Fanny M. Cheung

Indigenous Chinese Personality Constructs: Is the Five-Factor Model Complete?

The universality and sufficiency of the five-factor model in the Chinese context were investigated. In Study 1, analysis of the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R) and the Chinese Personality Assessment Inventory (CPAI) taken by Chinese students showed four joint factors similar to the domains of the NEO-PI-R. Two unique factors were obtained. The Interpersonal Relatedness factor was defined only by CPAI scales. The Openness domain, however, was not represented in the CPAI scales. In Study 2, involving Chinese managers, the robustness of the Interpersonal Relatedness factor was demonstrated. In Study 3, the six-factor model was confirmed with Hawaiian students. Further analyses showed that the six-factor models were superior to the five-factor models and that the Interpersonal Relatedness scales could not be consistently explained by a combination of the Big Five factors. Implications for the universality of the five-factor model and the cross-cultural relevance of the CPAI Interpersonal Relatedness factor are discussed.

Toward a new approach to the study of personality in culture

We review recent developments in the study of culture and personality measurement. Three approaches are described: an etic approach that focuses on establishing measurement equivalence in imported measures of personality, an emic (indigenous) approach that studies personality in specific cultures, and a combined emic-etic approach to personality. We propose the latter approach as a way of combining the methodological rigor of the etic approach and the cultural sensitivity of the emic approach. The combined approach is illustrated by two examples: the first with origins in Chinese culture and the second in South Africa. The article ends with a discussion of the theoretical and practical implications of the combined emic-etic approach for the study of culture and personality and for psychology as a science.

Indigenous Personality Measures: Chinese Examples

This article reviews the Chinese historical context of personality testing. Issues of interpretation and methodology related to initial adaptations of English-language personality tests are discussed. The deficiencies of the imposed-etic approach are addressed by the recent development of indigenous personality measures. Three large-scale indigenous personality inventories developed for the Chinese people are introduced and evaluated: Kos Mental Health Questionnaire, Multi-Trait Personality Inventory, and Chinese Personality Assessment Inventory (CPAI). Research with indigenous Chinese instruments has provided relevant personality measures for use in local cultures. In addition, it has offered a means to examine the broader theoretical question of the universality and relevance of current Western personality theories, as illustrated by research with the CPAI.

Comparative stigma of HIV/AIDS, SARS, and Tuberculosis in Hong Kong

Abstract This study compares public stigma towards three types of infectious diseases— human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS), severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), and tuberculosis (TB)—tests an attribution model of stigma, and explores the relationships between stigma and public attitudes towards government policies in Hong Kong. Using a population-based telephone survey, 3011 Hong Kong Chinese adults were randomly assigned to one of the three disease conditions and were interviewed about their attitudes and beliefs towards the assigned disease. Findings showed that public stigma was the highest towards HIV/AIDS, followed by TB and SARS. Using multi-sample model structural equation modeling, we found that the attributions of controllability, personal responsibility, and blame were applicable in explaining stigma across three disease types. Knowledge about the disease had no significant effect on stigma. Participants with less stigmatizing views had significantly more favorable attitudes towards government policies related to the diseases. The study is an important attempt in understanding the attributional mechanisms of stigma towards infectious diseases. Implications for stigma reduction and promotion of public awareness and disease prevention are discussed.

The English Version of the Chinese Personality Assessment Inventory

The article examines the structure of the Chinese Personality Assessment Inventory (CPAI), an indigenous Chinese assessment instrument, in two English-speaking samples. In Study 1, the English version of the CPAI was developed and administered to a sample of 675 Singaporean Chinese. Factor analysis showed that the factor structure of the English version CPAI was similar to the structure of the original Chinese version in the normative sample. Joint factor analysis of the English version CPAI and the NEO-FFI showed that the Interpersonal Relatedness factor of the CPAI was not covered by the NEO-FFI, whereas the Openness domain of the NEO-FFI was not covered by the CPAI. In Study 2, the English version CPAI was administered to a Caucasian American sample. The factor structure was similar to those of the Singaporean sample and Chinese normative sample. The implications of administering the CPAI in non-Chinese cultures are discussed.

Somatization among Chinese Depressives in General Practice

Depressive illness was a common clinical syndrome found in general practice in Hong Kong. The phenomenon of somatization among Chinese depressives in general practice was investigated. Patients clinically identified as depressed were compared with organic patients in terms of their presenting complaints and responses to a symptom checklist. Sleep disturbances, general malaise, pains and aches, dizziness, and menopausal symptoms were the most frequent disturbances that prompted Chinese depressives to seek help in general practice. When directly asked, these patients admitted having various psychological features including dysphoric mood, self-reproach, loss of interest in social activities and in sex. Subgroup comparisons showed little sex difference in initial complaints and admitted symptomatology among the depressives. Some age differences were observed in the presenting complaints. The discrepancy between the pattern of presenting complaints and admitted symptoms suggested that patients were aware of their emotional disturbance even though they tended to express these disturbances in somatic terms in their help-seeking processes. Distinction between the expression mode and the recognition mode of somatization was discussed.

Relevance of Openness as a Personality Dimension in Chinese Culture Aspects of its Cultural Relevance

The Openness factor was missing from the original Chinese Personality Assessment Inventory (CPAI). We used a combined emic—etic approach to generate six culturally relevant Openness scales. In Study 1, the Openness scales were added to the revised CPAI and standardized using a representative sample of 1,911 adults in China and Hong Kong. Factor analysis showed that the Openness scales merged with the original factors of the CPAI. In Study 2, 1,094 Chinese college students took the CPAI-2 and NEO-FFI. Joint factor analyses showed that four of the CPAI-2 Openness scales loaded with the Openness factor of the NEO-FFI. Implications on the meaning of Openness as a personality factor in Chinese culture were discussed.

Indigenous measures of personality assessment in Asian countries: A review

This article reviews attempts to develop multidimensional personality measures in Asia and their applications in clinical assessment. Indigenous personality assessment measures in India, Korea, Japan, the Philippines, and Taiwan are examined. These early attempts have not yielded a comprehensive personality measure that integrates a theoretical framework and an empirical program of validation. The Chinese Personality Assessment Inventory (CPAI) is cited as an example to illustrate the process of developing an indigenous measure that meets the testing standards of established assessment instruments. On the basis of the research findings from the CPAI, the authors discuss the relevance of indigenous measures in clinical assessment in native cultures as well as in informing mainstream personality assessment.

Gastroesophageal Reflux, Motility Disorders, and Psychological Profiles in the Etiology of Globus Pharyngis

The aim of this study was to investigate the origin of globus pharyngis with particular reference to esophageal disorders such as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), motility disorders, structural abnormalities, other gastrointestinal tract diseases, and psychological profile. Previous studies on this subject using 24‐hour pH monitoring give conflicting results and are hampered by the high background prevalence of asymptomatic GERD in the normal Western population. The local Chinese population is known to have a very low background level of GERD and therefore is an ideal study population. Twenty‐six patients with globus pharyngis underwent 24‐hour ambulatory pH monitoring, esophageal manometry, and esophagogas‐troduodenoscopy with lower esophageal biopsy. A control group of 20 patients presenting with non‐ulcer dyspepsia was similarly investigated. Personality profiles of the globus pharyngis subjects and an appropriate control group were assessed. Eight of the globus pharyngis group (30.7%) had evidence of GERD, whereas only one of the controls (5%) demonstrated GERD on 24‐hour esophageal pH monitoring (P < 0.05). The manometric and personality profile studies did not show significant differences between study and control groups. We concluded that the finding of GERD in patients with globus pharyngis is not a coincidental finding but that there is a true association between GERD and globus pharyngis.

Decomposing the construct of ambivalence over emotional expression in a Chinese cultural context

The present study examined the construct of ambivalence over emotional expression proposed by King and Emmons (1990) in the Chinese context, and identified a factor structure different from those proposed in previous Western studies. The results of this study provided discriminant validity for this newly extracted two‐factor structure of ambivalence, viz., Emotional Rumination and Emotional Suppression. Emotional Rumination was significantly predicted by the personality scales of introversion and inferiority, and the belief dimension of fate control, whereas Emotional Suppression was predicted by the personality scales of diversity, face, and harmony, and the belief dimension of social complexity. The different effects of Emotional Rumination and Emotional Suppression in predicting life satisfaction showed that emotional experience has its own specific characteristics in Chinese culture, and that responding to its emic characteristics will yield a more culturally responsive understanding of emotional experience and expression. Copyright