Exploring the Innovative Personality Characteristics among Teachers

The aim of this study is to explore the characteristics of innovative personality among teachers in Malaysia. Samples of the research were randomly selected among secondary school teachers in three districts in Malaysia. Research instrument was self-developed by the researchers based on interviews carried out with some resource persons who are both experts and authoritative in their fields, as well as through literature review. A pilot study was carried out among 30 respondents. Cronbach’s Alpha value for the whole instrument is .952, indicating that it is reliable and suitable for actual data collection. A total of 484 sets of questionnaires were completed and gathered to form the data for this research. The data were then analysed using an advanced statistical method called Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Findings of the research concluded three constructs, namely, Leadership, Openness and Braveness. The constructs were labelled based on groups of items which were formed as a result of the PCA analysis. Meanwhile, Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was used to validate each dimension and to analyse the coherence of data based on model hypothesis. The findings of CFA indicated the goodness-of-fit values of the revised model, as follows: CMIN/DF=2.56; CFI=.935; and RMSEA=.057; with each figure above the threshold value.