NEO Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI)

Costa, P. T., & McCrae, R. R. (1989). The NEO-PI/NEO-FFI manual supplement. Odessa, FL.: Psychological Assessment Resources.
Costa, P. T., & McCrae, R. R. (1992). Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R) and NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) professional manual. Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
The NEO-FFI is available for purchase online. See also the longer NEO PI-R.


 Table of Contents

Description

History of Use

References

Description:

Purpose
The NEO-FFI was designed to assess the constellation of traits defined by the Five Factor Theory of Personality.
  • Openness is characterized by originality, curiosity, and ingenuity.
    • This factor is sometimes referred to as Culture because of its emphasis on intellectualism, polish, and independence of mind.
    • This factor is also sometimes referred to as Intellect because of its emphasis on intelligence, sophistication, and reflection.
  • Conscientiousness is characterized by orderliness, responsibility, and dependability.
    • This factor is sometimes referred to as Dependability.
  • Extraversion is characterized by talkativeness, assertiveness, and energy.
    • This factor is sometimes referred to as Surgency.
  • Agreeableness is characterized by good-naturedness, cooperativeness, and trust.
    • While this factor is most commonly called Agreeableness, it can also be seen as a combination of friendliness and compliance.
  • Neuroticism is characterized by upsetability and is the polar opposite of emotional stability.
    • This factor is sometimes scored in the opposite direction and referred to as Emotional Stability.
This description of the Big Five is drawn from Digman (1990), Goldberg (1992), and John & Srivastava (1999). The factor structure used by the NEO-FFI is described below under sub-scales.
Questions
60 items using 5-point ratings (1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree)
Sub-scales
5 sub-scales, each with 6 facets:
  • Openness (vs. closedness) to experience:
    • Fantasy
    • Aesthetics
    • Feelings
    • Actions
    • Ideas
    • Values
  • Conscientiousness (vs. lack of direction):
    • Competence
    • Order
    • Dutifulness
    • Achievement striving
    • Self-discipline
    • Deliberation
  • Extraversion (vs. introversion):
    • Warmth
    • Gregariousness
    • Assertiveness
    • Activity
    • Excitement seeking
    • Positive emotion
  • Agreeableness (vs. antagonism):
    • Trust
    • Straightforwardness
    • Altruism
    • Compliance
    • Modesty
    • Tendermindedness
  • Neuroticism (vs. emotional stability):
    • Anxiety
    • Hostility
    • Depression
    • Self-Consciousness
    • Impulsiveness
    • Vulnerability to Stress
Domain

Psychometrics

Sample items
Scale not publicly available.

History of Use:

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References:

Scale:
Costa, P. T., & McCrae, R. R. (1989). The NEO-PI/NEO-FFI manual supplement. Odessa, FL.: Psychological Assessment Resources.
Costa, P. T., & McCrae, R. R. (1992). Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R) and NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) professional manual. Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources.
For more information on the Big 5 and their measurement, see:
  • Goldberg, L. R. (1990). An alternative “description of personality”: The Big-Five factor structure. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 59(6), 1216-1229. doi: 10.1037/0022-3514.59.6.1216
  • Goldberg, L. R. (1992). The development of markers for the Big-Five factor structure. Psychological Assessment, 4(1), 26-42. doi: 10.1037/1040-3590.4.1.26
  • John, O. P., & Srivastava, S. (1999). The Big Five trait taxonomy: History, measurement, and theoretical perspectives. In L. A. Pervin & O. P. John (Eds.), Handbook of personality: Theory and research (2nd ed., pp. 102-138). New York: Guilford.
Uses:
  • Skeel, R. L., Neudecker, J., Pilarski, C., & Pytlak, K. (2007). The utility of personality variables and behaviorally-based measures in the prediction of risk-taking behavior. Personality and Individual Differences, 43(1), 203-214. doi: 10.1016/j.paid.2006.11.025

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