INDIVIDUAL-DIFFERENCES IN ACHIEVING TENDENCY - REVIEW OF EVIDENCE BEARING ON A QUESTIONNAIRE MEASURE

The Mehrabian Achieving Tendency Scale (MATS) provides a broad-scoped assessment of individual characteristics associated with achievement. The MATS is highly reliable and reasonably free of response bias. It c orrelated negatively with various measures of general (trait) anxiety and fear of success. The MATS successfully predicted performance in si tuations approximating real-life tests of work and school performance and academic attitudes (e.g., level of aspiration, interest and satisf action, leadership and initiative). The MATS also predicted occupation al choice and occupational/organizational commitment and attractive/ap propriate self-presentation. Within a general model of personality and temperament, the MATS was shown to consist primarily of trait dominan ce and secondarily of trait pleasure. The model successfully predicted relationships of the MATS with a variety of personality measures.