A 2ND LOOK AT CARVER AND WHITES (1994) BIS BAS SCALES/

Previous attempts to operationalise Gray's BIS-BAS theory at the perso nality level have not beets very successful. Recently Carver and White (1994) presented new scales focussing specifically on dispositional B IS and BAS sensitivities. The current study (N = 336) examined the int ernal validity of the newly created scales as well as their relationsh ips with well established concepts and scales like Neuroticism, Extrav ersion, and Positive and Negative Emotionality. An exact replication o f the principal components analysis of Carver and White (1994) is pres ented for comparison. Confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated that a correlated four factor model provided the relatively best, but modest fit to the data. Correlations with Neuroticism, Extraversion, Positiv e and Negative Affectivity were generally in the predicted direction. However, Neuroticism and Extraversion were not predicted by Gray's com binations of BIS and BAS activity, questioning the theory or its opera tionalisation in the new scales. A second order factor analysis suppor ted the hypothesis that the Extraversion, Fun, Drive, and Positive Aff ect scales all measure a common positive personality factor, while the Neuroticism, BIS, and Negative Affect scales measure a common higher order negative factor. Reward Responsiveness, however, loaded on both factors. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.