Towards validation of the short TEMPS-A in non-clinical adult population in Serbia

Abstract

Background and aims: This study represents the standardisation of the Serbian version of the TEMPS-A scale on non-clinical adult population, as well as external validation with TCI-R scale of temperaments which has already been evaluated on Serbian population.

Methods: The TEMPS-A has been administered to 570 healthy adults without histories of mental disorders, 47% male, 53% female, aged between 20 and 76 (M=35.55; SD=14.14). In line with the state census data, the sampling was partially stratified according to gender, age categories, education and regional area of the participants.

Results: In contrast to many other studies, six factors were extracted herein, including 41 items with loadings above .50, explaining 44.40% of the total variance. The internal consistency of the scale was α=.83, and the average test-retest coefficient (rho=.82) indicates a stable reliability. The highest positive correlations were obtained between the depressive and cyclothymic scales, depressive and anxious scales, and cyclothymic with anxious scales. The highest values were detected on hyperthymic and the lowest on depressive temperament. The highest positive correlations were reported between harm avoidance (measured by the TCI-R) and depressive, anxious, cyclothymic temperament, and between novelty seeking and hyperthymic temperament. The highest negative correlation was detected between harm avoidance and hyperthymic. Finally, females scored higher on depressive, cyclothymic and anxious, while males scored higher on hyperthymic temperament.

Limitations: The participants׳ educational background was slightly higher than that of the general population of Serbia. Since the scale is aimed at its administration in clinical population as well, it is necessary that its structure and validity be also tested on specific clinical subpopulations in the future.

Conclusions: The current study is significant in having confirmed that the TEMPS-A can be reliably and validly used in identifying affective temperaments in the adult nonclinical population in Serbia, which provides the basis and norms for future comparisons with clinical subpopulations.

Keywords: Nonclinical population; Psychometric properties; TEMPS-A; Temperament.