Social Competence: An Interpersonal Analysis and Reformulation

Summary: Social competence is an alluring, yet elusive, construct. The purpose of this article is to examine social competence in relation to a model of interpersonal behavior, the interpersonal circumplex. The circumplex can serve as descriptive taxonomy for social competence constructs; it also gives rise to a set of analytic methods useful for validating particular measures and analyzing item characteristics. The value of the approach was demonstrated in studies done on an array of self-report measures. The results suggested that most social competency measures can be reconceptualized as some blend of Dominance, Extraversion, and Friendliness. When linked to interpersonal theory, the circumplex model provides an integrative framework for understanding social competence, and a springboard for generating and testing relevant hypotheses.