A Cross-Cultural Study of Personality with the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire

Abstract

The cross-cultural stability of the factorial structure of the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) was studied by comparing Israeli and American samples. The MPQ was translated into Hebrew and administered to 583 Israeli subjects. In the United States, a comparison group of 1,644 subjects completed the 300-item instrument. Replicatory factor analyses demonstrated the factorial stability of the MPQ's primary and higher order scales across the two cultures. Internal consistency analyses demonstrated satisfactory reliability of the Hebrew MPQ's scales. Three culture-specific MPQ items were replaced with items that were found to be more suitable for Israeli subjects. Comparisons of mean scores across cultures and gender were conducted to identify personality variables and gender differences that may be influenced by environmental factors that vary across the two cultures.