Search

Individuals high in tolerance of ambiguity (TOA) are comfortable with, desire, and strive to manage ambiguous situations. We predicted leader TOA would be associated with better follower performance outcomes, depending on the level (Study 1) and nature (Study 2) of follower role ambiguity. Data were collected from employees (Study 1, n = 423) and managerial employees (Study 2, n = 326) who rated their leader on three facets of TOA and provided self-reports of their own performance outcomes. Positive implications of leader TOA for follower learning goal orientation and job performance (Study 1) were most pronounced when followers perceived low role ambiguity and, in the prediction of situational coping (Study 2), when ambiguous work situations were categorized as challenges (unexpected events requiring problem-solving) compared to hindrances. Findings have theoretical implications for understanding when TOA in leaders is optimal and have practical relevance for leaders seeking to adapt to the situational needs of their followers.

With the plethora of changes happening in organizations adopting new digital technologies, managing human resources in information technology organizations had never been more challenging. Keeping in mind, a very few literature available on the role of HR in the new digital era, an attempt has been made in this study to explore the role of leadership skills for developing digital acumen in people working in information technology organizations. The study used sequential mixed methodology to explore the insights of subject matter experts, technology leaders and HR professionals to develop an instrument that explored necessary leadership skills for acquiring digital acumen in employees working in information technology companies. The first part of the study was based on exploring narratives of five subject matter experts. The inputs from these experts came out with broad themes and sub-themes that were used for developing the constructs, namely, acquiring digital acumen, adaptability, ambiguity tolerance, teamwork and collaboration and championing leadership. The part two of the study involved the use of the instrument for recording the opinion of 210 respondents working in software development positions in reputed information technology companies in the NCR of Delhi. The results showed that respondent perception on acquiring digital acumen was mediated by the factor championing leadership. Other intervening leadership variables such as adaptability, ambiguity tolerance and teamwork and collaboration exerted their influence on acquiring digital acumen by exercising ‘championing leadership’ abilities in the organization.

This study integrates research on managerial discretion within the behavioral theory of the firm to examine how four CEO psychological traits serving as antecedents of managerial discretion— ambiguity tolerance, cognitive complexity, locus of control, and commitment to the status quo—moderate firm responses to poor performance. Using CEOs’ responses to questionnaires, CEO ambiguity tolerance is found to positively moderate the relationship between negative attainment discrepancy and strategic change when performance is slightly below aspirations, defined as average market return for the firm’s industry. Further, CEOs with greater cognitive complexity are found to engage in more strategic change when performance is farther below aspirations. Thus, this study begins to unpack the role of CEOs’ cognitive makeup on firm responses to performance shortfalls.

Asian men in the United States often face race-based occupational segregation and gender-role pressure. Career decision ambiguity tolerance (CDAT) can be a source of psychological adaptation in these individuals’ complex contexts. We conducted a cluster analysis to investigate the CDAT profiles among the sample of Asian men and their associations with adherence to Asian cultural values and masculine norms, racial occupational barriers, and subjective well-being. Results showed that the participants who were more tolerant of career decision ambiguity tended to engage more in career behaviors and show higher psychological well-being. Participants who were more anxious about career decision ambiguity showed higher adherence to Asian cultural values and some traditional masculine norms. The results may indicate higher career intervention needs of Asian men with stronger adherence to traditional cultural and gender norms at the face of unpredictable career decision-making.

Equine-assisted occupational therapy (EAOT) employs horse and human cooperation in activities that facilitate social, emotional, and cognitive development. The potential benefits of equine-assisted activities for students may influence the development of these types of skills in professional occupational therapy practice. This study explored the experience of students who participated in EAOT, related to problem-solving skills, analysis of activities, tolerance for ambiguity, effective communication, and reflection skills. Sixty occupational therapy students participated in EAOT, and completed a pretest and posttest survey regarding the experience. Changes in students’ perceptions of comfort with ambiguity, problem solving, reflection, and activity analysis skills were examined. Student responses to broad questions allowed for thematic review of the benefits and challenges of this form of experiential learning. Students were initially fearful of experiential learning; however, a statistically significant improvement in tolerance to ambiguity was identified following the session. In addition, students perceived improved problem-solving skills, ability to analyze activities, and more effective communication skills. Clear benefits were identified in the equine-assisted experience for occupational therapy students. Additional study is warranted to allow for objective measures of tolerance for ambiguity and to explore additional learning outcomes related to readiness for clinical practice.

While career decision ambiguity tolerance (CDAT) has been repeatedly shown to play a salient role in career decision-making, a potential revision of its measurement model has been indicated in past research. More importantly, it remains less clear as to what individual characteristics are associated with high CDAT. We examined a four-factor model of CDAT (i.e., preference, tolerance, confidence, and aversion) and its associations with adherence to the realistic, investigative, artistic, social, enterprise, and conventional (RIASEC) structure and career calling in a sample of college students ( N = 248). The results of the current study supported the four-factor model being superior to the original three-factor model in representing the structure of CDAT. It was also found that adherence to the RIASEC structure was positively associated with preference, presence of calling was positively associated with confidence, and search for calling was positively associated with aversion. The implications of the results were discussed with respect to the theory and research of CDAT. Limitations and suggestions for future research were also provided.

The purpose of the present study was to understand the effect of Locus of control and Tolerance of ambiguity on Job satisfaction among IT sector managers. Data was collected from 161 middle managerial level employees of age group 3050 of IT sector. Respondents completed three questionnaires on Job Satisfaction, Locus of Control and Tolerance of Ambiguity. Descriptive statistics, Analysis of Variance and Regression Analysis was used to assess the data. SPSS 21 was used to analyze the data. The result reported a positive correlation among the three variables and the regression analysis validated the result. The result is of utmost importance as it gives valuable insights in underlying the attributes for defining the satisfaction the employees. The study is also pertinent for the researchers for future course of expansion. The sample size and the sector of the study was limited, hence the result cannot be generalized.

Departing from existing studies based on general notion of creativity, we highlight the driver or initiating force behind creative engagement in organizations. To this end, we distinguish between proactive and responsive creativity and provide a nuanced perspective on the processes underlying distinct types of employee creativity. We propose that job complexity indirectly affects proactive and responsive creativity of employees by promoting psychological empowerment and cognitive overload, respectively. The ambiguity tolerance of employees is hypothesized to moderate the indirect effects of job complexity on the two types of creativity. Data collected from 143 employee–supervisor dyads in various companies in Sweden and Korea supported most of our hypotheses. For employees with high ambiguity tolerance, job complexity exhibited a significant indirect effect on proactive creativity through psychological empowerment. For employees with low ambiguity tolerance, job complexity exerted a significant indirect effect on responsive creativity via cognitive overload. By revealing distinct psychological paths toward different types of creativity and identifying a boundary condition for such processes, the present study provides an ecologically valid explanation regarding creativity in organizations.

Objectives General practitioners have to deal with situations characterized by real but low likelihoods of serious illness. We aimed to investigate variations in general practitioners’ anticipated risk of cancer when referring a patient and associations both with general practitioners’ attitudes to risk taking and with their gatekeeper role. Methods In January 2012, all 835 active general practitioners in the county of Aarhus, Denmark, received a questionnaire including the Physician Reaction to Uncertainty scale, The Tolerance for Ambiguity scale, the Physician Risk Attitude scale and a number of single items assessing anticipated risk of cancer when referring a hypothetical 50-year-old patient, use of intuition and perception of their role as a gatekeeper. Results A total of 568 (68.0%) practitioners completed and returned the questionnaire. The median anticipated risk of cancer was 30% (inter-quartile range: 15%–50%) and the 5%–95% centiles were 5% and 80%. Increasing tolerance for ambiguity was strongly related to a declining anticipated risk of cancer. None of the other risk attitudes were associated with the anticipated risk of cancer at referral. Increased general practitioners’ age was related to increased anticipated risk of cancer when referring (25% for general practitioners under 45 years to 43% for those 60 years or over) but not statistically important. Conclusions General practitioners either overestimate the risk of cancer when referring for suspected cancer or they appear to need to be very sure of the cancer diagnosis before referral. Further, focus on tolerance for ambiguity should be included in the education of general practitioners.

The mediation of career decision-making self-efficacy on the link of ambiguity tolerance (AT) with career indecision was examined in a sample of college students ( N = 253). It was hypothesized that AT could help reduce career indecision through increasing career decision-making self-efficacy, where this effect would vary by different types of indecision. Results supported the differential mediation hypothesis, finding that career decision-making self-efficacy mediated the link of AT with lack of motivation, general indecisiveness, lack of information, and inconsistent information. The mediation effect of career decision-making self-efficacy on the link of AT with lack of motivation was relatively weak. The implications of this study are discussed and suggestions for future research are provided.

To better understand Galenson's (2001, 2006) “finder-seeker” typology of creative persons, we tested 111 undergraduates, correlating measures of each category (finder and seeker) with established psychological measures. Each participant received both a finder and a seeker score based on responses to the Creative Approach Questionnaire ( CAppQ), refined by Rasch statistical analysis. Finder and seeker scores were themselves uncorrelated across participants, suggesting that Galenson's two types represent orthogonal dimensions rather than distinct categories. Higher finder scores were related to lower scores on need for cognition and Eastern thinking styles; higher seeker scores were related to higher scores on ambiguity tolerance and verbal and figural divergent thinking performance, as well as lower scores on need for cognitive closure and Western thinking styles. Most of these correlational results held when reanalyzed by stepwise regression. These findings suggest Galenson's finder-seeker typology is amenable to grounding in mainstream psychological measures.

Despite widespread interest in ambiguity tolerance and other information-related individual differences, existing measures of ambiguity tolerance are conceptually disparate and are often psychometrically weak. This paper presents evidence of reliability and validity for a 13-item measure of ambiguity tolerance (MSTAT–II) based on a definition of ambiguity tolerance as an orientation, ranging from aversion to attraction, toward stimuli that are complex, unfamiliar, and insoluble. The MSTAT–II addresses each basic type of ambiguous stimulus, contains fewer items than many other scales, and reduces references to specific contexts and objects not directly related to ambiguity. Data from three studies using diverse samples and measures, including other popular ambiguity tolerance scales, were examined, and the results suggest the MSTAT–II may improve upon other paper-and-pencil measures of ambiguity tolerance.

This study examined the relationship between negative emotions and variables that affect negotiators' profit. Based on a simulated negotiation, this study induced emotions by providing negative feedback on how negotiating partners perceived and evaluated each other's behavior. Then relationships were examined between negative emotions and emotional regulation strategies, misrepresentation of information, tolerance of ambiguity, and negotiators' profit. A total of 228 undergraduate students enrolled in an economics course in the Faculty of Law and the Faculty of Management at a university in Ankara participated. There were 130 students in the experimental group and 98 students in the control group; 102 were men and 126 were women, ages 17 to 35 years ( M = 22.6 yr., SD = 2.3). A simulated negotiation process was used. Regression coefficients suggested positive relation between Emotional Reaction and the use of a Suppression strategy and Misrepresentation of Information. Negative coefficients were obtained from scores between Emotional Reaction and Cognitive Reappraisal and Tolerance of Ambiguity. The regression also suggested there were negative regression coefficients linking Misrepresentation of Information and Suppression strategies to Negotiators' Profit. Positive regression coefficients linked Tolerance of Ambiguity to Negotiators' Profit. Mediating variables explained 55% of variance in Negotiators' Profit; the majority (43%) was explained by Cognitive Reappraisal.

In response to criticisms of the use of the Ideological Surround Model to analyze Tolerance of Ambiguity, emphasis is placed on how the methodologies of this model operate from Christian pacifist assumptions. This model seeks to promote social scientific methodologies that will allow competing perspectives to obtain increasing clarity on points of conflict.

This study assessed the possibility that the Budner (1962) Intolerance of Ambiguity Scale can offer an ideologically biased understanding of religious commitments. In a large sample of university undergraduates (N = 650), Budner Scale correlations with Religious Interest, Religious Orientation, Need for Cognition, and Response Uncertainty supported the conclusion that religion predicts an inability to cope with uncertainty. At the same time, however, special procedures were used to create new scales expressing a Christian Tolerance of Ambiguity by translating Budner Scale items into a language that was more compatible with religious beliefs. These Christian Tolerance of Ambiguity measures revealed that religiousness was associated with an ability rather than an inability to cope with uncertainty. Conflicting results between these Christian and nonreligious Tolerance of Ambiguity measures yielded additional support for the Ideological Surround Model of the psychology of religion.

In my comment on the article Christian Tolerance of Ambiguity I argue that we do not need an Ideological Surround Model for achieving a kind of “balanced objectivity” in the psychology of religion. In addition, I argue that the distinction between two ideological surrounds is much too simple with regard to the debates and controversies among psychologists of religion concerning the “good” theoretical concepts and empirical methods and the “evil” ones. I also formulate some problems I have with the suggested Christian translation of the Budner Scale.

This paper proposes a modification of McCormick's (2001) self-regulatory leadership confidence model by including an intervening variable referred to as the Ambiguity Tolerance Interface (ATI). After a review of theoretical approaches relevant to developing a framework of leadership at the interface of tolerance of ambiguity and uncertainty, we introduce the ambiguity tolerance interface (ATI) and discuss a number of variables we identified as focal constructs that comprise the proposed ATI cluster. These variables include ambiguity tolerance, spirituality, creativity, aesthetic judgment and mindfulness. The paper concludes with a discussion of instruments that can be used to operationalize the variables of interest and the implications of ATI for leadership theory and praxis. Finally, we refocused existing research to address the influence of uncertainty on leaders in the dynamic global environment.

This research examined the effect of the case method of teaching the strategic management course on students' tolerance for ambiguity. Ambiguity tolerance, locus of control, and several demographic variables were assessed at pre- and postcourse intervals to determine if ambiguity tolerance increased with the use of narrative cases. When compared to the control group, the results suggest that case teaching can improve ambiguity tolerance of student participants. Performance in the course was also associated positively with tolerance for ambiguity. Implications of the change in ambiguity tolerance and future research directions are discussed.

An exploratory, quasi-experiment found that students' individual levels of tolerance-intolerance of ambiguity (TIA), along with a portfolio grading teaching technique, mitigated their views of public relations and their evaluations of their experiences in the public relations writing course. Students with low TIA who had portfolio grading for writing assignments were least likely to think their grades reflected the amount of work they put into the course. Students with high TIA were more likely to think public relations problems were simple to solve and they better appreciated instructors who introduced new viewpoints. In general, students who wrote assignments for a predominant “class client” instead of multiple class clients had a better course experience and felt they learned more about public relations practice, while students who wrote assignments for multiple clients thought their grades more accurately reflected their work. This study also found the AT-20 measure of tolerance of ambiguity stable and moderately reliable compared with measures used in earlier TIA studies.

This study suggests that other than avoidance-avoidance binds, researchers have largely ignored possible antecedents of interpersonal equivocation. It then attempts to demonstrate experimentally the existence of other such antecedents. Participants responded to scenarios that manipulated the level of situational formality (informal or formal) and interaction phase (initial or middle). These responses were scaled for degree of equivocation. In addition, participants completed a modified version of the MAT-50, a measure of ambiguity tolerance (AT). Moderated regression analyses indicated that participants equivocated more in informal situations and that AT interacted with formality level and interaction phase to influence equivocation. Specifically, those lower in AT equivocated more in informal situations and during the initial phase of conversations.

This investigation develops a line of research aimed at examining the influence of incongruity intolerance level on subjects' aesthetic evaluations of relatively harmonious or very conflictual images. Sixty young adults were selected from a larger population and divided into two extreme subgroups: thirty very incongruity intolerant persons and thirty very incongruity tolerant ones. Both genders were equally represented in each category. Selection was based on a specific quick visual procedure, the Building Inclination Test (BIT: Bonaiuto, Giannini, & Bonaiuto, 1987, 1989; Bonaiuto, Biasi, Giannini, & Bartoli, 1996), providing a numerical index of incongruity intolerance, which has also been proved to be positively related to behavioral rigidity and negatively to ambiguity tolerance. Twelve full-color A4 reproductions of American “graffiti” paintings (made from 1981 to 1990 by artists such as Basquiat, Brown, Cutrone, Haring, Scharf, or others) were shown one at a time on a lectern and individually submitted to each subject for evaluating aesthetic and emotional properties using eleven-point scales. Systematic rotation of scales and pictures and double-blind experimental conditions were used. The images were selected corresponding to three categories: a) figurative playful and relaxing representations, b) semiabstract, emotionally quite neutral representations, and c) figurative disquieting, very conflictual representations. An overall progressive decrease of attributed beauty was found moving from the first to the third group of images. This effect was more intense for the very incongruity intolerant observers, who highly preferred images of the first category and deeply disliked those of the third category. On the other hand, the very incongruity tolerant participants recorded on average a less positive aesthetical appreciation score with the first category and a less negative one for the third category (there was a significant interaction between image category and observer's personality, p < 0.002). The aesthetic rejection of the most disquieting and conflictual images especially by the very incongruity intolerant persons is explained by the authors as an effect of the overloading of psychic conflict in this type of persons.

We examined the relationship of tolerance of ambiguity to severe global factors and specific types of anomalous or paranormal experience. 107 undergraduate students completed MacDonald's 1970 AT-20 and the Anomalous Experiences Inventory of Kumar, Pekala, and Gallagher. Scores on the five subscales of the Anomalous Experiences Inventory correlated differently with tolerance of ambiguity. Global paranormal beliefs, abilities, experiences, and drug use were positively associated with tolerance of ambiguity, whereas a fear of paranormal experience showed a negative relation. The specific types of anomalous experiences that correlated with tolerance of ambiguity often involved internal or physiological experience, e.g., precognitive dreams, memories of reincarnation, visual apparitions, and vestibular alterations. We generally found no effects of age or sex. These results are consistent with the idea that some paranormal experiences are misattributions of internal experience to external (‘paranormal’) sources, a process analogous to mechanisms underpinning delusions and hallucinations.

The relationship of Machiavellianism and Tolerance of Ambiguity was studied in 47 African-American college and university administrators. The mean score on Machiavellianism in the youngest group (30–40 yr.) of administrators was significantly higher on Machiavellianism than the mean of the oldest group (50 yr. and older) of administrators.

A study was undertaken to determine the degree of knowledge and understanding that organization development (OD) practitioners have regarding key issues in the management of change in organizations. Other variables of interest included the preferred mode of influence or consulting style based on a transformational versus transactional framework and the degree of tolerance for ambiguous situations. Data were collected using two survey instruments, the Managing Change Questionnaire (MCQ) and the Change Agent Questionnaire (CAQ), which were mailed to 1,500 OD practitioners randomly selected from the membership rosters of three professional associations. Of the sample, 24% returned completed questionnaires. Responses were compared with previous findings from managers and executives and then analyzed using multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and multiple regression techniques to identify differences among categories of practitioners. Overall, OD practitioners were found to be quite knowledgeable about the concepts covered in the MCQ, more likely to be transformational than transactional in their consulting approach, and relatively tolerant of ambiguous situations. Formal educational background and nonacademic training experiences were identified as contributing factors in these trends, as well.

Intolerance of ambiguity is described as an impediment to effective integration. A bidirectional relationship between personal wholeness and the integrative process is outlined, and implications are drawn for the teaching of integration at the undergraduate level. These recommendations are illustrated by vignettes from the authors’ undergraduate experiences.

Using 24 bankers as volunteer subjects, this study examined the effects of tolerance for ambiguity, a personality variable, on bankers' perceptions of loan risk. Subjects who were classified as scoring high and low on tolerance for ambiguity on the basis of a median score split on MacDonald's version of Rydell and Rosen's scale were given identical financial information about a company including a footnote disclosure on an uncertainty regarding pending litigation and a “subject to” audit qualification. They were requested to estimate interest rate premiums they would recommend for a loan application. The subjects' estimates of interest rate premiums were used to operationalize loan risk. Tolerance for ambiguity affected subjects' perceptions of loan risk, with individuals low on tolerance for ambiguity requiring higher interest rate premiums than individuals high on tolerance for ambiguity.

As some percipients of UFOs may misinterpret ambiguous yet conventional aerial phenomena, this research tested the hypothesis that percipients of UFOs would score significantly lower on tolerance of ambiguity than nonpercipients. 39 percipients and 43 nonpercipients completed a measure of tolerance of ambiguity and the findings supported the hypothesis. Confounding factors such as respondents' age and sex could not reasonably account for this finding. Results complement conventional explanations for some UFO sightings.

Houran, et al.'s model for haunting phenomena predicts that fear of “paranormal phenomena” is associated with intolerance of ambiguity. Consistent with this prediction, ratings by 86 undergraduates (14 men and 72 women) showed a correlation of .33 between the scores on the Anomalous Experiences Inventory and the Rydell-Rosen Ambiguity Tolerance Scale.

In an experimental design, when a firm's reputation was manipulated and its reputation was negative or mixed, high tolerance of ambiguity will increase the decision-maker's propensity to engage in an alliance.

This study argues that a positive relationship will exist between employee satisfaction and performance-contingent intrinsic rewards and pay. A rationale is offered for expecting this relationship, and an empirical examination conducted among 649 employees of 5 Midwestern organizations. Consistent relationships were found to exist between the two sets of variables, even when the effects of actual reward level were partialled out. Results were, however, inconsistent with predictions regarding the interactions of performance-contingent rewards with (a) locus of control, (b) equity, and (c) tolerance of ambiguity. Some implications of these results are discussed.

A study was conducted to examine the effects of tolerance for ambiguity, utility of information, and threat to self-esteem on opinion-related information seeking. It was hypothesized that individuals relatively unable to tolerate ambiguity would show a general tendency to seek supportive rather than objective information and that a potential threat to self-esteem combined with low information utility would produce the greatest support-seeking behavior. These predictions were supported by the data. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for social comparison theory.

Modern managers still believe in magic. Some of the superstitions they practice include forecasting, new product market research, capital budgeting, and long-range strategic planning. Under conditions of uncertainty, there is little evidence that use of these techniques makes for more effective decision making. However, like all superstitions, they do relieve anxiety and permit us to cope with ambiguous situations. The danger is that they may build biases into our decisions, and that these biases may be less efficient than simple random behavior. Better decision making under uncertainty requires a greater tolerance for ambiguity.

Measures of structure needs, ambiguity tolerance, and dogmatism were given to a sample of urban adolescents in British Columbia. Structure need scores were significantly and negatively correlated with scores of ambiguity tolerance and significantly and positively correlated with scores of dogmatism ( rs from .32 to –.45). Dogmatism and ambiguity tolerance scores were negatively correlated, as anticipated from MacDonald's work (1970). The findings are taken as evidence of construct validity for the structure inventory.

Sociology students were administered two Thurstone-type attitude scales (Capital Punishment and Sunday Observance), each under two conditions (with and without the option of responding"?" for "Cannot Decide"), and a measure of Ambiguity Tolerance. When available, "?" was used by a slight majority of subjects on both scales. The use of "?" was not found to be related to scores on the measure of ambiguity tolerance. Correlations between "?" and "no?" administrations were significant, and significantly stronger for Capital Punishment than for Sunday Observance, but means did not differ significantly between conditions, and mean differences did not differ significantly between scales. More use of "?" appeared in the Capital Punishment scale than in the Sunday Observance scale but "?" substituted fairly evenly for "Agree" and "Disagree" in Capital Punishment, while in Sunday Observance "?" substituted mainly for "Disagree." Allowance for "?" is recommended. Observed differences are discussed in terms of assimilation-contrast theory, mainly the constructs of statement-attitude congruity, involvement with the attitude object, strength of the attitude, and development of the attitude.

In the study reported here, mean scores of the Flexibility and Tolerance for Ambiguity scales of the CPI did not increase significantly following encounter group training. It was found however, that people who sign up for encounter groups are already significantly more flexible than people who do not come to encounter groups. It can be seen then, that the significance of the treatment effect depends more on who goes (volunteers vs. non volunteers) rather than what happens (lecture vs. encounter groups.)

This study tested the hypothesis that a relationship exists between a behavioral indicator of a pro-women's liberation movement attitude (joining or not joining a women's liberation group) and various personality measures. 44 college females and 31 female members of a national women's liberation organization from a noncollege population were given the following self-report measures: attitudinal questions concerning the Women's Liberation Movement, demographic questions, the California F-Scale, the I-E scale and the Rydell-Rosen Tolerance of Ambiguity Scale. The women's liberation group members differed significantly from the college female nonmembers in that they reported: (a) more favorable attitudes toward the Women's Liberation Movement, (b) lower levels of authoritarianism, (c) feeling more control over their environment, and (d) more tolerance of ambiguity. Demographically, differences were found between women's liberation group members and college female nonmembers in education, political attitudes, and age. Statistical analysis showed these demographic factors were related, in part, to differences between the samples on the measures of Tolerance of Ambiguity, and the I-E scale but not to influence differences found on the F-scale.

Increasing the 16-item Rydell-Rosen Ambiguity Tolerance Scale to 20 items raised the reliability from .64 to .86 (split-half, corrected by Spearman-Brown). The 20-item scale (AT-20) was cross-validated on a sample of 789 undergraduate students. Retest reliability was estimated at .63 ( p < .01) for a 6-mo. interval. As predicted, AT-20 related to (a) performance in a complex task, (b) the F Scale, (c) dogmatism, (d) rigidity, and (e) church attendance. The AT-20 was not affected by social desirability response bias as measured by the Marlowe-Crowne.

Budner's Tolerance for Ambiguity scale was administered to 118 entering adult college students. Students in the Arts were significantly more tolerant of ambiguity than Business students. Six months after students enrolled in the college, faculty could discriminate among them with respect to characteristics related to tolerance for ambiguity. Students in their late 20's were less tolerant of ambiguity than younger or older students; and students in their late 30's saw their lives as relatively more stable than those in their 20's did.