To investigate personality traits and psychiatric symptoms, we administered the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R Personality Questionnaire (SCID-II Screen), the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS), and the 30-item Version of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-30) to 781 male computer engineers and 214 male clerical workers in a computer manufacturing factory. Subjects, aged from 20 to 49 years, were divided into university and high school graduates. Among the university graduates, scores for schizotypal and avoidant personality traits were significantly higher in computer engineers than in clerical workers (the effect of age was controlled by analysis of covariance). No significant correlation between personality traits and years employed was found in the university-graduate computer engineers. In high school graduates, scores for borderline and dependent personality traits were significantly lower in computer engineers than in clerical workers (the effect of age was controlled by analysis of covariance). Because of the lack of significant association of personality traits and symptoms with duration of employment in the university-educated computer engineers, the greater prevalence of schizotypal and avoidant personality traits might be related to their process of self-selection of job rather than to computer manufacturing work. In summary, these data suggest that computer engineering work does not cause abnormal personality traits or psychiatric symptoms. (C) 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.