The structure of assertiveness: A confirmatory study

Study aims were to establish the dimensional structure of assertiveness as measured by the Personal Relations Inventory² (PRI) and to estimate the reliability and stability of the measures derived. The item responses of a sample of 215 high school and college men and women were intercorrelated and analyzed by the method of principal components. The analysis confirmed the four hypothesized dimensions of Social Assertiveness, Defense of Rights, Independence, and Directiveness. In a second sample of 75, the PRI was compared with the Adult Self-Expression Scale (ASES). Since the total scores of the two inventories correlated 0.72 some evidence of concurrent validity has been shown.