The correspondence between group and individual in the factor structure of personality trait ratings

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to examine to what extent the factor structures of personality trait ratings are equivalent when ratings are made by a group or by an individual belonging to the same group. The differences in the factor structures were examined in regard to the contents of the factors, their variance, and the degree of differentiation of the structures. An attempt was made to understand differences in factor structures of ratings in terms of the personality characteristics of the individual raters. The material consisted of the personality trait ratings given by a group of 39 subjects (aged 17-18) from each other, using 33 seven-degree bipolar scales. The factor structure of traits obtained from the ratings of all the raters was compared with the factor structures of 12 individual raters. The individuals were selected to represent the extreme ends of the dimension of sociometric status and half of them were girls, the other half boys. The comparison between the factor structures was made by transforming the group structure into each individual structure by means of transformation analysis method. The results indicate that the group structure and the individual structures correspond with each other in regard to the aspects studied. Individual differences in correspondence existed which could not be reconciled with the data obtained concerning the personalities of the individuals. The total amount of abnormal transformation in the individual structures correlated significantly with the correspondence in the interpretations of factor structures. The abnormal transformation in the individual scales could not be explained by means of the personality characteristics of the individuals. According to the results obtained it is justifiable to consider the group structure to represent the individual factor structures.