Five Factor Model in Iranian Culture: A Psychometrics Analysis of NEO-Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI)

This study aimed to investigate the construct validity and factor structure of NEO-Five Factor Inventory (Costa & McCrae, 1992) in Iranian population. Participants were 1639 (780 male, 859 female) Tehran people aged 15-71. The results of explanatory factor analysis showed no notable differences between the factor structures extracted by oblique and orthogonal rotations and didn’t replicate the scoring key. The Openness and Agreeableness had more psychometric problems (low internal consistency and high deleted items). The female’s NEO-FFI factor structure (with 41 items of 60 loaded on intended factors)was clearer than males’ (with 37 items). Confirmatory factor analysis supported the male’s latent modeling of the 31-item but failed to fit the female’s model. The women scored significantly higher in the Neuroticism, Openness, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness than men who scored significantly higher in the Extraversion. As previous findings, the current results showed the NEO-FFI’s cultural limitations assessing the universality of the Five Factor Model.