ATQ on the Web

B-DI is pleased to announce the availability of the NYLS Adult Temperament Scales online. Adults may complete the ATQ on the internet and receive a profile of their own temperament characteristics as derived from research on the New York Longitudinal Studies sample. The following excerpt from the ATQ Test Manual describes the derivation of the ATQ.

"The New York Longitudinal Scales (NYLS) Adult Temperament Questionnaire (ATQ) emerged from one of the most notable studies of behavioral development in the 20th Century. The New York Longitudinal Study (NYLS) of Thomas, Chess and colleagues began in the late 1950s and has extended nearly to the end of the century, following a single group of subjects whose behaviors were first assessed in infancy. From this early analysis, nine characteristics of behavioral style or temperament were identified and studied continuously throughout childhood and into adolescence and adulthood.

Drs. Chess and Thomas have provided the New York Longitudinal Scales Adult Temperament Questionnaire for measuring temperament in adulthood as a tool for enabling clinicians and researchers to assess the nine NYLS temperament characteristics. Their aim is for the scales to be implemented in professional practice and in ongoing research investigations by those who continue to have an active interest in these concepts (Chess, 1997).

"The NYLS scales are presented not as a finished product, but as a method that will be utilized to further inquiry and exploration of temperamental factors in the adult years of life. Undoubtedly this will include further analysis of the tools themselves as well as the individuals with whom they are used."

Adults may also investigate their own temperament characteristics, with or without professional assistance. Thomas and Chess have given permission for interested adults to learn about their own reactions by completing the scales and comparing the results with their own life experiences and beliefs about themselves.

Click on the Adult Temperament Questionnaire sidebar on the right.

Cost is $12.00 (USD) per individual profile.