Cattell, Comrey, and Eysenck personality factors compared: More evidence for the five robust factors?

We administered the Cattell 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire (16 PF), the Comrey Personality Scales (CPS), and the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI) to a sample of 669 Australians that was controlled in composition for age, sex, and social class. Factor analyses derived from analyzing scales of the three inventories in the same matrix produced a group of factors that were similar to the five robust factors of personality found in studies that used ratings by others. Two of the factors were similar to the two EPI scales and five were similar to five of the eight CPS scales. One of these five factors was similar to a single 16 PF scale. The 16 PF scales were highly overlapping and factorially complex, an indication that fewer than 16 separate constructs are measured at the primary level. There were, however, clear relations between the five factors and the second-order factor structure of the 16 PF, as Karson and O'Dell (1976) described.