A confirmatory factor analysis of the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator

The 95×95 covariance matrix of the Italian edition of the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Form F was subjected to a series of three maximum likelihood confirmatory factor analyses using EQS 3.0 (Bentler, 1989) on a sample of 1798 subjects. The purpose was to try to test the fit of three plausible correlated non-nested factor models: the traditional four-factor model assumed by the 4 MBTI scales (Model 1), a three-factor model (Model 2) corresponding, respectively, to the MBTI EI scale (Factor 1), to the MBTI TF scale (Factor 2) and to the MBTI SN and JP scales (Factor 3), as suggested in a study by Saggino and Kline (1996b) (The location of the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator in personality factor space. Personality and Individual Differences, 21, 591–597) and a five-factor model (Model 3) based on the exploratory work of Saggino and Kline (1995) (Item factor analysis of the Italian version of the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator. Personality and Individual Differences, 19, 243–249) who found five factors. All the three models converged satisfactorily. Model 3 had the best fit to the data, even if its NFI and chi-square/df ratio are lower than one would normally expect