The Townsend Personal and Relational Assessment Tool: An Initial Validation of an Instrument for Measuring Character Capacities
John Townsend ( Townsend Institute for Leadership and Counseling at Concordia University (Irvine, CA) )
Steve Shamblen ( Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE) )
Karen Bergstrom ( Townsend Institute for Leadership and Counseling at Concordia University (Irvine, CA) )
Chris McFarland ( Townsend Institute for Leadership and Counseling at Concordia University (Irvine, CA) )
Margaret Christmas Thomas ( Townsend Institute for Leadership and Counseling at Concordia University (Irvine, CA) )
Alfreda Alvarez Wubbenhorst ( Institute for Studies of Religion, Baylor University (non-resident fellow) )
William H Wubbenhorst ( Institute for Studies of Religion, Baylor University (non-resident fellow) )
https://doi.org/10.37155/2972-3086-0501-9Abstract
The Townsend Personal and Relational Assessment Tool (TPRAT) is a multidimensional measure for assessing and enhancing professional and personal abilities, consisting of four character capacities, sometimes also termed character structures: Attachment, Separation, Integration and Adulthood. While there are many instruments measuring some of these capacities, the TPRAT provides comprehensive coverage of these four aspects of personal and relational interactions in an integrated fashion. This formative study is based on a survey of 1,145 adults. We conducted confirmatory factor analysis of a 20-item instrument (five items per each of the four character capacities). The four TPRAT scales showed a moderate to positive association with the corresponding validated instruments in most instances, as well as demonstrating high internal consistency.
Keywords
Assessment; Attachment; Separation; Integration; AdulthoodFull Text
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Copyright © 2026 John Townsend, Steve Shamblen, Karen Bergstrom, Chris McFarland, Margaret Christmas Thomas, Alfreda Alvarez Wubbenhorst, William H Wubbenhorst
Publishing time:2026-01-29
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License