Six Factor Personality Questionnaire (SFPQ)

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The Six Factor Personality Questionnaire (SFPQ) encompasses and extends the popular 'Big 5' factors of personality. The SFPQ achieves increased validity over traditional 'Big 5' measures. Information available provides strong support for the reliability and the convergent, discriminant, factorial, and criterion validity of this renowned assessment.

Description

What does the SFPQ measure

The SFPQ is a measure of six personality dimensions each consisting of three facet scales, measured by 108 Likert items. These dimensions are:

Extraversion

Sociable, persuasive, expressive, neighbourly, controlling, conspicuous, affiliative, authoritative, showy, amicable, assertive, pretentious. As opposed to shy, following, modest, solitary, compliant, inconspicuous, reserved, sheepish, proper, secluded, supporting, humble.

Questions under the Extraversion factor can further be grouped into 3 sub-dimensions – affiliation, domination, and exhibition.

Agreeableness

Meek, easy-going, unguarded, humble, mild-mannered, accepting, obsequious, forgiving, open, apologetic, courteous, reasonable. As opposed to arrogant, aggressive, guarded, haughty, hot-tempered, touchy, conceited, irritable, defensive, proud, quarrelsome, suspicious.

Questions under the Agreeableness factor can further be grouped into 3 sub-dimensions – abasement, even-tempered, good-natured.

Independence

Self-reliant, wilful, secure, sovereign, unconventional, independent, recalcitrant, offensive, self-assured. As opposed to obedient, approval seeking, dependent, conforming, socially sensitive, ingratiating, impressionable, proper, confiding, pliable, help-seeking.

Questions under the Independence factor can further be grouped into 3 sub-dimensions – autonomy, individualism, self-reliance.

Openness to Experience

Innovative, analytical, inquisitive, capricious, scrutinizing, curious, erratic, reflective, exploring. As opposed to predictable, practical, insular, invariable, sketchy, narrow, steadfast, superficial, confined.

Questions under the Openness factor can further be grouped into 3 sub-dimensions – change, understanding, breadth of interest.

Methodicalness

Precise, prudent, organised, accurate, deliberative, scheduled, meticulous, purposeful, disciplined. As opposed to vague, rash, messy, imprecise, spontaneous, untidy, inexact, impetuous, chaotic.

Questions under the Methodicalness factor can further be grouped into 3 sub-dimensions – cognitive structure, deliberateness, order.

Industriousness

Ambitious, persevering, serious, striving, determined, earnest, energetic, sober, aspiring, enduring, no-nonsense. As opposed to indolent, lackadaisical, fun-loving, unmotivated, lethargic, playful, unproductive, relaxed, whimsical.

Questions under the Industriousness factor can further be grouped into 3 sub-dimensions – achievement, endurance, seriousness.

Suitable for Personnel Selection

Unlike other popular measures of 'Big 5', SFPQ items are minimally correlated with desirability. The SFPQ suppresses a job candidate's tendency to answer in a way that "sounds good". This increases the validity of this test, allowing for a more accurate representation of a candidate's personality. In addition, the SFPQ does not contain clinical scales, such as Neuroticism. Job applicant norms are also available.

Research information

Improved Model of Conscientiousness

Research indicates that six factors achieve increased validity over the traditional 'Big 5' factors. Industriousness and Methodicalness are distinct, but related factors that account for unique nuances in the prediction of certain behaviours, not otherwise accounted for by Conscientiousness alone. The division of Conscientiousness results in a richer measurement of personality. In addition, goodness of fit indices indicate that the 6 factor model is superior to the five (5) factor model.

Differential Criterion Predictability

Industriousness and Methodicalness are distinct, but related factors that have been found to predict different behaviours and performance. One study, for example, found that Industriousness uniquely predicted grade point average, while Methodicalness was related to smoking behaviour in a group of post secondary students. The differential pattern of predictive validities between Industriousness and Methodicalness supports the utility of the 6 factor structure.

Item Selection

The development of the SFPQ has benefited from modern construct-oriented methods of personality scale construction having originated from the thousands of items comprising the original item pools of the highly-regarded, Personality Research Form (PRF) and the Jackson Personality Inventory-Revised (JPI-R). There are over 2000 articles citing one or both of these assessments.

Technical Information

Norms

Adult SFPQ norms were based on the responses of a systematically sampled group of 1067 participants (483 men and 584 women) from the United States and Canada. Normative information for a sample of job applicants (N = 4040) is also available.

Reliability and Validity

Cronbach alpha values range from .76 to .86 (median .81) for the SFPQ factor scales.

Factor analytic studies have revealed that the SFPQ measures the six (or 'Big 5') factors as efficiently as other measures that are more than twice as long. Structural equation analyses support the hypothesized factor structure. Correlations of self-ratings with peer ratings ranged from .45 to .69 (average .56.). Correlations between the SFPQ and several well-known measures (for example, NEO-PI-R; 16 PF, CPI) of personality provide evidence of convergent and discriminant validity.

Administration

• The SFPQ is administered online
• Reports are sent via email within 1-2 business days
• Assistance in report interpretation is provided in the form of verbal feedback by Psych Press Asia’s organisational psychologists.