Date of Award

1990

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Department

Psychology

Program/Concentration

Virginia Consortium Program in Clinical Psychology

Committee Director

Jay L. Chambers

Committee Member

Donald J. Kiesler

Committee Member

Neill Watson

Committee Member

Janice Sanchez-Hucles

Committee Member

Ronald A. Giannetti

Abstract

This study empirically assessed the relationship between needs structure and interpersonal presentation in women. Proposed indices for selective attention were assessed as to their ability to detect pathology. The relationship between interpersonal presentation and interpersonal problems were also studied. The measures used were The Picture Identification Test (Chambers, 1976), The Interpersonal Adjective Scales-Revised (Wiggins, 1985), The Inventory for Interpersonal Problems (Horowitz, 1986), and The Marlowe-Crowne Social-Desirability Scale (1964).

Subjects were assigned to one of four interpersonal categories (Friendly-Dominant, Friendly-Submissive, Hostile-Dominant, Hostile-Submissive) on the basis of their self-reported IAS-R and one category on the basis of their counselor-reported IAS-R scores. Subjects were further divided into three groups (High, Medium, Low) on the basis of the discrepancy between self- vs. counselor-reported IAS-R octant or category scores (Discrepancy Angle) and by the discrepancy between self vs. counselor IAS-R Vector or Intensity Scores (Discrepancy Vector).

Results, both conclusive and tentative, were discussed in terms of their support for the tenets of interpersonal theory. That is, interpersonal dimensions can saliently discriminate individual differences in belief systems about how we satisfy interpersonal needs (Golding, 1982; Carson, 1979). This was suggested in the trends observed in motivational structure between the four therapist-assessed groups and in the differences between interpersonal problems between these four groups.

The study also offered empirical support for Leary's (1957) operationalized definition of selection attention as the discrepancy between self and other viewpoint which corresponds to pathology. However, only the discrepancy between client and therapist vector scores (discrepancy vector) was found to detect pathology in motivational structures. These findings are consistent with Wiggins' (1985) results that extreme vector scores alone are not indicative of psychopathology. Results of this study were also discussed in terms of implications for future research.

Comments

A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculties of The College of William and Mary, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk State University, Old Dominion University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Psychology through the Virginia Consortium Program in Clinical Psychology.

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DOI

10.25777/43q7-p877

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