Differentiation of Self in Work Relationships Scale (DS-WRS)

Abstract

The Differentiation of Self in Work Relationships Scale (DS-WRS) is a specialized 18-item psychological instrument developed by Çiğdem Yavuz Güler in 2022. It is designed to measure an individual’s level of Differentiation of Self (DOS) as it specifically manifests within professional and organizational contexts. The scale is theoretically grounded in the principles of the Bowen Family Systems Theory (Bowen, 1976, 1978).

The development involved an initial 20-item pool, refined through rigorous statistical methods, including Factor Analysis, resulting in the final 18-item structure across four key dimensions. Subsequent validation studies confirmed the scale’s reliability and validity, including assessments of measurement invariance across gender and different work positions among employed adults.

Keywords

Differentiation of Self, Bowen Family Systems Theory, Work Relationships, Fusion with Others, Emotional Reactivity, Emotional Cutoff, I Position, Burnout, Job Satisfaction, Organizational Measures.

Authors

Güler, Çiğdem Yavuz

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Purpose

The primary purpose of the DS-WRS is to offer a specialized and context-specific measure of Differentiation of Self (DOS). Unlike scales focusing solely on family or general relationships, the DS-WRS specifically targets how an individual manages emotional and intellectual functioning when interacting with colleagues, supervisors, and the workplace environment.

By assessing DOS in a professional setting, the scale provides valuable data for research in occupational health psychology, organizational behavior, and counseling, allowing for the examination of how personal maturity affects professional resilience and interpersonal interaction patterns.

Construct

The DS-WRS measures the psychological construct of Differentiation of Self, derived from Murray Bowen’s theory. This construct describes the degree to which an individual can distinguish between their emotional and intellectual functioning, and maintain a sense of self separate from others, even under stress. In the context of work, high differentiation implies the ability to maintain autonomy and clear boundaries without resorting to emotional reactivity or withdrawal.

The 18 items of the scale are structured around four core dimensions of DOS adapted for the workplace:

• Fusion with Others (FO): Measures the tendency to merge emotionally or intellectually with colleagues, often resulting in dependency or difficulty holding independent opinions.
• Emotional Reactivity (ER): Measures the tendency to respond impulsively or intensely to workplace stress, criticism, or conflict.
• Emotional Cutoff (EC): Measures the tendency to manage anxiety by distancing oneself or withdrawing from difficult work relationships.
• I Position: Measures the capacity to clearly state one’s beliefs, values, and positions in the workplace without criticizing others or becoming defensive. This subscale reflects the highest level of differentiated functioning.

Validity

The scale demonstrates strong evidence of structural and criterion validity, supporting its use in measuring DOS within work relationships.

Construct Validity: The structural integrity of the DS-WRS is confirmed by the results of the Factor Analysis, which successfully identified the hypothesized four-factor structure essential to the theoretical construct of differentiation.

Convergent Validity: The DS-WRS exhibits meaningful correlations with established constructs in occupational psychology, indicating strong convergent validity. Key findings include:

• A significant negative association was found between the DS-WRS subdimensions—Emotional Reactivity (r = − .420, p < .01), Fusion with others (r = − .201, p < .01), and the I Position (r = − .150, p < .01)—and the construct of burnout. The total DS-WRS score also showed a negative relationship (r = − .406, p < .01).
• The I Position subdimension (r = .160, p < .01) and the total DS-WRS score (r = .117, p < .05) demonstrated a positive association with job satisfaction.
• Positive correlations were observed between all DS-WRS subdimensions (EC, ER, FO, I Position) and the related DSI-SF scale, with the total scores showing a substantial positive relationship (r = .635, p < .01), further confirming convergent validity with measures of general differentiation.

Reliability

The reliability of the DS-WRS was assessed using both internal consistency measures and test-retest methodology, demonstrating acceptable to good consistency for a psychological scale.

Internal Consistency: The overall Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for the total DS-WRS score was reported as 0.61. The internal consistency for the individual subscales ranged from 0.60 to 0.75.

Test-Retest Reliability: Stability over time was confirmed via test-retest correlations calculated over a two-week interval. These values ranged from 0.75 to 0.84, which were statistically significant and indicate strong temporal stability for the scale’s measurement properties.

Factor Analysis

The underlying structure of the DS-WRS was thoroughly investigated using both Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis techniques.

Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis: Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) established a clear four-factor structure, consistent with the theoretical dimensions of differentiation. This structure accounted for 50.35% of the total variance, with an eigenvalue of 3.52. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) provided support for the model fit, yielding indices that suggest a sufficient fit to the data: χ² = 303.00, Sd = 129, p < .001, CFI = 0.92, IFI = 0.92, GFI = 0.91, and RMSEA = 0.063 (with a 90% Confidence Interval of 0.053–0.072).

Measurement Invariance: Assessment of measurement invariance across critical demographic variables, specifically gender and work position, indicated variance across these groups (χ²/Df = 2.35, RMSEA = 0.063), suggesting that the construct may operate slightly differently or require careful interpretation across these subgroups.

Instrument

Test Type: Original

Format: Items are rated using a 6-point Likert scale, ranging from “1 = Does not reflect me at all” to “6 = Highly reflects me.”

Language Available: English; Turkish

Population Group: Human (Male; Female)

Age Group: Adulthood (18 years and older); Young Adulthood (18-29 years)

Population Details: The initial validation sample consisted of employed adults located in Turkey.

Test Methodology: The comprehensive methodology included Test Validity, Construct Validity, Convergent Validity, Test Reliability, Internal Consistency, Test-Retest Reliability, Factor Analysis, Confirmatory Factor Analysis, Exploratory Factor Analysis, and Measurement Invariance.

Keywords

Emotional Responses, Employee Attitudes, Employee Interaction, Family Systems Theory, Intimacy, Self-Concept, Interpersonal Relationships, Organizational and Occupational Measures.

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Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1607-0789

Affiliation Email addresses: [email protected]

Correspondence Address: Güler, Çiğdem Yavuz: Fatih Sultan Mehmet Vakıf University, Department of Psychological Counseling and Guidance, Faculty of Education, Valide‑i Atik, Kartalbaba St. No: 36/1 Uskudar, Istanbul, Turkey, [email protected]

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Permissions: Contact Corresponding Author

Fee: No

Test Year: 2023

Reference’s

Yavuz Güler, Ç. (2023). The Differentiation of Self in Work Relationships Scale (DS‑WRS): Development and initial validation. Contemporary Family Therapy: An International Journal, 45(1), 36–48. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10591-022-09643-8

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Items of the Differentiation of Self in Work Relationships Scale (DS-WRS)

The Differentiation of Self in Work Relationships Scale (DS-WRS) comprises 18 items distributed across four factors or subscales:

• Fusion with others (FO)

• Emotional Reactivity (ER)

• Emotional Cutoff (EC)

• I Position

No data is Available regarding the specific content of the 18 items.