Affective Dependent Measures: the Use of a Response Integrity Scale To Enhance the Validity of Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Research

This paper discusses some unique problems associated with affective dependent measures in comparative studies. The importance of situational factors is presented, together with methods for maximizing the validity of affective measures in research and evaluation studies (where their validity can ordinarily be much greater than when they are used for clinical and personnel purposes). The use of a brief response integrity (RI) scale (in the context of the variables being assessed) is recommended to assess differential magnitude of the social desirability response style when groups are to be compared. The meaning and validity of group differences on affective criteria can be better understood when viewed in relation to the pattern of group means on the RI scale. Data from a research study are given which illustrate the usefulness of the ancillary RI scale.