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Continuous or Dichotomous Scales? Holistic and Analytic Thinking Styles Influence Response Fluency to Different Scale
David Santos1, Dilney Gonçalves2, Hongyi Lin3
1Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
Personality & Social Psychology Bulletin
|August 14, 2026
Summary
Holistic thinkers show greater ease with continuous personality scales, unlike analytic thinkers who prefer dichotomous scales. Matching thinking styles to scale formats influences behavioral outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Cognitive Science
- Personality Assessment
Background:
- Personality scales utilize diverse response formats, from dichotomous to continuous.
- Understanding user response patterns is key to accurate personality assessment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how thinking styles moderate the impact of response formats on scale fluency and behavioral outcomes.
- To explore psychological discomfort as a potential mediating mechanism.
Main Methods:
- Cross-study analysis of 3,636 participants using various personality scales and methodological approaches.
- Measured and manipulated thinking styles (holistic vs. analytic) and cultural group differences.
- Examined responses to dichotomous, 3-point, and 6-point scales.
Main Results:
- Holistic thinkers reported greater fluency with continuous scales, while analytic thinkers preferred dichotomous scales.
- This effect was consistent across measured, manipulated, and culturally proxied thinking styles.
- Matching thinking styles to scale formats significantly impacted behavioral intentions and actual behavior.
Conclusions:
- Response format selection in personality scales should account for individual and cultural differences in thinking styles.
- Beyond psychometric properties, cognitive fluency and user experience are critical considerations for scale design.
- Tailoring scale formats to thinking styles can enhance the validity and utility of personality assessments.
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