Practical III

EYSENCK PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE- Revised (EPQ-R)

OBJECTIVE:
To assess the personality of an individual through Eysenck Personality Questionnaire- Revised
EPQ-R.

BASIC CONCEPTS:
Definitions:

 "Personality is the dynamic organization within the individual of those psychophysical

systems that determine his characteristics behaviour and thought" (Allport, 1961).

 “The characteristics or blend of characteristics that make a person unique” (Weinberg

et al.,1999).

Both definitions emphasize the uniqueness of the individual and consequently adopt an
idiographic view. The idiographic view assumes that each person has a unique psychological
structure and that some traits are possessed by only one person; and that there are times when
it is impossible to compare one person with others. It tends to use case studies for information
gathering.

The nomothetic view, on the other hand, emphasizes comparability among individuals. This
viewpoint sees traits as having the same psychological meaning in everyone. This approach
tends to use self-report personality questions, factor analysis, etc. People differ in their
positions along a continuum in the same set of traits.

Characteristics of Personality:
In order to understand the psychology of personality, it is important to learn some of the key
characteristics of how personality works.

 Personality is organized and consistent. We tend to express certain aspects of our

personality in different situations and our responses are generally stable.

 Although personality is generally stable, it can be influenced by the environment. For

example, while your personality might lead you to be shy in social situations, an
emergency might lead you to take on a more outspoken and take-charge approach.

 Personality causes behaviors to happen. You react to the people and objects in your
environment based on your personality. From your personal preferences to your choice
of a career, every aspect of your life is affected by your personality.
THEORIES OF PERSONALITY:
Personality psychology is the focus of some of the best-known psychology theories by a
number of famous thinkers including Sigmund Freud and Erik Erikson. Some of these theories
attempt to tackle a specific area of personality while others attempt to explain personality much
more broadly.

I. Biological Theories
Biological approaches suggest that genetics are responsible for personality. In the classic
nature versus nurture debate, the biological theories of personality side with nature.
Research on heritability suggests that there is a link between genetics and personality traits.
Twin studies are often used to investigate which traits might be linked to genetics versus those
that might be linked to environmental variables. For example, researchers might look at
differences and similarities in the personalities of twins reared together versus those who are
raised apart.
One of the best known biological theorists was Hans Eysenck, who linked aspects of
personality to biological processes.

II. The Psychoanalytic Theory:

Freud’s psychoanalytic theory views personality as an energy system. Personality dynamics
involve modifications and exchanges of energy within this system.

Mental events maybe conscious, preconscious and unconscious.

Freud divided the personality into three structures: Id, ego, superego. The id is irrational and
seeks immediate instinctual gratification on the basis of the pleasure principle. The ego
operates on the reality principle which requires to test reality and to mediate between the
demands of the id, the superego and reality. The superego is the moral arm of personality.

The dynamics of personality involve continuous conflict between impulses of the id and
counterforces of the ego and superego. When dangerous id impulses threaten to get out of
control or when the environment poses dangers, the result is anxiety. To deal with threat, the
ego may develop defense mechanisms to ward off anxiety and permit instinctual gratification
in disguised forms.
Freud’s psychosexual theory of personality development held that adult personality traits are
moulded by how children deal with instinctual urges and social reality during the oral, anal
and phallic stage.
The Neo analytic theorists modified and extended Freud’s ideas in important ways, stressing
social and cultural factors in personality development.
III. Trait Theory:
Trait theory aims to understand personality by categorizing attitudes and specific types of
behaviour into ‘traits.’ These traits describe a tendency of a person to think, feel or behave in
a particular way. Trait theory takes a lexical approach to personality, supposing that languages
acquire terms to describe personality traits, so that people may discuss them. It assumes that
dimensions of personality can be understood using existing terms - often words or short
phrases.

The measurement of personality traits tends to be based on a continuum, with individuals’

scores ranging from low to high. For instance, extraversion-introversion and neuroticism-
emotional instability.
Early research into personality traits was undertaken by Gordon Allport and Henry Odbert.
In 1936, they compiled an extensive list of personality traits, comprised of over 4,500 English
language terms derived from Webster’s New International Dictionary.

Subsequent research by psychologist Raymond Cattell used factor analysis to produce a more
concise inventory of personality traits, each of which encompassed many of the attributes
identified by Allport and Odbert. Cattell identified 16 key personality traits and developed
the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16PF), an instrument that could be used to
measure these traits.

In recent decades, five broad personality traits - the ‘Big Five’ factors - have been identified,
each covering numerous secondary ‘facets’.

ASSESSMENT OF PERSONALITY:
To assess something means to measure or evaluate it. The assessment of personality is a major
area of application of psychology to a number of real-world concerns. For example, clinical
psychologists try to understand the symptoms of their patients or clients by assessing their
personalities, by differentiating between normal and abnormal behaviors and feelings. Only by
evaluating personality in this way can clinicians diagnose disorders and determine the best
course of therapy.
Methods of Assessment:
The personality theorists devised different methods for assessing personality that were the most
useful for their theories. By applying these methods, they obtained the data on which they based
their formulations.

1. Objective Measures:

Self-Report Personality Tests:

The self-report inventory or test approach involves asking people to report on themselves by
answering questions about their behavior and feelings in various situations. These tests include
items dealing with symptoms, attitudes, interests, fears, and values. Test-takers indicate how
closely each statement describes themselves, or how much they agree with each item.

Although there are self-report inventories to assess many facets of personality, the tests are not
always appropriate for people whose level of intelligence is below normal, or for those with
limited reading skills. Even minor changes in the wording of the questions or the response
alternatives on self-report measures can lead to major changes in the results.
There is also the tendency for test-takers to give answers that appear to be more socially
desirable or acceptable, particularly when they are taking tests as part of a job application.
When a group of college students took a self-report test with instructions to make themselves
appear as good, or as socially acceptable, as possible, they were more careful with their answers
and took longer to complete the test than students who were not deliberately trying to look
good (Holtgraves, 2004). Similar results have been shown with other self-report inventories.
Despite these problems, self-report inventories remain the most objective approach to
personality assessment. Their greatest advantage is that they are designed to be scored
objectively and quickly through automated personality assessment programs, providing a
complete diagnostic profile of the test-taker’s responses.

2. Projective Techniques:
Clinical psychologists developed projective tests of personality for their work with the
emotionally disturbed. Inspired by Sigmund Freud’s emphasis on the importance of the
unconscious, projective tests attempt to probe that invisible portion of our personality.
The theory underlying projective techniques is that when we are presented with an ambiguous
stimulus, like an inkblot or a picture that can be interpreted in more than one way, we will
project our innermost needs, fears, and values onto the stimulus when we’re asked to describe
it.

Because the interpretation of the results of projective tests is so subjective, these tests are not
high in reliability or validity. It is not unusual for different people giving the test to form quite
different impressions of the same person, based on the results of a projective test. In such a
case, the inter-scorer reliability of the test is low. Nevertheless, these tests are widely used
for assessment and diagnostic purposes. Two popular projective tests are the Rorschach
Inkblot Technique and the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT).

3. Clinical Interviews:
In addition to specific psychological tests used to measure an individual’s personality,
assessment often includes clinical interviews. After all, it is reasonable to assume that valuable
information can be obtained by talking to the person being evaluated and asking relevant
questions about past and present life experiences, social and family relationships, and the
problems that led the person to seek psychological help. A wide range of behaviors, feelings,
and thoughts can be investigated in the interview, including general appearance, demeanor,
and attitude; facial expressions, posture, and gestures; preoccupations; degree of self-insight;
and level of contact with reality. Interpretation of interview material is subjective and can be
affected by the interviewer’s theoretical orientation and personality. Nevertheless, clinical
interviews remain a widely used technique for personality assessment and a useful tool when
supplemented by more objective procedures.

4. Behavioural Assessment:

In the behavioural assessment approach, an observer evaluates a person’s behavior in a

given situation. The better the observers know the people being assessed and the more
frequently they interact with them, the more accurate their evaluations are likely to be.
Psychologists Arnold Buss and Robert Plomin developed a questionnaire to assess the degree
of various temperaments present in twins of the same sex (Buss & Plomin, 1984). The mothers
of the twins were asked, on the basis of their observations of their children, to check those
items on the questionnaire that best described specific and easily discernible instances of their
children’s behavior.
Counselors routinely observe their clients’ behavior—considering, for example, facial
expressions, nervous gestures, and general appearance—and use that information in
formulating their diagnoses. Such observations are less systematic than formal behavioral
assessment procedures, but the results can provide valuable insights.
 EYSENCK PERSONALITY QUESTIONNAIRE- Revised (EPQ-R)

Description of The Test:

The personality scales were developed by H.J. Eysenck and his coworkers (principally his
wife, S.B.G. Eysenck) over a long time. The first incarnation was called Maudsley Medical
Questionnaire (MMQ; Eysenck, 1952) which measured neuroticism. This scale was modified
and became the Maudsley Personality Inventory (MPI; Eysenck & Knapp, 1962) which
contained a measure of extraversion and later the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI;
Eysenck & Eysenck,1964) which added a lie scale. The next change was the addition of
Psychoticism scale in the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ; Eysenck & Eysenck,
1975).

The EPQ was revised in 1985 where improvements were made to better the psychometric
properties of the scale.

Eysenck's theory is based primarily on physiology and genetics. Although he was a

behaviourist who considered learned habits of great importance, he considers personality
differences as growing out of our genetic inheritance. He is, therefore, primarily interested in
what is usually called temperament. Temperament is that aspect of our personalities that is
genetically based, inborn, there from birth or even before. That does not mean that a
temperament theory says we don't also have aspects of our personality that are learned, it's just
that Eysenck focused on "nature," and left "nurture" to other theorists.

Eysenck initially conceptualized personality as two, biologically-based categories of

temperament:

i. Extraversion (E):

Extraversion is characterized by being outgoing, talkative, high on positive affect (feeling

good), and in need of external stimulation. Samples of items measuring extroversion –

“Do you like telling jokes and funny stories to your friends?”
“Do you prefer reading to meeting people?”

ii. Neuroticism (N)

Neuroticism or emotionality is characterized by high levels of negative affect such as
depression and anxiety. Sample of items measuring neuroticism –

Are you a worrier?

 iii. Psychoticism (P)
Psychoticism is associated not only with the liability to have a psychotic episode (or break with

reality), but also with aggression. Psychotic behaviour is rooted in the characteristics of tough-
mindedness, non-conformity, inconsideration, recklessness, hostility, anger and impulsiveness.
Sample of items measuring psychoticism – Do you enjoy hurting people you love?

iv. The Lie Scale (L):

Lie scale contains items that detect whether a person is faking his responses by pointing to
the social desirability factor in his responses. Apart from identifying whether a person is
being deceitful, it is also to be treated as an important warning signal if a person scores high
on life scale. In the author’s opinion, the combination of high L and elevated, but not especially
high, P is the one that characterizes psychotics (mainly schizophrenics), while inmates, like
psychopaths, tend to score higher on P, but low on L. Sample of items measuring social
desirability – Have you ever cheated at a game?

PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES:

Reliability:
The EPQ-R manual reports reliability based on a sample of 257 subjects in four groups i.e.,
university students, dental students, polytechnic students and social workers. The test-retest
reliability lies after checking for the effects of age and sex range from .78 in Psychoticism, .86
in Neuroticism and .89 in Extraversion.

Validity:
The factor validity was established by testing the hypothesis that prisoners and psychotics
(mainly schizophrenics) would have high scores on Psychoticism which was found to be true
followed by elevated scores on P of drug addicts, individuals with sex problems, with
personality disorder and alcoholics. All psychiatric groups (but not prisoners) had low scores
on extraversion. Psychiatric groups and criminals showed high scores on Neuroticism
particularly neurotics and personality disorders.

Norms:
The manual for EPQ-R provides norms separately for men and women so that raw scores can
be converted to Sten scores for a meaningful comparison of individual to its comparative
population.
METHODOLOGY:

1. Preliminaries:
Name: K.J.
Age: 23

Gender-Male
Educational Qualification- Masters in Psychology, JMI

Place of administration: Department of psychology, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi.

Date of administration: 25th March, 2020

2. Materials Required:

a. EPQ-R questionnaire
b. EPQ-R manual
c. EPQ-R scoring stencil
d. Screen
e. Pencil, eraser etc.

3. PROCEDURE:

i. Arrangement of Material:
Before calling in the subject, material was arranged properly. Proper seating arrangement was
made. All the material was placed properly beforehand and using the screen was kept away
from the view of the subject. Once the material was arranged, subject was called inside to build
rapport.

ii. Rapport formation:

After the arrangements of test materials, the testee was called inside the laboratory. The subject
was made to sit comfortably and a light conversation was carried out so as to make him feel at
ease. When he felt relaxed and comfortable, the following instructions were given:

iii. Instruction:
Post establishing rapport, he was presented with the questionnaire and the instructions
mentioned on the top of the questionnaire were read out. They are as follows-
‘Please answer each question by writing a YES or NO for each question. There are no right or
wrong answers, and no trick questions. Work quickly and do not think too long about the exact
meaning of the questions.’
 iv. Precautions:
1. Material was arranged before calling subject in the laboratory.

2. The subject was made comfortable before administering the test.

3. Instructions were read out in verbatim from the manual.

4. Record of time was kept accurately

v. Administration:
As this is a self-report measure, administration is easy. Instructions were read out from the
manual and subject started to write her responses.

vi. Behavioural Observation:

The participant was very much engaged in the test and listened to all the instructions attentively.
The participant was very happy and was keen to know the results and its interpretation.

vii. Introspective Report:

I enjoyed the test. Some questions were very tricky at times and I had to delve deeper and think
about them. I am glad that I took such a test to understand my personality better.

viii. Scoring
The questionnaire was scored using the scoring stencil. 1 point was given when the answer on
the scoring stencil and the questionnaire was the same. For e.g. - if for a given question, the
response on stencil is ‘yes’ and the participant also answered a yes for the same question, 1point
was given.

Scores for each dimension were calculated separately along with that on lie scale. Total raw
score for each dimension was calculated by adding all points for that particular dimension.
Raw score for each dimension was then converted in Sten score using the manual.
 4. RESULTS
Following were the results obtained-

DIMENSION RAW SCORE STEN SCORE INTERPRETATION

PSYCHOTICISM (P) 8 8 ABOVE AVERAGE

EXTRAVERSION(E) 10 4 BELOW AVERAGE

NEUROTICISM (N) 20 10 HIGH

LIE SCALE (L) 7 6 VALID

5. INTERPRETATION AND DISCUSSION:

The aim was to assess the personality of the participant using Eysenck Personality
Questionnaire (EPQ-R). The test was administered on 23 years old, Male, for the same.
Before interpreting the results, the score on lie scale were checked to see if the results are valid.

I. LIE SCALE:
Lie scale contains items that detect whether a person is faking his responses by pointing to
the social desirability factor in his responses. The subject obtained a raw score of 7 on lie
scale, corresponding to Sten score of 6. This falls in the valid category indicating that the
responses provided by the subject are reliable and the participant has not pointed to the social
desirability or resorted to ‘faking good’ or ‘faking bad’ (malingering).

The profile is thus considered “Valid” and we can further interpret the scores on other
dimensions.

II. PSYCHOTICISM:
Psychoticism refers to a propensity towards making trouble for others, belittling, acting
disruptively, and lacking in empathy. The term psychoticism is psychiatric in nature, and to
avoid the immediate conclusion that high scores are psychologically disturbed, the more
euphemistic term, tough-mindedness, is generally preferred since it serves to emphasize the
developmental stages of pathology rather than existing conditions.

The participant obtained a raw score of 8 on this dimension corresponding to Sten score of 8,
indicating an above average level of such traits in the person. The participant is likely to have
a bit higher levels of impulsivity and risks taking behaviours, maybe sensation seeking and
troublesome more than average individuals. The subject may thus be more aggressive at times
than do others. The person may also exhibit traits of interpersonal hostility more often, as
suggested from his response to item no. 37 “Do you enjoy practical jokes that can sometimes
really hurt people?” to which he responds with a “yes” and item no. 64, “Do you like arrive
at appointments in plenty of time?” where he responds with a “no”.

III. EXTRAVERSION:
Extraversion refers to individuals who score high tend to be outgoing, impulsive, uninhibited,
have many social contacts, and often take part in group activities.
The participant obtained a Raw score of 10 on the dimension, corresponding to Sten score of
4, indicating that the participant is more inclined towards the introversion continuum of the
dimension.

Below Average E scores indicate introversion as opposed to extraversion, and individuals who
score low tend to prefer solitude over group activities and gregariousness and may prefer
having fewer social contacts, and often does not take part in social gatherings. Typically, the
an extravert is highly social, likes gatherings, has many friends, needs to have people to talk to
and dislikes solitary pursuits such as reading, studying, and contemplation. Since the Subject
scored below average we can say, he likely prefers his own limited sets of hobbies, meets fewer
people then average and seldom takes parts in group activities and generally is quite reserved
to themselves than being outwardly as highlighted from his response with a “no” to item no.
20.; “Do you enjoy meeting new people?”

IV. NEUROTICISM
Neuroticism refers to emotional liability, over activity, many worries, anxieties, and
irritating emotional feelings.
The participant obtained a Raw score of 20 for the following dimension corresponding to a
Sten of 10, indicating High level for the dimension of neuroticism.

The participant is likely to be uneven tempered and highly reactive to stress. The participant
also tends to be irritable and moody. He is susceptible to experience mood fluctuations and at
times may have feelings of guilt, envy and jealousy. The person is likely to be easily frustrated
in times of stress and may regularly experience depressed and anxious states of affect as can
be found in his responses to the following items:

Q22. “Are your feelings easily hurt?”- subject responds with a “Yes”,
Q31. “Are you often troubled about feelings of guilt?” – “Yes” and
Q35. “Would you call yourself a nervous person?” - “Yes”
 6. CONCLUSION:
The participant obtained a high score on dimension of Neuroticism and above average score
on dimension of psychoticism and below average score on the dimension of Extraversion.
This indicates that participant likes to take chances, often acts on the spur of the moment, and
generally is quite active. The subject is also likely to engage in risk taking behaviors and
sensation seeking activities and is likely to perceive stress as irritable event. The person likes
to meet fewer people and prefers to stay inside than attending social gatherings and group
activities. He is also prone to states of low mood, depression, anxiety and feelings of remorse
and envy.

7. REFERENCES:

Ciccarelli, S.K. & White, J.N. (2014). Psychology (South Asian edition). New Delhi: Pearson.

Eyesenk, H. J. & Eyesenk, S. G. B. (1980) Reference manual for eyesenk personality

questionnaire – revised (EPQ-R) U.K: University of London Press.

Greogry, R.J. (2015). Psychological Testing: History, Principles and Applications (7th edition).
England: Pearson.

Groth-Marnat, G., Wright, A.J., (2016). Handbook of Psychological Assessment(6th

edition). Canada: Wiley

Kaplan, R.M., Saccuzzo, D.P. (2018). Psychological Testing: Principles, Applicatons, and
Issues (9th edition). USA: Cengage.

Morgan, C. T., & King, R. A. (2017). Introduction to Psychology. Chennai: McGraw Hill
Education Private Limited

Schultz, D.P., & Schultz. S.L. (2015). Theories of Personality, USA: Cengage Learning