Evaluating the fakability of a conditional reasoning test of addiction proneness

The quest to assess personality objectively is riddled with challenges. However, conditional reasoning (CR) methodology takes an innovative approach to personality measurement by indirectly evaluating the cognitive biases associated with specific dispositional traits. In addition to demonstrating strong criterion-related validities, the CR format has been shown to be more resistant to response distortion than traditional self-report measures so long as indirect measurement is maintained. The present study evaluated the necessity of maintaining the indirect nature of a CR-based measure of addiction proneness. Results indicated that disclosing the purpose of assessment yielded significant mean shifts on a CR-based measure of addiction proneness compared to those of an uninformed group. Specifically, when the construct of interest was made explicit, participants could identify the keyed response options when instructed to do so. These findings further underscore the necessity of maintaining indirect measurement when administering CR measures.