Personality Trait Absorption: An Exploratory Study of Opportunity and Capacity in Relation to Cannabis Use

The Tellegen Absorption Scale, widely used to measure personality Trait Absorption, may not adequately distinguish true capacity for absorption or the opportunity for absorptive experiences. This study adds Capacity and Opportunity subscales to the scale and uses Principal Components Analysis to generate five useful sub-dimensions. Building on the author's earlier suggestion linking Trait Absorption to cannabis use and depression, an exploratory study examined how cannabis use, gender, self-perceived motivation loss, and depression relate to overall Absorption, Capacity, and Opportunity.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Although the Tellegen Absorption Scale has been widely employed in recent years as a measure of personality Trait Absorption, it is argued that this simple score does not sufficiently discriminate true capacity for Absorption nor does it reveal the level of opportunity made for absorptive experiencing. This study operationalizes Capacity and Opportunity as two additional subscales appended to the Tellegen scale and, by employing the technique of Principal Components Analysis, five useful sub-dimensions are generated. Following on from this Author's earlier suggestion that personality Trait Absorption may be linked to cannabis use and depression, an exploratory study was conducted into the relationship of cannabis use, gender, self-perceived motivation loss and depression to observed levels of overall Absorption as well as to levels of Capacity and Opportunity for absorptive experiencing.