Paul B. Harris

Revising the Competitiveness Index using factor analysis.

The Competitiveness Index is a 20-item true-false measure designed to assess the desire to win in interpersonal situations. To develop a more psychometrically sound form of the scale, 213 undergraduates were administered the original form and a modified version containing a 5-point Likert-type scale. An initial principal component analysis using a varimax rotation of the modified version yielded a four-factor solution accounting for 54.5% of the explained variance. Based on a subsequent reliability analysis, six items were dropped from the modified scale. A second analysis produced a two-factor solution accounting for 54.1% of the explained variance. Both factors (Enjoyment of Competition and Contentiousness) formed reliable subscales. The 14-item Revised Competitiveness Index had high internal consistency and was positively correlated with the original Competitiveness Index, the competitiveness subscales of the Work and Family Orientation Questionnaire, the Sports Orientation Questionnaire, and the Nach Naff measure of Need for Achievement.

Recklessness in context: Individual and situational correlates to aggressive driving

Traffic-related injury and fatality are major health risks in the United States and worldwide. One contributor to road accidents is unsafe and aggressive driving practices. We examined individual and situational aspects of aggressive driving by having 152 undergraduate students complete self-report measures. Aggressive driving was related to personality variables, such as hostility, sensation seeking, and competitiveness, as well as to social variables such as driving without passengers and characteristics of the target vehicle (e.g., passengers, age, and status of driver), environmental variables (e.g., type of road, traffic, and weather), and temporal variables (e.g., time pressure and time of day).

Competitiveness among Japanese, Chinese, and American undergraduate students

Although research indicates that competitiveness, defined as the desire to win in interpersonal situations, is an important individual difference that influences a range of social interactions, little research has focused on competitiveness in cultures outside the United States. This study investigated competitiveness in three cultures by comparing Chinese (n = 61), Japanese (n = 232), and American (n = 161) undergraduate college students. Nationality and sex were compared on two scales of the revised Competitiveness Index. Analysis indicated that American students scored higher on Enjoyment of Competitiveness than Chinese and Japanese students, but no difference was found on Contentiousness. Men scored higher than women on Enjoyment of Competition but not on Contentiousness. The findings indicate that sex and cultural patterns influence some but not all aspects of competitiveness.

The Prosocial and Aggressive Driving Inventory (PADI): A Self-Report Measure of Safe and Unsafe Driving Behaviors

Surveys of 1217 undergraduate students supported the reliability (inter-item and test-retest) and validity of the Prosocial and Aggressive Driving Inventory (PADI). Principal component analyses on the PADI items yielded two scales: Prosocial Driving (17 items) and Aggressive Driving (12 items). Prosocial Driving was associated with fewer reported traffic accidents and violations, with participants who were older and female, and with lower Boredom Susceptibility and Hostility scores, and higher scores on Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Openness, and Neuroticism. Aggressive Driving was associated with more frequent traffic violations, with female participants, and with higher scores on Competitiveness, Sensation Seeking, Hostility, and Extraversion, and lower scores on Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, and Openness. The theoretical and practical implications of the PADIs dual focus on safe and unsafe driving are discussed.

A RELIABILITY ANALYSIS OF THE REVISED COMPETITIVENESS INDEX

This study examined the reliability of the Revised Competitiveness Index by investigating the test-retest reliability, interitem reliability, and factor structure of the measure based on a sample of 280 undergraduates (200 women, 80 men) ranging in age from 18 to 28 years (M = 20.1, SD = 2.1). The findings indicate that the Revised Competitiveness Index has high test-retest reliability, high interitem reliability, and a stable factor structure. The results support the assertion that the Revised Competitiveness Index assesses competitiveness as a stable trait rather than a dynamic state.

Is Cleanliness Next to Godliness? The Role of Housekeeping in Impression Formation

We conducted a study to determine if the cleanliness of an apartment would affect observer impressions of the resident. Participants (210 female and 126 male undergraduate students) read a story in which a character’s apartment was described as clean or dirty or in which no information about housekeeping was provided. For each condition, half the characters were male and half were female. After reading the story, participants rated the personality of the character. Poor housekeepers received lower ratings on measures of Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Intelligence, and Femininity but received higher ratings on measures of Openness and Neuroticism. Results indicated no significant interactions between housekeeping and participant or character gender. Findings support the idea that housekeeping is a cue utilized in environmental impression formation.

Socioeconomic stereotypes among undergraduate college students

Classism, i.e., socioeconomic stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination that college students direct toward their peers, was examined. A sample of 53 undergraduate students (36 women and 17 men), ages 18 to 22 years (M=19.0, SD = 1.2), were recruited from psychology courses. Utilizing a computer-administered questionnaire, participants were randomly assigned to rate a fictitious student whose family income was specified as among the lowest or highest at the college. Upper Income targets were rated as more sociable, judgmental, attractive, more likely to use alcohol and drugs, and more likely to belong to a fraternity or sorority. Lower Income targets were rated as more likable, agreeable, conscientious, intelligent, creative, and better able to maintain close friendships. Research directed toward the middle class could help fill a gap in the classism literature. Research on classism in higher education could clarify this potentially divisive issue among undergraduates.

Link to the Future: Web Page Design in a Psychology Careers Course

Students in a careers in psychology course created Web pages describing career options. Student responses to a questionnaire indicated that they believed that the project reflected principles of good practice in undergraduate education (Chickering & Gamson, 1987) and also increased their knowledge of careers, Web page construction, and ways of integrating and presenting information. A 2nd group of participants from a different class navigated the Web pages and rated them as an effective and enjoyable method for learning about careers in psychology. Web page construction may be a useful pedagogical tool for a careers course because of the emphasis on current information and availability of resources on the Internet.