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Integrity Tests and the Five‐Factor Model of Personality: A Review and Empirical Test of Two Alternative Positions
Author(s) -
Marcus Bernd,
Höft Stefan,
Riediger Michaela
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
international journal of selection and assessment
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.812
H-Index - 61
eISSN - 1468-2389
pISSN - 0965-075X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-2389.2006.00338.x
Subject(s) - psychology , personality , structural equation modeling , social psychology , test (biology) , personality test , position (finance) , empirical research , meaning (existential) , personality assessment inventory , big five personality traits , psychometrics , clinical psychology , test validity , statistics , psychotherapist , mathematics , paleontology , finance , economics , biology
The psychological meaning of integrity test scores has been explored predominantly in relation to the five‐factor model of personality (FFM). Two alternative positions on this topic can be identified in the literature which state, respectively, that integrity tests measure (a) a higher‐order factor of personality covering three FFM dimensions or (b) a linear composite of numerous facets from various domains within the FFM. An empirical test of these alternative positions, using structural equation modeling, revealed that the value of both views depended on the type of integrity test examined. With a personality‐based integrity test, position (a) had to be refuted, whereas position (b) was strongly supported. There was also more supportive evidence for position (b) with an overt test, but the difference was far less pronounced than for the personality‐based measure. Possible consequences for theories on the role of personality in personnel selection are discussed.