Objective: Cloninger has developed a dimensional psychobiological model of personality that accounts for both normal and abnormal variation of two major components of personality: temperament and character. The Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) is a 240-item self-administered questionnaire constructed to assess four temperament (Novelty Seeking, Harm Avoidance, Reward Dependence, and Persistence) and three character dimensions (SelfDirectedness, Cooperativeness, and Self-Transcendence). In this study, we aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Turkish version of the TCI in a healthy Turkish population and obtain normative data for the Turkish TCI.

Methods: The study was conducted in both Karadeniz Technical University School of Medicine and Atatürk University School of Medicine using a sample of 683 healthy volunteers. Participants were administered a short version of Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale and the Turkish TCI that was translated by Kose and Sayar and officially approved by Cloninger to be used in this validation study.

Results: Turkish sample had significantly lower mean scores on Novelty Seeking, Reward Dependence and higher mean scores on Harm Avoidance than the American sample. On character dimensions, the Turkish sample had significantly lower scores on Self-Directedness, Cooperativeness, and SelfTranscendence. Self-Directedness and Harm Avoidance, Cooperativeness and Reward Dependence, and Cooperativeness and Self-Directedness were intercorrelated. The Cronbach’s coefficients were between .60 and .85 on temperament dimensions, and were between .82 and .83 on character dimensions. The lowest Cronbach’s coefficients were found in Reward Dependence (.60) and Persistence (.62). A principal axis factor analysis with a four-factor solution by Oblimin rotation reproduced highest loadings on Novelty Seeking and Harm Avoidance and relatively weaker loadings on Reward Dependence and Persistence. A three-factor solution for character subscales reproduced highest loadings on Cooperativeness and Self-Transcendence.

Conclusions: The reliability and validity of the Turkish version of the TCI were supported by its reliable psychometric properties and construct validity. The Turkish version of the TCI successfully confirmed Cloninger’s seven-factor model of personality. This pioneering work suggests that the Turkish TCI can be applied in clinical populations as well as in neurobiological and neuroimaging investigations.