Hostname: page-component-7479d7b7d-wxhwt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-10T18:13:35.492Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Scale of Emotional Arousability: bridging the gap between the neuroticism construct and its measurement

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 July 2009

V. A. Braithwaite
V. A. Braithwaite*
Affiliation:
NH & MRC Social Psychiatry Research Unit, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
*
1Address for correspondence: Dr V. A. Braithwaite, NH & MRC Social Psychiatry Research Unit, The Australian National University, Conberra 2601, Australia
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Synopsis

This paper outlines and evaluates a newly developed measure of neuroticism, the Scale of Emotional Arousability (SEA). The 15-item scale is economical to use, avoids the consistent pattern of negatively worded items that plagues the neuroticism (N) Scale of the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI) and comprises of items that focus specifically on emotional arousability, thereby bringing the measurement of neuroticism in line with Eysenck&s (1967) original conceptualization. The SEA shows every indication of being psychometrically sound and correlates with related constructs in much the same way as the N Scale of the EPI. The SEA is recommended as an alternative to the EPI for research purposes, particularly where there is a need to measure independently such related constructs as neurosis, self-esteem and private self-consciousness.

Type
Research Article
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 17 , Issue 1 , February 1987 , pp. 217 - 225
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1987

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Bedford, A., Foulds, G. A. & Sheffield, B. F. (1976). A new personal disturbance scale (DSSI/sAD). British Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology 15, 387–394.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bradburn, N. M. (1969). The Structure of Psychological Well-being. Aldine: Chicago.Google Scholar
Braithwaite, V. A. (1986). The burden of home care; How is it shared? Community Health Studies (in the press).Google Scholar
Braithwaite, V. A., Duncan-Jones, P., Bosly-Craft, R. & Goodchild, M. (1984). A psychometric investigation of the EASI-III Temperament Survey in the Australian general population. Australian Journal of Psychology 36, 85–95.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Buss, A. H. & Plomin, R. (1975). A Temperament Theory of Personality Development. Wiley: New York.Google Scholar
Cline, V. B. (1972). The Eysenck Personality Inventory. In The Seventh Mental Measurements Yearbook (ed. Buros, O. K.), pp. 162–163. Grypon Press: Highland Park; N.J.Google Scholar
Costa, P. T. Jr & McCrae, R. R. (1980 a). Still stable after all these years: personality as a key to some issues in adulthood and old age. In Life-span Development and Behaviour, Vol. 3 (ed. Baltes, P. B. and Brim, D. G. Jr), pp. 65–102. Academic Press: New York.Google Scholar
Costa, P. T. Jr & McCrae, R. R. (1980 b). Influence of extraversion and neuroticism on subjective well-being ‐ happy and unhappy people. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 38, 668–678.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Costa, P. T. Jr & McCrae, R. R. (1985). Hypochondriasis, neuroticism, and aging: When are somatic complaints unfounded? American Psychologist. 40, 19–28.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Duncan-Jones, P. (1984). Short, stable measures of E and N for the Australian general population. Unpublished manuscript.Google Scholar
Duncan-Jones, P. (1985). Modeling the aetiology of neurosis: Long-term and short-term factors.Paper presented at the Epidemiology Symposium of the World Psychiatric Association,Edinburgh.Google Scholar
Duncan-Jones, P. & Rickwood, D. J. (1984). Personality, symptom- awareness and care-seeking.Paper presented at the First International Conference on Clinical and Social Aspects of Illness Behaviour, Royal Adelaide Hospital,Adelaide.Google Scholar
Edwards, A. L. (1957) Techniques of Attitude Scale Construction. Appleton-Century-Crofts: New York.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eysenck, H. J. (1967). Biological Basis of Personality. p. 52. C. C. Thomas: Springfield, Ill.Google Scholar
Eysenck, H. J. & Eysenck, S. B. G. (1964). Manual of the Eysenck Inventory. London University Press: London.Google Scholar
Eysenck, H. J. & Eysenck, S. B. G. (1969). Personality Structure and Measurement. R. R. Knapp: San Diego, Calif.Google Scholar
Fenigstein, A., Scheier, M. F. &. Buss, A. H. (1975). Public and private self-consciousness: Assessment and theory. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 43, 522–527.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Foa, W. G. (1965). New developments in facet design and analysis. Psychological Review 72, 262–274.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Goldberg, D. P. (1972). The Detection of Psychiatric Illness by Questionnaire. Institute of Psychiatry, Maudsley Monographs No. 21. Oxford University Press: London.Google Scholar
Goodchild, M. E. & Duncan-Jones, P. (1985). Chronicity and the General Health Questionnaire. British Journal of Psychiatry. 146, 55–61.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gossop, M. (1981). Theories of Neurosis. Springer-Verlag: New York.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Guttman, L. (1959). Introduction to facet design and analysis.In Proceedings of the Fifteenth International Congress of Psychology, Brussels–1957. PP. 130–132. North-Holland Publishing Co.: Amsterdam.Google Scholar
Henderson, A. S., Byrne, D. G. & Duncan-Jones, P. (1981). Neurosis and the Social Environment. Academic Press: Sydney.Google Scholar
Hodge, J. (1983). Skin cancer: General knowledge of and attitudes towards prevention as expressed by a sample of Canberra residents. Report to the Australian Cancer Society.Google Scholar
Jackson, D. N. & Messick, S. (1958). Content and style in personality assessment. Psychological Bulletin. 55, 243–252.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jones, H. G. (1960). Learning and abnormal behaviour. In Handbook of Abnormal Psychology (ed. Eysenck, H. J.), pp. 488–528. Basic Books: New York.Google Scholar
Kobasa, S. C. (1979). Stressful life events, personality, and health: An inquiry into hardiness. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 37, 1–11.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McCrae, R. R. (1983). Extraversion is not a filter, neuroticism is not an Outcome: A reply to Lawton. Experimental Aging Research 9, 73–76.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McCrae, R. R. & Costa, P. T. Jr (1983). Joint factors in self-reports and ratings: Neuroticism, extraversion and openness to experience. Personality and Individual Differences 4, 245–255.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McKennell, A. C. (1974). Surveying Attitude Structures. Elsevier: Amsterdam.Google Scholar
Martin, M. (1985). Neuroticism as predisposition towards depression: a cognitive mechanism. Personality and Individual Differences 6, 353–365.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ormel, J. (1983). Neuroticism and well-being inventories: Measuring traits or states? Psychological Medicine 13, 165–176.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Plomin, R. J. (1974). A temperament theory of personality development: Parent–child interactions. Ph.D. dissertation: University of Texas, Austin.Google Scholar
Scott, W. A. (1968). Attitude measurement. In Handbook of Social Psychology (Vol. 2, 2nd edn) (ed. Lindzey, G. and Aronson, E.), pp. 204–273. Addison-Wesley: Reading, Mass.Google Scholar
Spielberger, C. D., Gorsuch, R. L. & Lushene, R. E. (1970). STAI Manual for the State-Trait Anxiety Questionnaire, Consulting Psychologists Press: Palo Alto, Calif.Google Scholar
Taylor, J. A. (1953). A personality scale of manifest anxiety. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology 48, 285–290.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tellegen, A. (1978). The Eysenck Personality Inventory. In The Eighth Mental Measurements Yearbook (ed. Buros, O. K.), pp. 802–804. Gryphon Press. Highland Park, N.J.Google Scholar