Italian validation of the Approach-avoidance Temperament Questionnaire

Our aim is to contribute to the Italian validation of the Approach-Avoidance Temperament Questionnaire (ATQ), an instrument devoted to evaluate approach and avoidance temperaments according to the Approach-Avoidance Temperament Model (Elliot & Thrash, 2002, 2010). We performed an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) in an university students’ pilot sample (Sample 1, n = 98) and a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) in an adults’ convenience sample (Sample 2, n = 360). We evaluated the invariance across gender and education and we explored the convergent validity with the BIS-BAS scale. The ATQ reported an a-priori two-factor structure in the EFA, that was confirmed in the CFA, satisfactory internal reliability, invariance across gender and education and convergence with the BIS-BAS scale. Even though our results await to be confirmed in larger and diversified samples, the ATQ appears to be a valid, reliable and parsimonious instrument to measure approach-avoidance temperaments.