Psychometric Properties of Carver and White’s (1994) BIS/BAS Scales in a Large Sample of Offenders

Norman Poythress, Jennifer L. Skeem, John Weir, Scott O. Lilienfeld, Kevin S. Douglas, John F. Edens, Patrick J. Kennealy

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Contemporary motivational theories of psychopathy (Lykken, 1995) employ constructs from Gray’s Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory (RST; Gray, 1982), behavioral inhibition system (BIS) and behavioral activation system (BAS) functioning, to explain etiologic differences in psychopathy subtypes. Carver and White’s (1994) BIS/BAS scales are the most widely used measures of these constructs, yet there is a dearth of research on how these measures perform with offenders. Using a sample of 1515 offenders, we found evidence that five, rather than the usual four factors, underpin the BIS/BAS scales. Importantly, BIS items that tap into anxiety and fear sensitivity, respectively, split to form separate factors, yielding a structure that is more consistent with the revised (Gray & McNaughton, 2000) than with the earlier version of RST. Implications for the use of the BIS/BAS scales to study psychopathy in offenders are discussed.

Original languageAmerican English
JournalPersonality and Individual Differences
Volume45
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 1 2008

Keywords

  • Psychopathy
  • BIS/BAS scales
  • Gray’s theory

Disciplines

  • Health Law and Policy
  • Law
  • Medicine and Health Sciences
  • Mental and Social Health
  • Psychiatric and Mental Health

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