Abstract:
The Clinical Analysis Questionnaire (CAQ) is a personality assessment instrument developed through the use of factor analytic techniques pioneered by Raymond Cattell and his associates. The instrument approaches the assessment of personality from two directions; some items help determine to what degree an examinee's responses resemble a deviant pattern as established by norming on a clinical population; other items show the degree of resemblance to normal adults. The test is divided into these two sections with Part I containing 128 items which cover the normal personality structure, and Part II containing 144 items which cover depression and pathological traits. Items are multiple-choice and many may be answered with either positive, negative, or in-between responses. The CAQ can be administered singly or to groups and is designed for use with people 16 years of age or older, although it has been used with younger respondents at times. The test requires a reading level of grade 6.7 and takes approximately two hours to administer although no time limit is imposed. Scores, which are available in a computerized narrative report, reflect sub-scores on 16 normal personality scales and 12 clinical scales expressed as percentiles. The 16 Normal Personality Scales are: Warmth, Intelligence, Emotional Stability, Dominance, Impulsivity, Conformity, Boldness, Sensitivity, Suspiciousness, Imagination, Shrewdness, Insecurity, Radicalism, Self-sufficiency, Self-discipline, and Tension. The 12 Clinical Scales are: Hypochondriasis, Suicidal Depression, Agitation, Anxious Depression, Low Energy Depression, Guilt and Resentment, Boredom and Withdrawal, Paranoia, Psychopathic Deviation, Schizophrenia, Psychoasthenia, and Psychological Inadequacy. Norms were established at over 60 locations in the U.S. and Canada using normal adults (488 males, 477 females), clinical cases (598 males, 352 females), college students (335 males, 553 females), and convicts (446 males). Separate norms were established for males and females because statistically significant differences were found for the sexes on 22 of the 28 scales. Test-retest reliability with a one-day interval ranges from .51 to .90. The validity of Cattell's factors was established through the sophisticated statistical procedure of factor analysis. Correlations between the CAQ and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory for individual factors are generally below .30. The Spanish version of the test corresponds to the second part of the CAQ, the part that deals with pathology. In this case, norms were established on a normal, not a clinical population of adolescents (469 males, 463 females) and adults (669 males, 123 females).