Construal of complex assertion situations: A multidimensional analysis.

To determine how people cognitively represent complex social situations, 84 undergraduates and 8 clients (aged 18–23 yrs) in assertion training scaled 48 positive and 32 negative assertion vignettes according to similarity of difficulty. Ss also rated the vignettes on 21 bipolar scales and responded to an assertion questionnaire. The vignettes were constructed from a preliminary study in which the major components of assertion situations (i.e., target, context, and type of behavior) were explored. The scaled vignettes were then analyzed using INDSCAL (a multidimensional scaling program) and PROFIT (a program that fits the bipolar scales into the dimensionalized space). Analysis of the vignettes indicated that (a) each of the derived dimensions could be described according to the major components that contributed to the dimension and (b) the importance of the dimensions varied as a function of assertion level. Reformulation of assertion in terms of information processing is discussed. (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)