A study of personality traits associated with exercising cardiac individuals and health [i.e. healthy] adults

Abstract

The California Psychological Inventory (CPI) was administered to 65 exercising adults. Subjects were involved in two different exercise programs: 1) the Cardiac Rehabilitation Program (N=24), and 2) the Adult Fitness Program (N=41). A comparison of personality trait differences was made between the two groups of exercising adults. Results were analyzed through discriminant analysis and the null hypotheses were tested at the .05 level of significance. Six of the 18 scales on the CPI showed significance for the groups tested; Capacity for Status, Social Presence, Self-Acceptance, Tolerance, Achievement via Independence and Intellectual Efficiency. Between groups differentiation was found on five scales through canonical discriminant analysis; Capacity for Status, Social Presence, Self-control, and Intellectual Efficiency were typically high scored scales for the AF group and the Sociability scale was a lower scored variable for this group. Typical members of the CR group had a high score on the Sociability scale and corresponding low scores on the Capacity for Status, Social Presence, Self-control, and Intellectual Efficiency scales. It was concluded that a significant difference could be found on six of 18 scales of the CPI for exercising adults. Five of 18 scales had discriminatory power in defining the CR group.