Preliminary Standardization of a Social Insight Scale

T NHIS PAPER describes an attempt to construct a scale to measure social insight by means of verbal response. We begin with the working hypothesis that social insight is the to recognize in principle in a given situation: (I) the existence and operation of specific substitute responses' such as projection, rationalization, regression, sublimation, transference, etc.; and (2) the need of some specific stimulus to adjust group conflicts or tensions, such as a humorous remark to relax a dangerous intensity, a suggested compromise to attain temporary agreement, a facesaving remark to avoid embarrassment and to preserve status (to leave a loophole, a way out, etc.), or to discover the missing part required to complete a pattern of thought (the right formula), etc. The to recognize these mechanisms in principle and to apply these formulas in specific social situations like a conference between two or more persons, is not the same as ability to get along with people, often used as a definition of social intelligence. It is possible that social insight may have other aspects than the two mentioned. However, we believe that an approach may be made to an operational definition of social insight by limiting the study to these aspects. In this connection, it is evident that we may use to advantage in the measurement of verbal response the distinction made in symbolic logic between (a) the expressive function of language, and (b) the representative function of language. Certain Freudian categories are available to describe the former; and we find in semantical and in syntactical analysis useful categories to describe the latter. Significant materials for the construction of this scale may be found in case histories of individuals, in problem novels, in items used in existing scales to measure social attitudes, social adjustment and social intelligence, and in the published analyses and records of conference discussions. The method of scale construction consisted in the selection of examples to illustrate the working hypothesis by presenting problem situations that might be reacted to in several ways. A total of 45 items was finally compiled from such sources of which 25 appear in the form of a scale appended to this