Authors

J. Block and J. Block (Adapted by F. Motti-Stefanidi)

Purpose

The California Q-sort, created by Block and Block (1980), is used for multiple applications. Initially, it allows the creation of personality profiles for children, involving specialists and individuals from their immediate environment (parents and teachers). In this way, different informants can describe a child’s personality traits, and these descriptions can be compared to assess consistency between them. Furthermore, it allows for the description of children with common characteristics, such as those facing depression, and their comparison with children in a control group.
Secondly, the test records the descriptions provided by a group of informants (such as parents, teachers, mental health professionals) for the theoretical personality profile of children who are believed to have common traits, like psychologically healthy children. These theoretical profiles can be used as standards. Personality profiles of various children are then compared with these standards to evaluate the degree of agreement between the individual profiles and the theoretical standards.

Brief Description

The California Q-sort for children by Block and Block is an assessment tool consisting of 100 cards, each featuring statements that describe various behaviors of school-aged children. These statements relate to different aspects of the child’s personality and behavior. Example statements include: “He/she is a warm person, behaves kindly,” “Has a sense of humor,” and “Freezes, freezes up, or repeatedly exhibits the same behavior under stress.” This tool is used to assess and describe children’s personality traits systematically and objectively.

Sample

In Greece, the California Q-sort has been used in studies aiming to explore the theoretical profile of psychologically healthy school-aged children. Specifically, 58 teachers, 30 parents, and 87 mental health professionals described the theoretical profile of children based on the California Q-sort. From these descriptions, three theoretical personality profiles were created for three groups of children. Specifically, 77 children were categorized by their teachers as either psychologically healthy or inadequate, and 54 children were referred for psychological problems. The three aforementioned theoretical personality profiles were applied to compare these children, aiming to analyze their psychological profiles.

Scoring Method

The cards are categorized into a nine-category system (from 1 to 9) to describe behaviors corresponding to a child. The analyst must place cards in category 1 for behaviors that do not match the described child, and in category 9 for behaviors that fit well. Cards that cannot be placed in the extreme categories (4, 5, 6) must be appropriately categorized. The card sorting scale is as follows: 5 cards in categories 9 and 1, 8 cards in categories 8 and 2, 12 cards in categories 7 and 3, 16 cards in categories 6 and 4, 18 cards in category 5. In describing the theoretical profile, the analyst should place the cards corresponding to the characteristic behaviors of a psychologically healthy child in category 1. The comparison between personality profiles of different groups of children and between individual and theoretical personality profiles is done using the congruence method. The congruence obtained from these statistical analyses represents the degree of agreement between the personality profiles being examined.

Key Bibliographic Sources

Block, J. H., & Block, J. (1980). The role of ego-control and ego-resiliency in the organization of behavior. In W. A. Collins (Ed.), Minnesota Symposia on Child Psychology, 13, Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Motti-Stefanidi, F., Bezvevegis, H., & Giannitsas, N. (1996). Personality characteristics and mental health of the adequate and psychologically healthy child: Parents’ perspective. Psychology, 3, 58-71.
Motti-Stefanidi, F., Bezvevegis, H., Giannitsas, N., & Kavvada, A. (1998). The psychologically healthy child: Teachers’ and parents’ expectations. New Education, 86, 28-41.