California F Scale – Form 60
Measures authoritarian personality traits, including conventionalism, authoritarian submission, and authoritarian aggression.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The California F Scale – Form 60 was developed by Theodor W. Adorno, Else Frenkel-Brunswik, Daniel J. Levinson, R. Nevitt Sanford (1947). It is designed to measure Authoritarianism. The scale is intended for use with Adults.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 33 items organized into 9 factors/subscales: Conventionalism, Authoritarian Submission, Authoritarian Aggression, Anti-intraception, Superstition and Stereotypy, Power and Toughness, Destructiveness and Cynicism, Projectivity, Sex.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| Conventionalism | 1,2,3 | 3 |
| Authoritarian Submission | 1,4,5,6,7,8,9 | 7 |
| Authoritarian Aggression | 2,3,10,11,12,13,14,15,16 | 9 |
| Anti-intraception | 3,17,18,19 | 4 |
| Superstition and Stereotypy | 4,5,18,20,21,22,23,24,25 | 9 |
| Power and Toughness | 8,10,11,22,26,27,28 | 7 |
| Destructiveness and Cynicism | 29,30,31 | 3 |
| Projectivity | 19,24,28,32,33 | 5 |
| Sex | 13,16,33 | 3 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 1 = Strong disagreement, 2 = Moderate disagreement, 3 = Slight disagreement, 4 = Slight agreement, 5 = Moderate agreement, 6 = Strong agreement.
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Total scores range from 33 to 198. Interpretation guidelines:
- Low Authoritarianism: 33 – 99
- Moderate Authoritarianism: 100 – 148
- High Authoritarianism: 149 – 198
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of 0.90.
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 10 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.