DIMENSIONS OF CLOSE RELATIONSHIPS - DEVEL OPMENT OF GLOBAL SCALES TO ASSESS RELATIONSHIP ATTITUDES

On the basis of theories of close relationships, 10-item scales are de veloped which refer to a broad spectrum of attitudes and experiences i n close relationships: love styles, attachment styles, investment and communal orientation, common interest, interpersonal conflict, and clo seness. In the first study 130 couples in the age range of 20 to 50 ye ars participated. In the second study 131 psychology students particip ated who indicated that they currently had a romantic partner. A facto r analysis at the scale level revealed five substantial factors which could be described as conflict, love, altruism, investment, and securi ty. On the basis of a procedure of item selection which included facto r and item analyses, we selected 10 items representing each of the fiv e dimensions. Internal consistency and retest reliability, which was d etermined over a time interval of 12 months, were satisfactory. Additi onal results concerning the prediction of relationship happiness and c ommitment show that each of the five global scales contributes to the prediction of relationship quality. These results point to the validit y of the global scales.