The University of Southampton
University of Southampton Institutional Repository

Item and scale factor analyses of the occupational personality questionnaire

Item and scale factor analyses of the occupational personality questionnaire
Item and scale factor analyses of the occupational personality questionnaire
The factor structure of Saville and Holdsworth Ltd.'s (SHL) Occupational Personality Questionnaire (OPQ) was investigated in two samples of 1000 subjects each. Parallel analysis and computation of the minimum average partial were used to determine number of factors. Factor analysis of items suggested that a 21-factor solution may be preferable to 31- and 14-dimensional systems proposed by SHL. Further analysis of scales corresponding to the 21 factors showed that most had satisfactory internal consistency, factor validity and replicability across the two samples. Factor analysis of the 31 OPQ scales indicated that a 5- or 6-factor solution was optimal. Both factor models resembled the SHL Pentagon model. The 5-factor solution was equivalent to the ‘Big Five’ model of personality super-factors, to which the 6-factor solution added a further dimension of Activity. The 6-factor solution appeared to be more strongly replicable across samples, and was more useful in resolving the structural positions of factors related to work motivation. Some modifications to SHL's original structural models appear to be necessary, but the questionnaire provides the basis for a satisfactory system of primary and secondary trait factors in the occupational domain.

0191-8869
733-743
Matthews, Gerald
059730a6-fd15-40ce-9468-8c81f3718996
Stanton, Neville
351a44ab-09a0-422a-a738-01df1fe0fadd
Matthews, Gerald
059730a6-fd15-40ce-9468-8c81f3718996
Stanton, Neville
351a44ab-09a0-422a-a738-01df1fe0fadd

Matthews, Gerald and Stanton, Neville (1994) Item and scale factor analyses of the occupational personality questionnaire. Personality and Individual Differences, 16 (5), 733-743. (doi:10.1016/0191-8869(94)90214-3).

Record type: Article

Abstract

The factor structure of Saville and Holdsworth Ltd.'s (SHL) Occupational Personality Questionnaire (OPQ) was investigated in two samples of 1000 subjects each. Parallel analysis and computation of the minimum average partial were used to determine number of factors. Factor analysis of items suggested that a 21-factor solution may be preferable to 31- and 14-dimensional systems proposed by SHL. Further analysis of scales corresponding to the 21 factors showed that most had satisfactory internal consistency, factor validity and replicability across the two samples. Factor analysis of the 31 OPQ scales indicated that a 5- or 6-factor solution was optimal. Both factor models resembled the SHL Pentagon model. The 5-factor solution was equivalent to the ‘Big Five’ model of personality super-factors, to which the 6-factor solution added a further dimension of Activity. The 6-factor solution appeared to be more strongly replicable across samples, and was more useful in resolving the structural positions of factors related to work motivation. Some modifications to SHL's original structural models appear to be necessary, but the questionnaire provides the basis for a satisfactory system of primary and secondary trait factors in the occupational domain.

This record has no associated files available for download.

More information

Published date: May 1994

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 73927
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/73927
ISSN: 0191-8869
PURE UUID: e77b8e19-5ce3-431e-986d-2884a9970d84
ORCID for Neville Stanton: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-8562-3279

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 11 Mar 2010
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 02:54

Export record

Altmetrics

Contributors

Author: Gerald Matthews
Author: Neville Stanton ORCID iD

Download statistics

Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.

View more statistics

Atom RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0

Contact ePrints Soton: eprints@soton.ac.uk

ePrints Soton supports OAI 2.0 with a base URL of http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/cgi/oai2

This repository has been built using EPrints software, developed at the University of Southampton, but available to everyone to use.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive cookies on the University of Southampton website.

×