2008 Volume 17 Issue 1 Pages 72-81
Gray (1970, 1982, 1987) developed a motivation based theory of temperamental traits: Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory (RST). It postulates existence of two primary and orthogonal dimensions: sensitivity to punishment and sensitivity to reward. In the present study, multiple measurement strategy was used, and three scales most often used in their assessments were compared, to provide some empirical data for the assessment of individual differences in sensitivity to punishment and reward. We conducted correlational analyses together with Neuroticism (N) and Extraversion (E), and performed structural equation modeling. Results suggested that sensitivity to punishment factor was homogeneous, and factorial homogeneity of sensitivity to reward was insufficient. The two dimensions showed orthogonality, one of the original theoretical assumptions. And the two showed appropriate correlations with N and E. Combining multiple measurements allowed us to learn better the general structure of Gray's RST, and to help achieve more precise measurement.
