USING PERSON FACTORS IN SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH.

The identification of dimensions and structures underlying a set of measures is often of importance in research, and the method of factor analysis is frequently used for that purpose. While R-type factor analysis, which yields the factors present in the variables, is well known to many investigators, Q-type factor analysis, which describes the factors present in the persons, has been employed less frequently. In this paper, Q-type factor analysis is described and distinguished from R-type analysis. Then, three uses of person factors (derived from Q-tipe analysis) in research setting are discussed, to describe the score profiles of individuals, allow more options in conventional data analysis, and to investigate the properties of individual items on measuring instruments. It is argued that person factors can be used profitably for all of these purposes in research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]