Neuroticism and well-being inventories: measuring traits or states?

Three inventories designed to measure neuroticism were administered three times in order to study their reliability, stability and relation with psychosocial stress and life events and the results favoured the trait position.

Abstract

Inventories designed to measure neuroticism are similar in form and content to inventories used to measure symptoms or subjective well-being. In addition, it is not clear to what extent traits as well as a person's present state explain the variance of such measures. Three inventories--the Neuroticism Scale from Wilde's Amsterdamse Biografische Vragenlijst, Bradburn's Affect Balance Scale and a Symptom Measure--were administered three times in order to study their reliability, stability and relation with psychosocial stress and life events. Major differences between inventories were not found. The results favoured the trait position.