Operationalization of Jaak Panksepp’s concept of brain emotional systems – Affective Neuroscience Personality Scales

Aim of the study: To determine the reliability and validity of the Polish version of the Affective Neuroscience Personality Scales (ANPS) by K.L. Davis and J. Panksepp. The scales are supposed to measure six basic emotional systems: seeking, anger, fear, care, sadness and play. The systems are located mainly in subcortical areas of the brain that are crucial for the development of the human personality.

Material and methods: The study involved 81 subjects (42 women and 39 men). Polish versions of NEO-FFI, Cloninger’s Temperament and Character Inventory, and ANPS questionnaires were used in the study. In order to test the external validity of the ANPS, correlations between the ANPS, TCI and NEO-FFI (Pearson’s coefficient r) were tested. The reliability of the ANPS was assessed with Cronbach’s α coefficient.

Results: The correlation matrix indicated the expected relationships between the results of specific questionnaires. For all Scales, Cronbach’s α coefficient was above 0.7.

Conclusions: In the preliminary study the Polish version of the ANPS showed satisfactory reliability and validity. An extended statistical analysis is warranted with an enlarged sample size.