Construct validity of interpersonal personality measures: The interpersonal circumplex as a nomological net.

To understand a construct means to set it within an appropriate "nomological net" of lawful relations. For measures of interpersonal constructs, the interpersonal circumplex provides a nomological system of great potential for validating constructs and their measures. Three multidimensional measures (dependency, empathy, and narcissism) were subjected to an interpersonal analysis, and construct parameters and similarities were estimated by using formulas derived from the circumplex model. The results offer a distinctly interpersonal perspective on the construct validity of the respective measures. Expanded uses for the interpersonal circumplex are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cross-situational generality and the interpersonal circumplex.

Four traits of the interpersonal circumplex, dominance, submissiveness, agreeableness, and quarrelsomeness, were measured using experience sampling. Participants monitored their behavior for 20 days. For each social interaction, they recorded behaviors and information about the situation. Two sets of situations, agentic and communal, were defined on the basis of information about the relationship of the other person with the participant. Results suggested general guidelines for expectations about magnitudes of cross-situational generality. For these broad traits of the interpersonal circumplex, there was modest to low generality across agentic situations in which individuals varied in power and status (supervisor and co-worker). Cross-situational generality was moderately high across communal situations (acquaintances and friends). Behavior toward a romantic partner was distinct from behavior toward close friends and acquaintances. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A circumplex model for interpersonal personality traits.

Two independent methods, employing 12 PhD psychologists and 4 doctoral candidates as judges, were used to test the hypothesis that a circular (circumplex) model would be valid to represent the structure of interpersonal personality traits. In Method 1, 223 trait terms were selected from a larger domain of interpersonal traits on the basis of explicit criteria. Similarity ratings obtained through the use of a modified paired-comparison method empirically located each of these terms on a circle. Method 2, utilizing factor analysis of semantic differential ratings of a sample of 40 of these terms, produced an essentially empirical circular ordering. Results support the hypothesis. Implications for the issue of situationism vs interactionism, for implicit personality theory, and for personality test construction are discussed. (56 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex differences in interpersonal problems: A circumplex analysis.

The structure and magnitude of sex differences in interpersonal problems across several data sets were examined, guided by the interpersonal circumplex model and the structural summary method. Data were self-reported interpersonal difficulties, assessed with the 64-item version of the Inventory of Interpersonal Problems (IIP; L. M. Horowitz, S. E. Rosenberg, B. A. Baer, G. Ure?o, & V. S. Villase?or, 1988). In Study 1, the authors focused on sex differences at the level of specific interpersonal complaints (item level). In Study 2, the authors examined sex differences in octant scores of the IIP circumplex (scale level), in a reanalysis of archival data. The structural summary method was used to identify points of maximum difference between men and women in the interpersonal continuum and to estimate effect sizes. Results from the 2 studies converged in suggesting a dimension of difference involving problems in Hostile-Dominance vs. Friendly-Submission. The magnitude of effect size was consistent with previous reports in the personality literature. These sex differences appeared to be best explained by a one-dimensional model. Findings were generally consistent across 3 different types of samples. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The structure of interpersonal traits: Wiggins's circumplex and the five-factor model.

Using a sample of 315 adult men and women, self-reports on Wiggins's revised Interpersonal Adjective Scales were jointly factored with self-reports, peer ratings, and spouse ratings on the NEO Personality Inventory to examine the relations between the two models. Results suggest that the interpersonal circumplex is defined by the two dimensions of Extraversion and Agreeableness, and that the circular ordering of variables is not an artifact of response biases or cognitive schemata. Circumplex and dimensional models appear to complement each other in describing the structure of personality, and both may be useful to social psychologists in understanding interpersonal behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assessing the interpersonal transaction cycle: Convergence of action and reaction interpersonal circumplex measures.

Contemporary interpersonal theory uses 2 models to represent the process and content of interpersonal transactions. The interpersonal transaction cycle is a dynamic model demonstrating the interaction between the overt behaviors and the covert intrapsychic experiences of 2 interacting individuals in action-reaction event chains. The interpersonal circle is a static model codifying individual differences across various interpersonal content domains (e.g., traits, acts, problems, impacts). The present study used 150 pairs of undergraduates to demonstrate cross-observer structural convergence of 2 separate interpersonal circumplex inventories measuring the "action" and "reaction" components of the transaction cycle, providing evidence that both components of the cycle can be captured by existing circumplex measures, and allowing researchers to proceed on to more comprehensive tests of interpersonal theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Trust, distrust, and interpersonal problems: A circumplex analysis.

Examined the self-reported interpersonal problems of individuals characteristically high or low in interpersonal trust. The interpersonal circumplex served as a guiding framework for assessing and interpreting these problems. As expected, extreme distrust was generally related to a symmetrical pattern of distress, with a peak at the hostile–dominant octant. Extreme high trust, on the other hand, was not associated with gullibility or with related interpersonal difficulties, supporting arguments that trust is essentially distinct from gullibility and exploitability. The Interpersonal Trust Scale and the Mach IV scale, the study's principal measures of trust, tap varieties of trust differing in their blends of dominance and hostility, leading to different problem patterns for extreme scorers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A circumplex model for maternal behavior.

"The purpose… is to demonstrate the generality of a social interaction conceptualization of maternal behavior by ordering the intercorrelation matrices of three sets of data on maternal behavior. When ordered both with factor analysis and with Guttman's circumplex model, similar two-dimensional organizations of maternal behavior concepts were found for the three sets of data." The 2 major dimensions of maternal behavior that can be isolated from all the studies are: love vs. hostility and autonomy vs. control. 16 refs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The mitigation of interpersonal behavior.

Theorists since D. Bakan (1966) have advocated the importance of mitigation for successful adaptation within the interpersonal domain. Although mitigation has previously been conceptualized as a balance between agency and communion (interdimensional mitigation), the circumplex framework suggests that mitigation may also be conceptualized as a balance within agency and a balance within communion (intradimensional mitigation). In the two present studies, participants collected records of their interpersonal behavior and affect subsequent to their social interactions for a period of 20 days. Random coefficient procedures were then used to examine these two contrasting models of mitigation in the prediction of affect. No empirical evidence of interdimensional mitigation was found. The findings suggest that agency and communion were each mitigated intradimensionally through moderate levels of behavioral expression. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The interpersonal relationship as a vehicle for therapeutic learning.

Responds to S. L. Garfield's (see PA, Vol. 51:Issue 6) paper, underscoring the fact that the operations of psychotherapists share important processes with those of other influencers. There is more to modern psychotherapy than the relationship, but the latter typically serves as a powerful framework for therapeutic change, within which framework various techniques are potentiated. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The interpersonal behavior of children in residential treatment.

6"hyperaggressive" or "acting out" boys, in a residential treatment center (NIMH) were observed for a year and a half as regards the interactive process between them and a peer group and adults. The observations were coded on the basis of 2 categories, initially discussed by Freeman dan Leary in 1951: hostility-friendliness and passive-dominant activity. The boys did change, particularly with regard to the adults, and in the direction of showing less dominant reactions and more friendly compliance. The meaning of the results are discussed extensively. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Field dependence and interpersonal behavior.

A review of the literature indicates that people with field-dependent or field-independent cognitive styles are different in their interpersonal behavior in ways predicted by the theory of psychological differentiation. Field-dependent people make greater use of external social referents, but only when the situation is ambiguous and these referents provide information that helps to remove the ambiguity; field-independent people function with greater autonomy under such conditions. Field-dependent people are more attentive to social cues than are field-independent people. Field-dependent people have an interpersonal orientation: They show strong interest in others, prefer to be physically close to people, are emotionally open, and gravitate toward social situations. Field-independent people have an impersonal orientation: They are not very interested in others, show both physical and psychological distancing from people, and prefer nonsocial situations. Finally, field-dependent and field-independent people are different in an array of characteristics that make it likely that field-dependent people will get along better with others. Altogether, field-dependent people have a set of social skills that are less evident in field-independent people. On the other hand, field-independent people have greater skill in cognitive analysis and structuring. This pattern suggests that, with regard to level, the field-dependence–independence dimension is bipolar; each of the contrasting cognitive styles has components that are adaptive to particular situations, making the dimension value neutral. (7 p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The functional relation between depression and problematic interpersonal behavior.

75 depressed patients (mean age 33.9 yrs) were compared with 69 nondepressed high MMPI controls (mean age 25.7 yrs) and 80 normal controls (mean age 29.9 yrs) on self-reported frequency and comfort of various interpersonal events, verbal and nonverbal behavior in group and dyadic interactions, and interpersonal style. Identified as uniquely associated with depression were (a) infrequent engagement, discomfort, and low levels of obtained reinforcement in social activity and in giving and receiving positive responses; (b) discomfort in being assertive and low levels of reinforcement obtained from such behavior; (c) discomfort experienced in conjunction with negative cognitions concerning personal interactions; and (d) self-, peer-, and observer-rated deficiencies in interpersonal style group interactions. On verbal and nonverbal behavior measures, no deficits uniquely associated with depression were identified. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Orality as a factor in interpersonal yielding.

30 male undergraduates, designated high-oral on the basis of the number of oral and dependent Rorschach responses provided, were paired with 30 low-oral male undergraduates and were asked to reach a consensus regarding a neutral topic on which they had previously disagreed. In contrast to earlier studies on orality and group conformity, the low-oral Ss deferred to the judgment of the high-oral Ss in 20 of 30 dyads. A replication of this study with 20 high- and 20 low-oral male undergraduates confirmed these findings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attachment, group attraction and self-other agreement in interpersonal circumplex problems and perceptions of group members.

Graduate students (N=76) fulfilling a class requirement for interpersonal group participation completed measures of interpersonal problems and adult attachment at pretest. At the midpoint and at termination they completed measures of interpersonal problems and group attraction and provided interpersonal circumplex ratings of each fellow group member. As predicted, selected attachment insecurities were significantly correlated with interpersonal problems and group attraction. Attachment anxiety and avoidance, also as hypothesized, were associated with discrepancies in self-other perceptions. Whereas members with attachment avoidance tended to overestimate hostile and hostile-submissive problems, members with attachment anxiety were likely to overestimate interpersonal problems in the "friendly" half of the circumplex. Implications for the conceptualization of attachment-based distortions and interpersonal learning in group therapy are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Coronary-prone behavior pattern and interpersonal aggression.

An overt behavior pattern called Type A has been implicated in the etiology of coronary heart disease. Pattern A is often characterized in terms of 3 components: competitive achievement striving, time urgency, and aggressiveness. The noncoronary-prone Pattern B is defined as the relative absence of Type A characteristics. Experimentation has shown that 2 of the components of Pattern A—achievement striving and time urgency—emerge only when appropriate situations confront susceptible individuals. The present research was designed to show that the aggressiveness component is also elicited when the Type A individual is challenged by appropriate environmental circumstances. Male undergraduates were exposed to a situation that did or did not threaten their sense of competence and mastery. An opportunity was then given to administer an electric shock to a confederate involved in the threat. In Study 1 with 23 As and 25 Bs as determined by the Jenkins Activity Survey, the instigation procedure increased aggression among As but did so to a lesser degree among Bs. In Study 2 with 38 As and 43 Bs, a similar instigation difference between As and Bs occurred, along with a larger difference in a frustration-only condition. Findings are discussed in terms of Pattern A as a response style for maintaining and asserting control over the physical and social environment. Consideration is also given to possible associations between Pattern A traits and biochemical processes that characterize coronary disease. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)