Texas Social Behavior Inventory

Abstract

The Texas Social Behavior Inventory (TSBI) is a widely used objective psychometric instrument designed to measure an individual’s level of self-esteem and perceived social competence. Originally developed as a 32-item long form, Helmreich and Stapp (1974) subsequently introduced two refined 16-item short forms (Form A and Form B). These shorter versions were created following extensive factor and item analyses across a large sample population, ensuring that they maintained the strong psychometric properties of the original scale while improving administrative efficiency.

Keywords

Self-esteem, Social competence, TSBI, Personality assessment, Short forms, Psychometrics, Social behavior, Confidence, Dominance

Authors

Helmreich, R., Stapp, J.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the Texas Social Behavior Inventory is to provide a concise and reliable assessment of self-perceived social competence and overall self-esteem. The scale focuses on objective, behavioral manifestations of an individual’s confidence and effectiveness in social interactions and group settings.

The development of the two 16-item short forms (Form A and Form B) was driven by the need for equivalent, yet briefer, measures suitable for large-scale research. The creators ensured that these short forms met stringent criteria, including equivalence of means, equivalence of part-whole correlations, equivalence of score distributions, and maintaining parallel factor structures when compared to the original 32-item inventory.

Construct

The core psychological construct measured by the TSBI is general self-esteem, which the authors often frame as social competence—the belief in one’s ability to handle social situations effectively. While initial analysis suggested a unidimensional factor, deeper structural analysis revealed that the construct encompasses several interrelated components related to social efficacy and interpersonal behavior.

The factors identified through oblique rotation—confidence, dominance, social competence, and social withdrawal (or relations to authority figures, depending on gender)—highlight the multifaceted nature of how self-esteem manifests in social settings, ranging from assertive behavior (dominance) to feelings of comfort in interaction (confidence).

Validity

The validity of the short forms was rigorously established through psychometric testing. Factor analysis and part-whole correlations confirmed that Forms A and B were structurally similar and equivalent in measuring the intended construct, demonstrating strong internal consistency and construct validity.

Furthermore, criterion validity was explored by correlating the TSBI with the Personal Attributes Questionnaire (PAQ), a measure of sex-role stereotypes and masculinity-femininity. High correlations were reported between the TSBI and the masculinity subscale (0.81 for men; 0.83 for women). This suggests that high self-esteem, as measured by the TSBI, is strongly associated with traditional concepts of agency and assertiveness. Moderate correlations were also found with the femininity subscale (0.42 for men; 0.44 for women).

Reliability

The TSBI exhibits high levels of internal consistency across both the original and short forms, as demonstrated by the reported Alpha coefficients. The reliability estimates were consistently strong across gender groups, confirming the scale’s dependability as a measure of social competence.

• Original 32-Item TSBI: Alpha coefficients ranged from 0.92 (men) to 0.93 (women).
• 16-Item Short Form A: Alpha coefficients ranged from 0.85 (men) to 0.86 (women).
• 16-Item Short Form B: Alpha coefficients ranged from 0.85 (men) to 0.88 (women).

The high correlation between the short forms (A and B) and the original 32-item scale further confirms their reliability and equivalence, validating their use as efficient alternatives for research purposes.

Factor Analysis

The structural composition of the TSBI was investigated using various methods of factor analysis during its development. Initially, a Principal axis rotation suggested a single, dominant factor, supporting the interpretation of the scale as primarily measuring a general dimension of self-esteem or social competence.

However, when an oblique rotation was applied, a clearer, four-factor structure emerged, suggesting distinct, yet correlated, components of social behavior. These factors included: Confidence, Dominance, Social Competence, and a final factor which differed slightly by gender—Social Withdrawal (for males) or Relations to Authority Figures (for females).

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report inventory

Format: 5-point Likert-type scale, ranging from “Not at all characteristic of me” to “Very much characteristic of me.”

Language Available: English (Original)

Population Group: General population (Validated extensively on university students)

Age Group: Adolescents and Adults

Population Details: Initial validation utilized data collected from over 8,000 students at the University of Texas at Austin.

Test Methodology: Psychometric assessment of personality traits related to social interaction and self-perception.

Keywords

Confidence, Dominance, Social withdrawal, Psychometric assessment, University of Texas, Likert scale, Short-form scale

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: N/A

Affiliation Email addresses: N/A

Correspondence Address: N/A

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Test Year: 1974 (Publication of short forms)

Permissions & Fee: Information on current commercial licensing fees is not specified in the original source, but the scale is widely available for academic research.

Reference’s

Blanchard, B. D. (2001). Extremes of narcissism and self-esteem and the differential experience and expression of anger and use of conflict tactics in male batterers. PhD dissertation, University of New Mexico.

Helmreich, R., and Stapp, J. (1974). Short forms of the Texas Social Behavior Inventory (TSBI), an objective measure of self-esteem. Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society 4:473–75.

Helmreich, R., et al. (1974). The Texas Social Behavior Inventory (TSBI): An objective measure of self-esteem or social competence. Journal Supplement Abstract Service. Catalog of Selected Documents in Psychology 4:79.

Spence, J. T., et al. (1974). The Personal Attributes Questionnaire: A measure of sex-role stereotypes and masculinity-femininity. Journal Supplement Abstract Service. Catalog of Selected Documents in Psychology 4:43.

Spence, J. T., et al. (1975). Ratings of self and peers on sex-role attributes and their relations to self-esteem and conceptions of masculinity and femininity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 32:29–39.

Items of the Texas Social Behavior Inventory

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

Texas Social Behavior Inventory (Form A)

1. I am not likely to speak to people until they speak to me.
2. I would describe myself as self-confident.
3. I feel confident of my appearance.
4. I am a good mixer.
5. When in a group of people, I have trouble thinking of the right things to say.
6. When in a group of people, I usually do what the others want rather than make suggestions.
7. When I am in disagreement with other people, my opinion usually prevails.
8. I would describe myself as one who attempts to master situations.
9. Other people look up to me.
10. I enjoy social gatherings just to be with people.
11. I make a point of looking other people in the eye.
12. I cannot seem to get others to notice me.
13. I would rather not have very much responsibility for other people.
14. I feel comfortable being approached by someone in a position of authority.
15. I would describe myself as indecisive.
16. I have no doubts about my social competence.

Scoring: The response options are: (a) Not at all characteristic of me; (b) Not Very; (c) Slightly; (d) Fairly; (e) Very much characteristic of me. Responses are scored from 0 to 4, where the lower self-esteem response receives a score of 0, while the higher self-esteem response receives a score of 4. The following items on Form A receive a score of 0 for the designated response: (1e, 2a, 3a, 4a, 5e, 6e, 7a, 8a, 9a, 10a, 11a, 12e, 13e, 14a, 15e, 16a). The following items on Form B receive a score of 0 for the designated response: (1e, 2e, 3a, 4a, 5a, 6a, 7a, 8a, 9a, 10a, 11a, 12e, 13e, 14a, 15a, 16a).