CPI

Index

Índice................................................................................38

General Objective. .............................................................38

Background. .................................................................39

Objective...........................................................................40

General Characteristics.................................................40

Administration.................................................................41

Standards for application.................................................42

Instructions. 42

Grading Standards................................................42

Interpretation.
Simulations and falsified responses. 45
The groups of scales. 47

General Objective.
Present information about the CPI regarding the
background, purpose, general characteristics, administration
application standards, grading, interpretation, and concluding with
learning activities that will facilitate the student to deepen
in knowledge.

Background.
The origin, foundations, and data of will be mentioned

first editions of the CPI.

Harrison Gough, creator of the California Psychological Inventory

(CPI) proposes that the evaluation instruments be subject to a
"conceptual analysis." According to Gough, this analysis involves three stages.

different. The first consist of determining "what criteria

they are mainly relevant to the test, if it predicts what it intends
predict, measure what it proposes to measure, or define what it intends to define.

The second stage 'tries to discover the measure of the base

psychological, to specify and clarify the meaning of what is
"measure." The third level focuses on the importance of the instrument
to successfully integrate what is being measured and its meaning
of what is being measured.

In 1948, Harrison Gough published the first scales which

they were to become the California Psychological Inventory (CPI). In
In the coming years, he and his associates derived others, and he published the

first edition of the CPI, including fifteen scales, in 1951. The

the manual was reedited in 1960 and revised in 1964 and 1969, the number
of investigations increased constantly. In relation to this
growth in research, the use of CPI was increasing in the
advising centers, clinics, schools, and agencies
correctional. (Edwin I. Megargee, 1977)

Objective.
Achieve two goals in personality assessment.
The first goal has been to use and develop the concepts.
descriptive more broadly related to the aspects
personal and social. The second has been more practical for designing
brief, precise, and reliable subscales for identification and
measurement of the selected variables to be included in the Inventory.

General Characteristics.
In this section, the student will find out what type of
the population is suitable for the application of the CPI, as well as the

characteristics that integrate it.

The CPI has focused on the personality traits that

they have wide and penetrating applicability to human behavior,
and that are more related to favorable, desirable aspects
and positive aspects of personality, than with pathological and morbid ones.

The affirmation brochure consists of 480 items, of which ...

derivan 18 standard scores. There is an answer sheet, the
profile for men and another for women, where they can be graphed
the 18 scores. The scales are arranged in 4 groups of
agreement with the similarity of their implications.
 Administration.
The CPI inventory can be managed in 3 ways:
self-application, individual or collective.

In self-application or individual application, it must be

ensure that privacy predominates in the environment and before
start answering resolve the doubts about the instructions for
promote the use of CPI.

The inventory can be managed under a situation

supervised, it can also be given to the subject while waiting to be
interviewee, take it home or in any other way. It is not
it is necessary to establish strict conditions for this
the instrument should yield valid and useful results.

In a small group, the person who administers the test

can serve as a supervisor. Generally, a will be needed
additional supervisor for every 20 or 25 subjects. It should only be stated

sufficient attention to detect errors in marking, lack of commitment

and to ensure that they do not copy the answers.

It is to be expected that its most general use will be in schools,

universities, companies or industries, as well as in clinics and offices

of advisory, whose clientele mainly consists of individuals
that function socially.
Rules for application.
Necessary conditions to apply the CPI.
The material: booklet, answer sheet, good lighting,
suitable table and comfortable chair; an environment where there is no

interruptions or distractions. The age for application is from

from 12 years to 70 years. Generally, to answer this,
from 45 minutes to an hour. If necessary, the can be omitted.
last twenty items, since they are not graded on the scales
current.

Instructions.
The instructions are included in the brochure. It is very important.
that the subject reads them clearly and follows them to the letter. If issues arise

questions about the definition of a word, the examiner can

to answer them, they are generally resolved by encouraging the subject to
use your own judgment. If a reagent seems particularly difficult
for a subject, it can be allowed to leave it blank.

To ensure an easy and accurate grading of the sheet

responses, subjects should be asked to put an X in the
response table; the use of other types of brands should be avoided.

Standards for Grading.

The student will find the rules below and
procedures for assigning normative scores to the
results of the application of the CPI.
 The natural score for each scale is obtained by placing
each of the MP 30-4 templates on the answer sheet,
carefully aligning them with the guides at the top and
inferior. The Xs that are seen through the openings are counted and the
total is recorded in the corresponding box of the profile sheet. The
scores should be plotted on the profile marking the points
in the columns corresponding to the natural scores for
the different scales.

The profile, with masculine and feminine norms, was built from
such a way that offers automatic conversion of scores
natural to standard scores. The standard scores for
men are based on more than 6200 cases. The standards for the
women include more than 7000 cases. The total includes a broad
age ranges, socioeconomic groups, and geographical areas. The
limits; the sample is not presented as a genuine random sample
of the general population.

The standard mean score for each scale is 50, with

a standard deviation of 10.

Interpretation.
This section contains a framework for interpretation.
step by step the CPI, it includes a brief explanation about the
scales that detect simulations and falsified responses, as well as
information that is derived from the record itself.
 The user is generally more interested in obtaining a
total and global image of the person who is being subjected to
evaluation based on the result of a single scale. The complete profile.
the Inventory is the guiding way to reach this global appreciation and
organized.

The knowledge of the specific details of the information

related to the CPI inventory is a prerequisite and necessary for
an appropriate interpretation.

Step 1: Initial Judgment. Note the global rise of the profile.

This initial judgment is usually made by referring to the
general baseline line of 50. If almost all scores are
they find above (the person functions effectively both socially
either intellectually) or below (the person experiences
significant difficulties in their interpersonal adjustment.

Step 2: Evaluation of scalar groups of

CPI inventory. Note the different elevation of the four groups.
scales. After making a quick assessment of the general level of
operation, the interpreter can go to find the groups of
high or low scales.

Step 3: Analysis of high or low scores. Make

a list of scales from highest to lowest. Examine the high points and
low and conduct a study of the associated adjectives and of the
descriptions of behaviors. The more extreme they are
scores, the particular group of adjectives in the descriptions,
it will be more suitable and will have a greater likelihood of characterizing

to a person. In the interaction between the scales, when the

behaviors that suggest two or more extreme scores
they seem to be similar, it is very likely that they are reinforcing each other; if

they may seem opposite or contradictory, it is possible that they serve to

counteract or mutually improve each other.

Step 4: Profile peculiarities. Study the

unique characteristics of the profile, rare combinations, not common.
It is indisputable that there are no two identical human beings.

Step 5: Statistical individual variability and

predictive. Consider the internal variability of the profile. Many
profiles have a unique average scoring line that belongs to them and that
differs significantly from the average of the profile or from the average of a

group. For example, most scores can vary

between 60, 70, giving a personal average of 65. This can help to
clarify the predominant characteristics in behavior
of an individual.

Simulations and falsified responses.

It is a difficult inventory to counterfeit, as the method with which
The scale was built and originated many subtle reagents. However,
Many reagents are less subtle and three scales have been developed.
to help detect subjects who deliberately exaggerate
or distort their responses to the inventory:
 Good Impression (Bi), The scores slightly below
above average are indicators of favorable attitudes and
conscientious efforts to adapt. Very high scores
increase the possibility of pretending in the answers or of
great concern about making a good impression.

Sense of Well-being (Sb), scores below the

averages are obtained by people with psychiatric disorders,
but the exceptionally low scores indicate that the
the person tried to falsify the inventory.

Community (Co) indicates the care and effort that has.

position subject in the inventory; low scores increase the
possibility that the answers may have been given in a
arbitrary and of little significance.
The scale groups.
The profile sheet contains four groups of scales, the
the purpose of these groupings is to facilitate clinical interpretation

GROUP I: Measurements of attitude, balance, power,

self-confidence and interpersonal adequacy.
Scale Purpose
Dominance
Evaluate ability factors for leadership,
a domination, persistence, and social initiative.
(Do)
Capacity
of The scale aims to measure qualities and attributes.
Personal categories that lead to having a category.
Cc)
Sociability
Identify people with a sociable temperament,
d participatory and determined.
(Sd)
Value factors such as balance, spontaneity and
Presence
self-confidence in personal interaction
Social (Ps)
and social.

Value factors such as the sense of personal worth,

Autoaccept
self-acceptance and the ability to think and act
action (Aa)
regardless

Sense of identifying people who minimize their complaints and

Well-being concerns, and that are relatively free
(Sb) of doubts about themselves and disappointments.
of the profile, and not to define psychometric or factorial categories.

GROUP II. Measures maturity, responsibility, and structuring

interpersonal of values and social norms and the willingness
to observe or reject these.
Scale Purpose
Responsibility: Identify people who are willing to
ability temperament of awareness, responsibility and
 (Re) reliability.

Socialization Indicate the degree of maturity, integrity, and righteousness.

on
social that a person has achieved.
(Sn)
Assess the degree and suitability of the control and the
Self-control
order over themselves, as well as of freedom,
l (Ac)
impulsivity and egocentrism
Identify people who have beliefs and
Tolerance
permissive, welcoming, and non-social attitudes
(To)
criticisms.
Good Identify people capable of creating a
Favorable impression and they care about how the
(Bi) others react to them.
Community Indicate the degree to which reactions and responses
ad of the person correspond to the pattern (“common”)
(Co) established.
 Group III: Measurements of potential for achievement and the
intellectual effectiveness.
Scale Purpose
Achievement
Identify factors of interest and motivation that
Conformed
they generate achievement in any framework within which
d
Conformity is positive behavior.
(Lc).
Achievement Identify factors of interest and motivation that
Independently generating the achievement in any framework within which
cia the autonomy e independence son
(Li) positive behaviors.
Effectiveness Indicate the degree of personal and intellectual effectiveness
intellectual
what the person has achieved.
(Hey)

Group IV: Measurements of intellectual modes and of the

interests.
Scale Purpose
Measure the degree of interest and responses of the
psychological person in the face of needs, motivations and
(Sp) internal experiences of others.
Flexibility indicate the degree of flexibility and adaptability of the
(Fx) person in their thoughts and behavior
social
Femininity Value the masculinity or femininity of the
(Fe) interests. (high scores indicate interests
more feminine and lower masculine interests)