Carnegie Mellon University

Negative Interactions


Title

Negative Interaction Items

Studies

PMBC, PCS3

Copyright Information

Not a copyrighted scale

Primary Reference

Krause, N. (1995). Negative interaction and satisfaction with social support among older adults. Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, 50B, 59-73.

Purpose

To assess frequency of negative interactions with significant others.

Type of Measure

Modified.  This version includes the original 4-item scale plus one adapted item (based on Schuster, Kessler, & Aseltine, 1990; “How often do they let you down when you are counting on them?”).

Description

Respondents use a 4-point rating scale to indicate the frequency with which significant others are critical or make demands of them.  All items are preceded by the question stem “In the past month…”.

Scaling

0 = Never, 1 = Once In A While, 2 = Fairly Often, 3 = Very Often

Number of Items

5

Psychometrics

In combined PMBC & PCS3 samples (n = 406)

Internal consistency, Cronbach’s α = 0.86

Scoring/Variables

Negative Interactions Total Score: Sum Items 1-5

Additional References

Schuster, T. L., Kessler, R. C., Aseltine, R. H., Jr. (1990).  Supportive interactions, negative interactions, and depressed moodAmerican Journal of Community Psychology, 18, 423-438.