The Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) is a widely used personality assessment instrument informing lower- and higher-order personality dimensions. Despite recent developments of brief (MPQ-BF) and simplified wording (MPQ-SF) forms, there is relatively little work on the utility and validity of the MPQ in younger samples with lower reading levels. This study is the first to assess the reliability, factor structure, and criterion validity of the MPQ-SF in a sample of treatment-referred mid-adolescents (N = 105; 12-17 years). Results suggest adequate reliabilities for most of the lower-order primary scales and support a three-factor structure of the MPQ-SF, consistent with previous research with adult and college-aged samples. However, there were also notable cross-loadings for particular scales, which we discuss in relation to the four-factor MPQ model and the Five Factor Model of Personality. Relationships between MPQ personality dimensions and psychopathology using youth, parent, and clinician-rated psychopathology indices supported criterion-related validity. Together, these results confirm the utility of the MPQ in youth with treatment histories.
AllenJ. P.LittenR. Z.FertigJ. B.BaborT. (1997). A review of research on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). Alcoholism, Clinical and Experimental Research, 21, 613-619.
2.
AmbrosiniP. J. (2000). Historical development and present status of the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children (K-SADS). Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 39, 49-58.
3.
American Psychiatric Association. (1994). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
4.
BenningS. D.PatrickC. J.HicksB. M.BlonigenD. M.KruegerR. F. (2003). Factor structure of the psychopathic personality inventory: Validity and implications for clinical assessment. Psychologycal Assessment, 15(3), 340.
5.
BilligJ. P.HershbergerS. L.IaconoW. G.McGueM. (1996). Life events and personality in late adolescence: Genetic and environmental relations. Behavior Genetics, 26, 543-554.
6.
ChurchA. T. (1994). Relating the Tellegen and five-factor models of personality structure. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67, 898-909.
7.
ChurchA. T.BurkeP. J. (1994). Exploratory and confirmatory tests of the Big Five and Tellegen’s three- and four-dimensional models. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 66, 93-114.
8.
ClarkL. A.WatsonD. (1991). Tripartite model of anxiety and depression: Psychometric evidence and taxonomic implications. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 100, 316-336.
9.
ClarkL. A.WatsonD. (1999). Personality, disorder, and personality disorder: Towards a more rational conceptualization. Journal of Personality Disorders, 13, 142-151.
10.
CloningerC. R. (1999). A new conceptual paradigm from genetics and psychobiology for the science of mental health. Australian New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 33, 174-186.
11.
CompasB. E.Connor-SmithJ.JaserS. S. (2004). Temperament, stress reactivity, and coping: Implications for depression in childhood and adolescence. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 33, 21-31.
12.
CostaP. T.Jr.McCraeR. R. (1985). The NEO Personality Inventory manual. Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
13.
CostaP. T.Jr.McCraeR. R. (1992). NEO PI-R professional manual. Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
14.
CronbachL. J. (1951). Coefficient alpha and the internal structure of tests. Psychometrika, 16, 297-334.
15.
De ClercqB.De FruytF.Van LeeuwenK.MervieldeI. (2006). The structure of maladaptive personality traits in childhood: A step toward an integrative developmental perspective for DSM-V. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 115, 639-657.
16.
DienerE.SmithH.FujitaF. (1995). The personality structure of affect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 69, 130-141.
17.
DonnellanM. B.CongerR. D.BurzetteR. G. (2007). Personality development from late adolescence to young adulthood, Journal of Personality, 75, 237-263.
18.
FriedmanD. B.Hoffman-GoetzL. (2006). A systematic review of readability and comprehension instruments used for print and web-based cancer information. Health Education and Behavior, 33, 352-373.
19.
GaughanE. T.MillerJ. D.PryorL. R.LynamD. R. (2009). Comparing two alternative measures of general personality in the assessment of psychopathy: A test of the NEO PI-R and the MPQ. Journal of Personality, 77, 965-996.
20.
HoltJ. A. (1993). Stanford Achievement Test—8th edition: Reading comprehension subgroup results. American Annals of the Deaf, 138, 172-175.
21.
JavdaniS.SadehN.VeronaE. (2011). Suicidality as a function of impulsivity, callous–unemotional traits, and depressive symptoms in youth. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 120(2), 400.
22.
JohnO. P.CaspiA.RobinsR. W.MoffittT. E.Stouthamer-LoeberM. (1994). The “Little Five”: Exploring the nomological network of the five-factor model of personality in adolescent boys. Child Development, 65, 160-178.
23.
KaufmanJ.BirmaherB.BrentD.RaoU.RyanN. (1996). The schedule for affective disorders and schizophrenia for school-age children: Present and lifetime version (Version 1.0). Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh.
24.
KincaidJ. P.FishburneR. P.RogersR. L.ChissomB. S. (1975). Derivation of new readability formulas (automated readability index, fog count, and Flesch reading ease formula) for Navy enlisted personnel. Navy Training Command Research Report, 8-75.
25.
KruegerR. F. (1999). Personality traits in late adolescence predict mental disorders in early adulthood: A prospective-epidemiological study. Journal of Personality, 67, 39-65.
26.
KruegerR. F.CaspiA.MoffittT. E.SilvaP. A.McGeeR. (1996). Personality traits are differentially linked to mental disorders. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 105, 299-312.
27.
KruegerR. F.MarkonK. E.PatrickC. J.BenningS. D.KramerM. D. (2007). Linking antisocial behavior, substance use, and personality: An integrative quantitative model of the adult externalizing spectrum. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 116, 645-666.
28.
KruegerR. F.TackettJ. L. (2003). Personality and psychopathology: Working toward the bigger picture. Journal of Personality Disorders, 17, 109-128.
29.
KutnerM. H.NachtsheimC. J.NeterJ.LiW. (2005). Applied linear statistical models (Vol. 6, No. 8). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill: Chicago.
30.
LangP. J. (1995). The emotion probe. American Psychologist, 50, 372-385.
31.
LoniganC. J.HooeE. S.DavidC. F.KistnerJ. A. (1999). Positive and negative affectivity in children. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 67, 374-386.
32.
McGueM.BaconS.LykkenD. T. (1993). Personality stability and change in early adulthood: A behavioral genetic analysis. Developmental Psychology, 29, 96-109.
33.
Naragon-GaineyK.WatsonD.MarkonK. E. (2009). Differential relations of depression and social anxiety symptoms to the facets of extraversion/positive emotionality. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 118, 299-310.
34.
O’ConnorB. P. (2000). SPSS and SAS programs for determining the number of components using parallel analysis and Velicer’s MAP test. Behavior Research Methods, Instrumentation, and Computers, 32, 396-402.
35.
PatrickC. J.CurtinJ. J.TellegenA. (2002). Development and validation of a brief form of the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire. Psychological Assessment, 14, 150-163.
36.
PatrickC. J.KramerM. D.TellegenA.VeronaE.KaemmerB. (2013). Development and preliminary validation of a simplified-wording form of the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire. Assessment, 20, 405-418.
37.
PutnamS. P.RothbartM. K. (2006). Development of short and very short forms of the Children’s Behavior Questionnaire. Journal of Personality Assessment, 87, 102-112.
38.
RobertsB. W.CaspiA.MoffittT. E. (2001). The kids are alright: Growth and stability in personality development from adolescence to adulthood. Journal of Personality & Social Psychology, 81, 670-683.
39.
RocheS. M.McConkeyK. M. (1990). Absorption: Nature, assessment, and correlates. Journal of Personality & Social Psychology, 59, 91-101.
40.
RothbartM. K.AhadiS. A.HersheyK. L.FisherP. (2001). Investigations of temperament at three to seven years: The Children’s Behavior Questionnaire. Child Development, 72, 1394-1408.
41.
RothbartM. K.JonesL. B. (1998). Temperament, self-regulation and education. School Psychology Review, 27, 479-491.
42.
SadehN.VeronaE.JavdaniS.OlsonL. (2009). Examining psychopathic tendencies from the perspective of personality theory. Aggressive Behavior, 35, 399-407.
43.
SaundersJ. B.AaslandO. G.BaborT. F.de la FuenteJ. R.GrantM. (1993). Development of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. Addiction, 88, 791-804.
44.
ShinerR. L.MastenA. S.RobertsJ. M. (2003). Childhood personality foreshadows adult personality and life outcomes 2 decades later. Journal of Personality, 71, 1145-1170.
45.
SmithD.StennerA.HorabinI.SmithM. (1989). The Lexile framework: Final report for NIH grant HD-19488. ERIC Document Reproduction No. ED 307 577.
46.
TackettJ. L. (2010). Toward and externalizing spectrum in DSM-V: Incorporating developmental concerns. Child Development Perspectives, 4, 161-167.
47.
TellegenA. (1982). Brief manual for the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire (Unpublished manuscript). University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.
48.
TellegenA. (1985). Structures of mood and personality. In TumaA. H.MaserJ. D. (Eds.), Anxiety and the anxiety disorders (pp. 681-706). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
49.
TellegenA. (in press). Manual for the MPQ. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
50.
TellegenA.WallerN. G. (2008). Exploring personality through test construction: Development of the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire. In BoyleG. J.MatthewsG.SaklofskeD. H. (Eds.), Handbook of personality theory and testing: Vol. II. Personality measurement and assessment (pp. 261-292). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
51.
TruettK. R. (1993). Age differences in conservatism. Personality and Individual Differences, 14, 405-411.
52.
Vander StoepA.WeissN. S.McKnightB.BeresfordS. A. A.CohenP. (2002). Which measure of adolescent psychiatric disorder: Diagnosis, number of symptoms, or adaptive functioning best predicts adverse young adult outcomes?Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 56, 56-65.
