A second look at Carver and Whiteʹs (1994) BIS/BAS scales

Previous attempts to operationalise Grayʹs BIS-BAS theory at the personality level have not been very successful. Recently Carver and White (1994) presented new scales focussing specifically on dispositional BIS and BAS sensitivities. The current study (N = 336) examined the internal validity of the newly created scales as well as their relationships with well established concepts and scales like Neuroticism, Extraversion, and Positive and Negative Emotionality. An exact replication of the principal components analysis of Carver and White (1994) is presented for comparison. Confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated that a correlated four factor model provided the relatively best, but modest fit to the data. Correlations with Neuroticism, Extraversion, Positive and Negative Affectivity were generally in the predicted direction. However, Neuroticism and Extraversion were not predicted by Grayʹs combinations of BIS and BAS activity, questioning the theory or its operationalisation in the new scales. A second order factor analysis supported the hypothesis that the Extraversion, Fun, Drive, and Positive Affect scales all measure a common positive personality factor, while the Neuroticism, BIS, and Negative Affect scales measure a common higher order negative factor. Reward Responsiveness, however, loaded on both factors.