more systematic and comprehensive framework for personality assessment, we introduce procedures for assessing personality traits at the lowest level: nuances. We argue that constructing a personality taxonomy from the bottom up addresses some of the limitations of extant top-down assessment frameworks (e.g., the Big Five), including the opportunity to resolve confusion about the breadth and scope of traits at different levels of the organization, evaluate unique and reliable trait variance at the item level, and clarify jingle/jangle issues in personality assessment. With a focus on applications in survey methodology and transparent documentation, our procedures contain six steps: (1) identification of a highly inclusive pool of candidate items, (2) programmatic evaluation and documentation of item characteristics, (3) test-retest analyses of items with adequate qualitative and quantitative properties, (4) analysis of cross-ratings from multiple raters for items with adequate retest reliability, (5) aggregation of ratings across diverse samples to evaluate generalizability across populations, (6) evaluations of predictive utility in various contexts. We hope these recommendations are the first step in a collaborative effort to identify a comprehensive pool of personality nuances at the lowest level, enabling subsequent construction of a robust hierarchy – from the bottom up.

„Emotionale Intelligenz“ mit einem Fragebogen messen?

Zusammenfassung. Die faktorielle Validität des Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire – Adolescent Short Form (TEIQue-ASF) und der Beitrag der damit erfassten „Emotionalen Intelligenz“ (EI) zur Aufklärung von Schulerfolg wurden an N = 711 deutschen Schülerinnen und Schüler der 6., 7. und 8. Jahrgangsstufe überprüft. Explorative und konfirmatorische Faktorenanalysen ergaben, dass weder das zugrundeliegende theoretische Vier-Faktoren-Modell noch der für die Kurzform vorgesehene globale EI-Wert mit den Daten vereinbar waren. Stattdessen resultierte eine dreifaktorielle Lösung mit 9 Items, welche auch im Vergleich zu Alternativmodellen am besten auf die Daten passte. Jenseits von verbaler Intelligenz und klassischen Persönlichkeitsvariablen lieferte der TEIQue-ASF keinen bedeutsamen Beitrag zur Varianzaufklärung der Schulleistung (Notendurchschnitt). Die Nützlichkeit des TEIQue-ASF wird diskutiert, weitere Validitätsüberprüfungen werden dringend empfohlen.

Incremental Validity of the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire-Adolescent Short Form (TEIQue-ASF)

Abstract. This study examined the incremental validity of the adolescent short form of the Trait Emotional Questionnaire (TEIQue-ASF) in two European secondary-school samples. The TEIQue-ASF was administered as a predictor of socioemotional or academic achievement criteria, along with measures of coping strategies or cognitive ability, respectively. In Dutch high school students (N = 282), the TEIQue-ASF explained variance in all socioemotional criteria, controlling for coping strategies and demographics. In a sample of British preadolescents, the measure showed incremental contributions to academic achievement in the core areas (English, math, and science) of the English curriculum, controlling for cognitive ability subscales and gender (N = 357–491). Implications for the validity and applied utility of the TEIQue-ASF are discussed.

Criterion and incremental validity of the emotion regulation questionnaire

Although research on emotion regulation (ER) is developing, little attention has been paid to the predictive power of ER strategies beyond established constructs. The present study examined the incremental validity of the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ; Gross and John, 2003), which measures cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression, over and above the Big Five personality factors. It also extended the evidence for the measure's criterion validity to yet unexamined criteria. A university student sample (N = 203) completed the ERQ, a measure of the Big Five, and relevant cognitive and emotion-laden criteria. Cognitive reappraisal predicted positive affect beyond personality, as well as experiential flexibility and constructive self-assertion beyond personality and affect. Expressive suppression explained incremental variance in negative affect beyond personality and in experiential flexibility beyond personality and general affect. No incremental effects were found for worry, social anxiety, rumination, reflection, and preventing negative emotions. Implications for the construct validity and utility of the ERQ are discussed.