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Horne and Ostberg Morningness – Eveningness Questionnaire: a

reduced scale

Article  in  Personality and Individual Differences · December 1991

DOI: 10.1016/0191-8869(91)90110-W

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 HORNE 8d OSTBERG MORNINGNESS-EVENINGNESS
QUESTIONNAIRE: A REDUCED SCALE
ASA ADAS* and HELENA ALWRALL
Departament de Pstquiatria i Pricobiolopia Clinica. Facultat de Psicologia. Unl\ersltat de Barce1on.t.
Adolf Florensa srn, 08028 Barcelona. Espari~

Summary-This study prexents a reduced scale of Hornc & &t&rg’s Xlvrnmgness E~en~ngncss
quectlonnaire. The information collected from the questionnaire (adapted and st~~nd~~rdved for the
Spanish population). which was administered to a sample of subjects (,V = 908) Hlth dltferent uork
xhcdules and ares. was analysed according to multIpIe correspondences and cluster. The total K‘ores and
the 5 types consldcred tn the Horne & &berg questionnaire and the reduced form correlate \cry clowl~.
The rpecial interest of the reduced questionnaire is twofold. On the one hand. there is I& actu,ll make-up.
It only contains qucstiwv ahout Mormnpness. which helps to define this dimension hettcr. On the other
hand. it show\ hw informatwn can be collcctcd more easily for research. especially III the case of u~ng
broad samples of subycts. The results obtalncd from the ducd scale fir the vmahlcs contcmplatal 1~
our rcwarchc~ corrohoratc the primacy of work schcdulc and age. ExtravcrGon corrclaw ncgatlvcI> with
ivlorningncv scores. whllc sex and ncurotlcism show no signiticant dilTcrcncc<.

INTfIOI>UCTION

A particularly imporlant inrlivititt:tl difTtxcncc in chronohiology is the S’s prcfcrcncc towards

Morningncss or Evcningncss. tlornc and &tbcrg (1076) validated the questionnaire produced by
&uist (1070). and ad;~ptcd it for use with English-speaking Ss (MEQ) in accordance with cultural
dilyercnccs. The new clucstionnaire contained IY questions about individual rising and bed times.
prefcrrcd time of physical and mental pcrformancc and alcrtncss after rising and bcforc going to
bed. The Ss are classified with scores from high to low into the following types: Morning types
(M-types), Intermcdiats or Neither types (N-types), and Evening types (E-rypcs). The questionnaire
has been atiaptcd and/or standardiLcd for use in various countries. f’osey and Ford (lY81) valida~ctl
it in the U.S.A.; Mecacci and Zani (1983) in Italy. They administered it to students and workers,
and found fhc workers’ scores significantly skewed towards Morningness. Ishihara, Miyasita,
Inugami. Fukuda, Yamakazi and Miyata (1986) distributed the Japanese version, and Adan and
Almirall circulated a Spanish one (1990).
USC of the Hornc Sr &tbcrg MEQ in investigation into biological rhythms has provided
important differential results. especially among the extreme groups (M-types and E-types).
The most extensively studied parameters were body temperature, the sleep-waking cycle. sleep
habits, self-assessment, alertness. patterns of performance (tasks involving speed and processing
information) and adjustment to work. For a review of the most important studies, see our work
on standardization. As regards the influence of age and sex in Morningness, a correlation is found
between age and Morningness in most studies (Torsvall & Akerstedi. 19SO; Mecacci & Zani,
1983; Mscacci, Zani, Rocchetti & Lucioli, 1986: Wilson, 1990; Adan & Almirull, IYYO). Greater
age was related to a more pronounced Morningness disposition. On the other hand. the results
of the studies on sex are scanty and inconsistent (Posey & Ford, 1981; Kerkhof, 1985a, b;
Mecacci e! al., 1956; Wilson, 1990; Adan & Almirall, 1990). so this variable does not appear to
be significant.
In order to study changes in work shift, alternative questionnaires have been drawn up since
the MEQ was not sensitive (in the case of these particular samples of Ss) to interindividual
differences. Folkard, Monk and Lobban (1979) formulated one of 20 questions whose aim is to
try and predict adjustment to shift work on the basis of 3 dimensions: ‘Rs’ rigidity!flexibility.
‘V’ vigorosity/languidity. and ‘M’ indicating Morning/Evening types. They conclude that the ‘Rs’

‘To whom all corrcspondcnce should be addressed.

and ‘V’ factors are more reliable than the ‘M’ factor. Torsvall and Akerstedt (1980) drew up a
reduced scale of 7 items. These questionnaires have not been as popular as that of Horne & ostberg.
and appear to be less appropriate for classifying Ss with daytime work schedules (Hildebrandt &
Stratmann. 1979: Monk & Folkard, l9S5).
Another aspect of individual differences which has traditionally thrown up relevant results is
Eysenck’s personality dimensions. Blake (1971) had already concluded that introverts show an
advance of one hour in their circadian temperature rhythms. although this study did not consider
the Morningness dimension. On the other hand. there are other studies which attempt to relate
hforningness to personality dimensions. but the results are inconclusive. Some research indicates
that M-types tend to be more introverted and or stable (Patkai. 1971; Mecacci L’I (11.. 1986:
Ishihara. hliyasita. Inugami. Fukuda Br hliyata. l9S7: W’ilson, 1990: .Adan & Almirall. 1990).
Questionnaires for changes in shift work show no correlation hsre (Folkard ~1 (11.. 1979; Torsvall
& Akerstedt. 1980). In his review. Kerkhof (1985a) observes that it appears that in discriminating
individuals in terms of their circadian rhythmicity. the introversionextraversion dimension is
considerably less powerful than the Morningness factor. but these dimensions do not appear to
be totally independent (Kerkhof, 19S5b; Vidai-ek. Knliternn. Radosevic-Vidairek & Folkard. 1988).
Our study of the Spanish sample showed that the MEQ is highly sensitive to ditfercnccs bctwecn
age groups and work shift groups. and also to personality type. Houevcr. of the I9 items in the
questionnaire thorc were clearly 4 (6. I I, I?. IS) which had littlc discriminatory power and wcrc
skcwcd towards one of the extrcmc poles of the whole sample of Ss. These itcms wcrc not excluded
from our standardization in order to prcscrvc homogzncity of results among the rcscarch carried
out with the ILlEQ. Again. an important criticism of tlornc XI ijsthcrg is that it adtluccs information
about olhcr individual dilTcrcnccs and not just about the Morningnoss dimension (Torsvatl &
Akcrstcdt. I#(); Monk &I I~olkard. 10x5; Larsen, IOSS). Thcrcfore. WC‘dcc~~lcd it useful to make
a rcduccd scale of the MEQ which we call rMl3Q. The proposed rMEQ is the result of s&cling
those items that arc rclatctl to Morningncss and, ;~bovc all, those which discriminate most clearly
among Ss along this continuum.
The purpose of this piccc of work is to propose a rcduccd scale which. with the smallest possible
number of items, provides the nnximum amount of information about self-asscsscd prcfercncc
for time of day, and which gives sullicicntly reliable results using the MEQ of tlorne & ostbcrg.
The practical repercussions will bc greater case in gathering information, and this will make it easier
to record other variables with other qucstionnairc< and parallel tests. the nature of thcso dcpcnding
on the type of rcscarch to be carried out. Working with a reduced scale saves both the rcscarchcr
and the Ss time and effort. especially if large samptcs of the population are used.

The sample was made up of 908 Ss within the age range 17-50 (mean 24.88 and SD 6.37).
All were workers and university students; 330 were men and 578 were women. They were all
volunteers and some Ss declined to answer the EPQ (iv = 54 of the total sample); these counted
as missing values on the matrix under personality dimensions.
Information was collected about different work shifts, and on the basis of this variable the sample
was subdivided into 5 categories: morning workers (M), whose shift is from 7 a.m. to no later than
3 p.m. (180 men. I85 uomen); afternoon shift workers (A), whose shift is somewhere between
3 p.m. and S p.m. (20 men. 47 women); morning-afternoon workers (M-A), with a shift of 6-8 hr
bctvveen morning and afternoon (39 men, 73 women); night workers (N), whose shift begins after
8 p.m. (I4 men. 29 women). The student work shift is labelled S and covers morning-afternoon
(77 men, 2-U women). With these five categories we cover practically all the Spanish work shifts.
The age variable was rccodified into 4 intervals: 17-22 (103 men, 354 women); 33-30 (I31 men,
I47 women); 3130 (88 men, 72 women); 41-50 (8 men. 5 women). The first group are mostly
students and the age range covers the period of years normally devoted to university studies. The
age range of this interval was deliberately narrower than the others for this reason. In the other
groups there are Ss with all different work shifts. The dimensions neuroticism and extraversion
were studied and on the basis of the percentile scores they were recodified into 3 groups: PI (l-25)
which corresponds to quartile I, PZ (26-74) which includes quartiles 2 and 3, and P3 (75-99) which
 Home & &berg Morninpness-Eveningness questwnnalre 243

corresponds to quartile 4. The Ss in PI are stable and introverted. P2 shows intermediate scores
and P3 includes high scores for neuroticism and extraversion. The frequencies for each of the two
dimensions were evaluated separately. The median for extraversion is 60 and for neuroticism 35;
the mode for extraversion is 65 and for neuroticism 30.

Procrtlure
The information was collected in group form the student sample. In the case of the workers.
some of the information was gathered collectively. and sometimes we contacted the firm, who
took charge of distributing the questionnaire to each individual and getting it back. The Ss always
remained anonymous and the only information they were required to give was their age. sex and
work shift. The Ss answered the EPQ and the original Horne S: ijstberg questionnaire translated
and adapted in accordance with the cultural differences of the Spanish population.
Later. the 19 items in the MEQ were analysed according to multiple correspondences and cluster.
The analysis of correspondences obtains the best simultaneous arrangement of the two sets of data
in lines (Ss) and columns (items in the questionnaire) on the matrix of contingent values which
is shown on the planes formed by the principal pairs of axes (Batista Rr Sureda, 1987). The first
3 axes (of maximum variability) were studied exhaustively in order to delimit the contribution of
each of the questions of the MEQ to each of them. The contribution made by the questions in the
axes can be seen by their distribution on the pianc in categories. By category we mean the numerical
weighting assigned to each of the alternatives in an item (see Home Sr ostbcrg original). the sum
total of which for the I9 items gives the S’s score for the qucstionnairo. From the contribution
of the diffcrcnt catcgorics on the plant WC obtain the spatial grouping of the Ss. To estimate the
discriminatory value of the questions, all of them wcrc actively inclutiod in the analysis of
corrcspondonccs. Our aim \L’;IS to climinatc the ones which wcrc less important and/or less precise
in meaning considering them all of potentially equal value for obtaining Morningncss scores.
Cluster analysis was pcrformccl in order to delimit 5 groups in the Morningncss dimension, and
to dctcrminc the intra-item catcgorics lvhich define them more clearly. This method involves
exploring the matrix of data (Is) columns for 908 Ss) and. it attempts to define groups of Ss.
The work \v;ls carried out with 5 groups because this was the resultant number both from the
MEQ and from our own rMEQ.
Data analysts wcrc carried out with the SPAD computer package (Lcbart, Morincau, Aluja,
Brian. Canon. Joanncs. Laportc. Lambcrt, Plcuvrct, Pradcl, Richardot & de Roclucfcuil, 1955) and
SI’SS computer package (Nit, Hull, Jenkins. Strinbrcnncr & Bent, 1985). Non-parametric statistical
tests were used because numerical quantification of morningness and personality give a strictly
ordinal scale. The statistical analyses of the variables considered for the rMEQ of the whole sample
and the subsamples were the same as the ones used in our above-mentioned standurdiration.

RESULTS

The interpretation of the analysis of correspondences was made by tracing the intra-item
categories on the planes. Figure I shows the plane formed by axes I and 2. Figure 2 shows the
plane formed by axes I and 3. The plane with axes 2 and 3 is not shown but it was of value in
deciding whether to exclude or include some items. The best items or questions for an axis are the
ones which have their categories spread out right along the continuum and show a pattern of
gradation.
The interpretation of the first 3 axes along with the items that contribute best to them is as
follows:
-Axis I, ‘M’, Morningncss-Eveningness. 12.84% variance accounted for. The items that best
define this axis are I. 5, 7, IO. IS, 19. At the Morningness pole we have the highest categories-the
ones with the highest scores-from the questions selected. The Ss situated at this pole get up early;
they feel best early (wider awake and fresher) in the morning, and they assess themselves as being
clearly Morning types. At the Eveningness pole we find the lower categories from the questions.
The Ss clustered around this pole get up late. They feel good until the early hours of the morning
and do not feel like going to bed. But when they get up, they are tired and half asleep, and they
2-u A?~AADA.~ and HELENAALWIRALL

-_--__
--__-_ -
7
 Home & &berg Morningness-Eveningness questionnaire

..
‘-_
2% ~SA ADAS and HELESA ~L.MIRALL

assess themselves as being clearly Evening types. The moderate and intermediate groups are
somewhere in the middle. situated along the dimension in ordered steps.
-Axis 2. ‘R’ Rigidity-Flexibility. 8.41 9/o variance accounted for. The main items which make
up this axis are I . 2. 5. 7. IO. IS. At the rigidity pole we find the extreme categories-both high
and low-of the items that form this dimension and, consequently, individuals who. irrespective
of their !Uorningness-Eveningness. have time schedules at the extreme ends of the scale and will
have difficulty in adapting if these times are varied. Their rising and bed times are extreme: they
either feel the need for sleep very early or very late. and the preferred times are early morning or
midnight. At the flesibility pole. the Ss respond to modifiers like ‘somewhat’. ‘not excessively’ or
‘quite’ when answering questions about the difficulty or ease with which they act; they are not so
radical as regards time preferences and they show a greater capacity to break with their daily
routine. The questions on this axis are usually the same as those for ‘M’, which comes as no surprise
if we remember that the information adduced by this second axis complements the degree of
Morningness-Eveningness.
-Axis 3. ‘A’ Subjective Alertness--Fatigue. 7.177; variance accounted for. The items which make
up this axis are 9, 16. 18. At the Alertness pole we find categories of maximum performance. fitness
or feeling wide awake. If faced with the possibility of vigorous physical exercise very early in the
morning or very late at night, the Ss say they could cope very easily. At the Fatigue pole. we find
categories like extreme tircdncss. feeling need of sleep and ditficulty in performing any tasks
proposed. If faced with the possibility of vigorous physical excrcisc at cxtrcmc times of the day
or night, the Ss say it would bc diGcult for them. At both poles Morningncss~EveninEness has
been disrcgardcd.
On the basis of this analysis. the itcrns LVC’sclcct as idc:it for producing ;L rcduccd SGIIU arc the
ones which make up aXis I. cxccpt item 5. As far as items 5 and 7 of the MEQ arc conccrncd,
it was consitlcrctl th,lt the inforrn;~tion they provided (about the tirst half an hour after rising
and the rlcgrw 01’ tirctlncss 01’ the S) u’as redundant. Question 5 was climinatcd bccausc itcm 7
showed bcttcr intra-itcrn grad;ilion for its -l catcgorics. WC assumed. then. that itcni 7 was niorc
ciiscriniin;itory. It ix noticc2blc th:il itom I9 is lhc one that best dclincs lhc ;Ixib I. Wc also climinatod
the itorns that only forrncd tlirncnsion ‘A’ (9 ~ntl 16) but did not make any ditYcrcncc to dimension
‘M’ bcc;tusc they UCK irrclcv;tnt to Morningncss.
C’lustcr analysis N;IS carried out to obtain complcmontary inform:ition. The statistical pack:lgc
sclcctccf 5 &sses of.Ss I’rom the m1tri.u of I9 items of the MEQ. The 5 items tvhich best rcprcscntcd
each class wcrc studied. The cl;~sscs togcthcr with the catcgorics (in parentheses) of the 5 items
which rlclinc them arc:
Chss 5: corresponds to clearly Morning types. Questions I (5), 5 (4). 7 (3). IX (5) and I9 (6).
The Ss get up betucrn 6 and 7.30 a.m. On rising they feet wide awake and fresh; they feel best
bctwccn 5 and X a.m.. and they assess themselves as clearly Morning types. Their position on the
;~xcs: 1.49 (axis I). 2.25 (axis 7). -0.92 (axis 3).
~--Class 4: corrcspancls to clearly Evening types. Questions 2 (I), 8 (I). IO (I). IX (I). 19 (0).
They go to bed betireen 2.30 and 4 a.m.; if they have nothing to do, they get up 2 hr later than
usual. and they feel like going to bed between 2.45 and 4 a.m. They feel best between 9 and I:! p.m..
and they assess thcmselvcs as clearly Evening types. Their position on the 3 axes: - 1.60 (axis I).
I. I2 (:lxis 2). 0.63 (ais 3).
- Class 3: corresponds to Neither types. Questions 2 (3). 5 (3), 7 (3), IO (3). I9 (4). They go to
bed between I I .30
I .30 a.m. On rising in the morning they arc quite bright and fresh. They
p.m. and

feel like going to bed bcttrcen I I. I5 p.m. and I .30 a.m.. and they assess thcmsclves as being more
Morning types than Evening types. Their position on the 3 axes: 0.71 (axis I). -0.58 (axis I!), 0.48
(axis 3).
-Class 3: corresponds to modcratcly Evening types. Questions 5 (I). 7 (I). I I (4). I8 (2).
I9 (2). On risins in the morning. they are quite tired and not at all wide a\vakc. Their maximum
pcrformancc period is bctwccn I7 and 2 p.m., and they feel best between 4 and 8 p.m. They
assess thcmselvcs as more Evening types than Morning types. Their position on the 3 axes: -0.65
(axis I ). -0.50 (axis 2). -0.79 (axis 3).
-Class I: corresponds to moderately Morning types. Questions I (4). 5 (3). I I (6),
I8 (4). I9 (4). The> get up between 7.30 and 9 a.m. On rising they feel fairly wide awake.
 Hornr & c)stberg ~lorntngnrss-Evcnlnpness qurstlonnairr 2.47

Their maximum performance period is between 9 and I I a.m., and they assess themselves as
more Morning types than Evening types. Their position on the 3 axes: 1.01 (axis I), 0.18 (axis 2).
0.1 I (axis 3).
These 5 classes of Ss show a high degree of correspondence with the 5 types of preference.
Note also that the items selected from axis I are well represented in the specific categories for
each class. In each class there are 3 categories of items that characterize it. Among the 5 items
that make up the rMEQ and in the clearly blorning type group there are 4 which coincide.
The lack of clear correlation between categories and classes is due to the fact that many of the
questions have only 4 possible answers and not 5-lvhich would be the case of the definitive types.
So, for example. the Neither type people assess themselves as more Xlorninp types than Evening
types because they had to choose between 4 options with no intermediate types allowed for.
On the plane of the principal axes I (Morningness-Eveningness) and 2 (Rigidity-Flexibility), the
5 types of preference are distributed in a U-shape. At the extremes ive find the Rigid types,
polarized towards Xlorningness or Eveningness. In the middle we find the Flexible. moderate or
intermediate types.
After carrying out these analyses the rXf EQ was constructed with 5 items whose numbers in the
MEQ are I. 7. IO. IS. 19. SW bclou the rMEQ with the 5 items selected and the correction criterion
used for the English version (EV). and for the Spanish version (SV). As for the instructions. we
kept the ones given by Horne and ojstbcrg, so they arc not included.

I-S---v-4---v-3-y-Z-l\

Very tired
. f:xrly tired ,.... . . ..I. :
. I:airly rcfre~;hcd 3
. Vrry refreshed.. 4

/---5---v--4---v- 3----y--2--,/-1\

Ill~l~l~lll~llillli~ll~~llllJ
PM a 1‘1 12AM 1
E:: PM9 1: 12AM 1 2 43

EV ~l--‘\r~7/14-,r---3-7/-2-v_l-\
sv ~1--._/-5-v47-3----v--2-v-17

IlillllllllllllllllIlIIIII
121 2 3 4 5 6 1 8 91011121 2 3 4 5 6 7 6 9101112
MIDNIGHT NOON MIONIGHT
218 ANA .AD*s and HELESA .~LMIRALL

On the basis of the range of the direct total score. the following criterion was used to form 5
preference groups:
Score
-Definitely Mornmg Type 22-25 (DM)
-Moderately Mornmg Type 18-21 (MM)
-Neither Type 12-l 7 (NT)
-Moderately Evening Type 8-11 (ME)
-Definitely Evening Type 4-7 (DE)

Anal~~sis q/‘ the reliahilitj. of the r.LlEQ

The Spearman correlation coefficients between the total score for the MEQ and the rMEQ
(r = 0.895. P < 0.00001) and between the 5 types of preference (r = 0.733. P < 0.00001) are highly
significant. The Spearman correlation coefficients for the subsamples of schedule and age. \vith the
same degree of significance found among the whole sample (P < 0.00001) bet\veen the total score
for the MEQ (TS) and the total reduced score (rTS) and the 5 types of preference of the LlEQ(T)
and the 5 types in the reduced scale (rT) are:

TS - rTS T - rT TS - rTS T - rT
‘SCHEDULE AGE
M 0.886 0.725 17-23 0.889 0.688
A 0 890 0.730 24-30 0 890 0.734
M ~A 0.890 0.722 31-40 0.885 0 745
S 0.907 0.703 41-50 0.867 0 811
N 0.820 0.670

WC calculatctl the indices of scncitivity of the new scale or the pcrccntagc of corrcspondcncc
hctwccn the rocatogorixd scores of the MEQ and those of the rMEQ. Sensitivity can bc dclincd
AS the quotient of Ss who fall into ;I group which coin&&s for Morningncss Evcningncss in both
qucstionnaircs and with the whole sample studied. In this way. WC cstirnatcri the capacity of the
rLl1X.I to catcgorix using the same criteria as the MEQ. For thcso analysts 3 groups of 5’s
wxx sludicrl: Morning typos (DM + MM), Ncithcr types (NT) and Evening typos (DE + ME).
In p\y~ll~)physiol~)gical rcscarch. for the sake of cxpcrimcnt. to classify individuals it is sufticicnt
to iliscriniinalc on this lcvcl of rccatcgoriz~ltion.
01‘ the total wn~plc. 705 Ss (I’ = 0.7X) u’crc assigned to the same group. while 203 (P = 0.X)
changed group. According to time schedule, the coincidences are as follows: 7x0 Ss (P = 0.77)
with ;I morning (P = 0.80) with an afternoon schcclulc. 8X Ss (P = 0.79) with ;I
schsclulc. 5-I Ss
morning ~al‘ttxnoon schcdulc, 351 students (P = 0.78) and 32 Ss (P = 0.74) with a night time
schcrlulc. The coincidcnccs according to age arc 359 Ss between I7 and 23 (P = 0.79), 209 between
73 ancl ?O (I’ = 0.75). 126 St; bctwscn 31 and 40 (P = 0.79) and I I Ss bctwecn 41 and 50 (0.X-I).
The rcsuItant indicts arc quite satisfactory but wc felt it necessary to look morr closely at the
cast of Ss with dilircntial results and set‘ in what direction and to what dcgrcc they had moved.
LVc worked with the quantitative range of both scales. WC deem it csscntial to point out that there
WAS no change between non-contiguous categories. The most wide-ranging cutcgory is Neither
tkpc. ivith S’s who arc modcratcly Morning types or moderately Evening types. Of the 103 casts
that do not coincids. 193 (P = 0.2 I of the: total sample and P = 0.95 of the total number of
non-~oinciclcnccs) changed from bordcrlinc scores for their group in the MEQ to bordcrlinc scores
on the new SGIIC. WC consider bordcrlinc scores any scores situated at the upper or lower limit of
the group as dctincd by the MEQ. or one unit away from thcsc. In the cast of the rMEQ, bccausc
of the limited range of the groups. bordcrlinc scores ivcrc taken to bc only those irhich coincidsd
Lvith the upper or lower limits. Only IO Ss had middling scores in the MEQ and thcsc changed
in the r&I EQ (P = 0.01 of the whole sample and P = 0.05 of the total number of non-coincidcnccs).
In view of the arbitrariness of the periods proposed in both qucstionnaircs to dcfinc the types-the
Ss arc distributtd along ;I continuum in the Morningness-Evcningncss dimension ---and the high
sensitivity and correlation indicts obtained. it can be said that the reduced scale wc have
constructed is scnsitivc and reliable in classifying Ss in this dimension.
 Home & &berg Momtngness-Eventngness questionnaire 249

The internal consistency of the reduced form of the questionnaire was calculated. The 5 items
show positive correlation coefficients (corresponding to those found for the MEQ) both mutually
and with respect to the rTS with P < 0.0001. These results enable us to assume a high level of
internal consistency for the r%IEQ. higher than that found for the hlEQ since the items (except 7
with the same value) show higher correlations with the total score. Table I shows Spearman’s
matrix of correlations.

Descriptive analysis of rhr r,\fEQ

The minimum and maximum values for the distribution of frequencies of the whole sample are
5 and 24. The central tendenc! statistics correspond to Neither type: median IS and mode 16. The
Kolmogorov-Smirnov test to verify the normality of the distribution (Dmax.O.052 P < 0.014) does
not make adjustment to the norm feasible. The result can be explained by the marked accumulation
of frequencies giving intermediate scores. The five types of preference with the frequency and
proportion are as follows: DXl = I6 (0.02). MM = IS2 (0.20). NT = 543 (0.60). ME = 148 (0.16)
and DE = I9 (0.03).
The relationship between sex and rTS was significant--(/ Mann-Whitney-when estimating
both the quantitative score (Z = -3.21. P < 0.0013) and its recategorization into the 5 types of
preference (Z = -2.35. P < 0.019). On the basis of previous research and the information from
our adaptation, detailed analyses of the differcnccs between the sexes in the 5 schedule groups and
in the 4 age intervals were carried out. No significant difrcrcncos wcrc found in intragroup contrasts.
except in the cast of the morning work shift (Z = -3.39. P < 0.0007). in which the men show
clearly Morning-type tcndcncics in contrast with the women. But age is a decisive factor hcrc. as
the men show ;I tcndcncy to have higher age. WC can conclude that for the Spanish population
the rMEQ score is intlcpcndcnt of sex if age is taken into account.
l‘ahlc 2 shows the results of the types grouped according to schcdulc (X) and age (3B) alongside
the figures for the total score on the 5 ilcms sclcctcd. The Kruskal -Wallis ranking test was
significant f-or schcdulcs when estimating the rTS (,y’ 69.78. P < O.OOOOl)and the five types of
prcfcroncc (;(’ 60.89. P < 0.00001 ). The later comparisons made by iMann Whitney (Tnblc 3A) arc
significant. except in the cast of group M A with rcspcct to groups M and A. Students do not
difTcr on schedule A. The 3 daily schcdulcs have the least difTcrcntial scores, while the N workers
and studcnls lend ni0rc lo Kvcningticss. If wc also cvalualc lhc rcsullanl frcqucncy distributions
(Table ?A) WC can say that morning workers tend towards Morningness (pDM + pMM = 0.31).
followed by M-A worksrs (pDM + pMM = 0.26) and they by A workers (pDM + pMM = 0.16).
Among the N workers no-one is DM. and 51% arc to be found at the Eveningncss pole. If we
wcrc to place the groups on a continuum f.rom grcatcr to less Morningness. we would have M and
M-A workers first, followed by A workers and students, and finally night workers. Thcsr results
concur with those obtained with the MEQ, but the diffcrcnccs arc maximized. especially among
the 3 day ivorking schcdulcs. The Kolmogorov Smirnov test shows values within the normal range.
except in the cast’ of groups Xl and S. The former show a marked accumulation of frequencies in
the NT and MM prefcrenccs: the latter in the NT prcfcrencc.
As regards the age variable. the Spcarman correlation coeliicient in relation to the toral score
for the rMEQ (r = 0.238) and the 5 types (l = 0.215) ivas highly significant (P < 0.0001) and
shobsed ;I positive correlation. Thus, grcatcr age was associated bvith higher scores while younger
Ss tcndcd towards Eveningncss among the whole sample. If wc analyse the four age-groups
proposed. the l2 value of the Kruskal-Wallis test is 50,RI (P < 0.00001) when estimating the
rTS. and 4 I. I.7 (P < 0.0000 I ) for the 5 types of prcfcrcncc. Comparison bctwccn groups (Table 3B)
 . ..L t- . . ..t s- . ..9t t- . ..tt 9- N
SN .IL i ..Lf r- OS-It ..s; i- SN r..nn 9 s
..os r - . ..st 9- at ~lr SN SN v IV
.to- oi Ei .sn ; - V
(8) IV1
or I( or-fi ii-L1 s Y I\; v I\;
ilUlW\~ i,mqyJ = g(J ‘%Jluar~ ~,w!“pcl)(; = I,\’ .xl(l ,2q,,.y = IN ‘fllwlJ”~q qarnpqq = ,q,q
‘~UtUIOW ~,“IlU!J~ = ,q(, .a>u>q>~d 40 WdiL lqllu = s ',">yn,% = s ‘UOW,J>lJF-$,lUJOU, = y- ,y ‘““wl~,,p! = ,J ‘ilululntu = ,q SdrlOl$ ~,!,,~J’,.~
(ShO) PI 0 w 0) ho 0 (Inn) 01 o (ocl0) (4 0 (l(O) tl 0 (0001010 (6; 0) 64 o (ti 0) I I 0 (i0 0) x00 S-Y ‘rvl
6 x 5 ( s s 13 1 9 .m(E\ ,,I,$
ti ri Ei ii 81 ri ET >“,I?\ LP,‘i
61 RI 91 ;I Ill il 91 “P’IO
61 91 $1 tl tl il “P’p>,y
(.,“j (.,j
(io 0) 5 (rnn) tl (an) I(’ (MO) II :I(1
(5 I (I) i (II 0) LI (61 n) ES (LI 0) 9L I IS 0) ii (LI II) 9i (ilO) SI (51 0) 01 (i I 0) Sf :I I’;
(li’0) E iis 0) tu (CS 0) fit1 (L9 0) LOC (;tO) El ($9 Cl) ho; (19.0) A9 (99 01 tt (9i’O) tni IV
(r(o) rs (ti’o) L9 (il 01 9i (SO 0) ; (Cl II) if (<CO) RS (91 0) II (hi 0) MI I\: 1%
(too) 9 (100) t (loo) t -
(;o 0) 9 (ion) I - (X0) 6 1\(1
 Home & hberg ~omingness-E~~rningn~s questionnaire ‘51

were significant. except in the case of the two older groups. These groups show no significant
difference in rMEQ scores. but on evaluating their distribution frequencies we discover that the
older group tend towards greater hlorningness (pDM + pMlM = 0.61) than the 31-40 age-group
(pDM + pMM = 0.37). and that the latter group has its median in the NT preference, while the
other group has it in MM. If we place the groups on a continuum ranging from greater to less
Morningness, the order will be from older to younger. These results do not differ from those of
the MEQ. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test shows values within the normal range for the two older
groups. The 17-22 and 23-30 groups show an accumulation of Ss in the intermediate preference
or NT.
The personality dimensions correlate with the scores for Morningness in the rMEQ. Neuroticism
is not significant (r = -0.042, P < 0.1 I). In the MEQ results there is a tendency towards no
significance while in the rMEQ we may conclude that no relationship at all exists between the two
variables. Extraversion correlates negatively (r = -0.150, P < 0.0001). Morning types are more
introverted and Evening types more extraverted, irrespective of work schedule and age. The results
are in line with those of Ishihara CI al. (1987), Mecacci et nl. (1986). Wilson (1990). and our own
for the Spanish population, obtained from the MEQ.
We investigated whether the variables schedule, age, extraversion and neuroticism-which. in
spite of not being significant. was included-might be of diRerent degrees of importance in the
Morningness-Eveningness of Ss. In order to detect these differences, variables and constants were
contrasted bi-directionally and by making constant USC of rccategorization. If we study the
introvcrtcd, ambivertcd and axtravertcd Ss separately (Table 4). the difTcrences in the MEQ scores
according to work schcdulc and age arc still significant at all levels of contrast. The results of the
rMEQ maximize the degree of significance in nearly all the contrasts. Taking each work schedule
scparatcly. wc invcstigatcd whcthcr thcro cxistcd diliircnccs in the rTS on the basis of personality
dimensions. Only students gave significant rssults (x’ = 9.23, P < 0.009) on account of their
cxtravorsion. It should bc noted that the dcgrcc of significance of this analysis is smaller than that
obtained for most similar pcrccntilc personality values (0.01 > P c 0.000 I). Analysis by age-groups
on the basis of personality scores dots not show any significant difrcrcnccs. WC can conclude that
Ss tend to respond to the rMEQ more on the basis of their work habits and ugc than on the basis
of. their personality dimensions. Only in the student group dots the variable extravcrsion become
of any significance: grcatcr extraversion rclatcs to lower rMEQ scores.

DlSCUSSlON

A reduced scale has been constructed which has proved to be suficiently sensitive with respect
to the results of the f-lornr and &berg (1976) MEQ as to classify Ss into five types of preference
in the Morningness dimension. It is applicable to a broad sample of Ss with different work
schedules and a wide range of ages. We believe that the variable work schedule is indispensable
because if only a sample of students are studied, the results do not allow us to generalize about
the whole population. Mecacci and Zani, using morning workers and students, concluded that
work habits modify the natural preference of the individual, and students have better opportunities
than workers to follow their own circadian rhythms. Our study has extended the sampling among
work schedules with afternoon workers, morning-afternoon and night workers, and we can assume
the existence of gradation among the groups as regards their rMEQ scores in close connection with
-<7
___ ASA ADAN and HELESA ALYIRALL

their work habits. Those who have to get up earlier tend to be more Morning types. and at the
extreme of Eveningness we find Ss with a night work shift. The rMEQ reveals differences similar
to those of the IMEQ but the contrasts are mostly more significant. Likewise. the difference between
groups M, M-A and A is more clearly defined with the reduced scale.
The age of the Ss is another factor which proves to be highly influential in the preference of
Ss for the time of day in the rMEQ. To ignore this source of variation would be to lose relevant
information. In relation to this, Horne and astberg (1976) had already pointed out that a bedtime
of 23.30 may be indicative of a Morning type within a student population, but might be more
closely related to an Evening type in the 4&60 age-group. In our standardization work we had
already obtained these results, but use of the rMEQ not only retains the differences but also shows
them up more clearly with greater significance values. There are no differences in the sex variable
in rMEQ scores if work schedule and age are taken into account.
We must not forget, however, that the reduced scale was a posterior creation based on the matrix
of data obtained from the MEQ. It is subsequent statistical calculations that have allowed us to
select the best items from the Horne & ijstberg questionnaire. One wonders whether there might
exist variations in the total scores of the Ss on answering only the 5 questions selected. Perhaps
the self-assessment of the Ss-the last question in the questionnaire-could vary slightly if only
4 questions preceded instead of 18, especially if we attach importance to the fact that this is the
item with greatest weighting in the total score of the rMEQ. It is for this reason that we think it
necessary for parallel studies to be made in other countries with broad samples of Ss using a
reduced scale.
Concerning the analysis of multiple correspondences, we can XC that the percentage of variance
of the principal axes is very slight. The explanation for this may be found in the procedure used,
working with tho I9 questions as active variables without any previous sclcction. Wc have already
justified working with all the items on :I par, but this has undoubtadly lctl to a reduction of
pcrcontagc of the variance accounted for. The analysis of correspondences is ;I way of coping with
data which havs not been collcctcd by using an interval scale. and it should not be adjusted to factor
analysis. It studies the items and the Ss, so the information obtained---despite the littlc variance
accounted or --is much more complctc. Thus, on the planes prcscntcd you can see the contribution
ma& by the questions in the dimensions. but also the groups of Ss which, according to the groups
ciclincd, will coincide with the types of the MEQ. Moreover. it should be borne in mind that the
lirst two axes arc complementary and must be interpreted through the information that each 01
them olfcrs. The first one shows Morningncss-Eveningncss, the second indicates the dcgrce of this
in each dimension despite the label Rigidity-Flexibility. So *Rigid’ Ss have extreme scores
(Morning and Evening types), while at the Flexibility pole we find intermediate and moderate Ss.
There exists an inverse relationship between the scores for the rMEQ and degree of extraversion.
These results concur with those obtained from studies analysing this relationship via the IMEQ
(Mecacci er (I/.. 1986; Ishihara L’I ul., 1987; Wilson, 1990, Adan & Almirall, 1990). It should also
be pointed out here that. as Kerkhof showed (1985a, b) these dimensions are not totally
independent. The relation shown through the MEQ could be explained by the interaction of
introversion Lvith the information gathered in other dimensions. With the rMEQ. composed only
of- questions about Morningness. the relationship revealed endorses Kerkhof’s contention. Our
results suggest that questionnaires specially designed for populations undergoing work shift
changes do not predominantly measure Morningness as they reveal no significant relationship with
extraversion. Similarly. it is ncccssary to point out that the scores of the student sample in the
r&lEQ show an important relationship with extraversion. We must not forget that this is the sample
lvhich is gcncrally used for experimental research, and we think it advisable to take care \vith this
variable so that the information obtained comes csscntially from the differcnccs in the Morningncss
score. Finally. wc should mention that there is no relationship bctwccn neuroticism and
Morningness in any of the contrasts carried out with the rMEQ used with the Spanish population.
In our standardization we noted a tendency of stable Ss to have higher scores on the MEQ (more
Xlorning types). We feel that this tendency might derive from the responses to the I4 items
eliminated from the rcduccd scale. The tendency disappeared when the scale was made optimally
reliable. We hope that the reduced scale will be useful in chronobiological studies that take into
account the Morningness dimension.
 Home & @berg Morningness-Eveningness questionnaire 253

.4cknow/e&emenfs-The authors wish to thank Lluis Salafranca. Antonio Solanas and Albert Lluch for their technical
assistance. Thus study was partially supported from a CIRIT grant: ‘AJut a ProJectes de Reccrca per a Investipdors Joves‘
1989.

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