Speculation on the structure of interpersonal intentions

A model is presented in which bipolar dimensions are hypothesized to operate as a simultaneous bundle of distinctive features in mediating the meanings of interpersonal behavioral events. A set of a priori semantic features is developed through rational analysis of the language of interpersonal behavior. A relatively small number of such distinctive features is shown to be capable of differentiating among a relatively large number of interpersonal verbs (IPVs). An initial set of six features, proposed on intuitive grounds, was tested for discriminating power over a sample of 210 representative IPVs, drawn from index categories of Roget's Thesaurus. On the basis of coding distributions and correlations with other features, two of these original features were discarded. Inspection of the sets of quasi- synonyms created by the surviving four features suggested the operation of six additional features, three of them affective in nature. The simultaneous application of these 10 semantic features provides intuitively satisfying differentiation among the sample of interpersonal verbs. It is suggested that, if the dimensional structure of interpersonal intentions (that is, their semantic features) can be shown to be culturally invariant, then manifest differences in behavioral prescription and expression can be economically compared across cultures.