Assessing the U.S. presidents using the Revised NEO Personality Inventory.

This article describes the use of objective psychological instruments, including the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R), to assess the personalities of all 41 U.S. presidents to date. We briefly report our findings pertaining to the average profile of chief executives on the NEO PI-R and summarize data on two of our most illustrious presidents, Washington and Lincoln. We review a typology of presidents based on our data. Finally, we summarize the results of our investigation of the Big Five personality dimensions and facets that are related to presidential success (i.e., historical greatness). The project and findings are discussed in terms of the use of the NEO PI-R in psychohistorical research and assessment.

Absence of hostility in outpatients after administration of halazepam--a new benzodiazepine.

A number of benzodiazepine have been shown to increase hostility and aggression. This study examines whether halazepam, a new benzodiazepine structurally very similar to diazepam, is associated with increases in hostility. Fifty-one adult outpatients in a double blind, 6 week study were randomly assigned either halazepam or placebo. Hostility was measured by changes in response on four different scales, the anger-hostility factor of the Patient Symptom Checklist and three MMPI hostility scales. The results of our study indicated that halazepam does not induce significant changes in hositility.

The interpretative validity of the FAM: long-term psychotherapists' ratings of psychiatric inpatients.

Newmark, Conger, and Faschingbauer (1976) found a significant difference between mean ratings of MMPI and FAM (Faschingbauer's Abbreviated MMPI) based interpretations. Since this may have been specific to lack of rater experience, the present study attempted a replication using long-term psychotherapists as raters. The only significant difference was for 20 male psychiatric inpatients. Females (n = 16) and the pooled sample showed no significant differences between ratings regardless of the source test. When the present results are compared to those of Newmark, Conger and Faschinbauer (1976) and earlier work by Fashcinbauer (1973), it appears that the FAM yields interpretation as accurate as one would expect given its psychometric dissimilarity from the MMPI.

Comparison of three abbreviated MMPIs for psychiatric patients and normals.

Two studies, one using 242 psychiatric patients and the other 120 normal college students, were conducted to evaluate the predictive potential of three abbreviated MMPIs namely the Midi-Mult, Hugo abbreviated MMPI and Faschingbauer abbreviated MMPI. With regard to psychiatric inpatients, the Faschingbauer abbreviated MMPI-scale group means were markedly similar, highly correlated, and seemed to be a fairly accurate substitute for the MMPI in predicting clinical types. Numerous deficiencies were evident when using the Midi-Mult or Hugo abbreviated MMPI, especially with regard to classification analysis concerning validity, mean raw score scale differences and high point codes. In contrast, results from a normal college sample showed close statistical correspondence, high comparability in identifying valid and invalid profiles as well as high correspondence with respect to high point codes and general profile elevations regardless of which abbreviated form was used.