Psychosocial characteristics of participants in the Quebec longitudinal study on aging

Our objective in this study was to identify the psychosocial characteristics of participants who obtained a high social desirability score on the measures in the Quebec Longitudinal Study on Aging (QUELSA). Two groups were drawn from the 1997 QUELSA sample (n = 780) according to scores obtained on a social desirability scale (high or low). These two groups were compared on scores obtained on the main psychosocial variables of the QUELSA. The results show that individuals who give desirable responses tend to obtain higher scores on instruments measuring “self-image” features. Consequences of this bias are discussed.