Assessment of assertion.

Abstract

Behavioral assessment of assertion is an evolving technology. Although there have been many recent advances in the assessment of assertion, many unresolved issues continue to plague researcher and clinician alike. At a conceptual level, a precise theoretical rationale of assertion has yet to be articulated and accepted. Comprehensive identification of the various parameters that influence assertive responding have not been adequately evaluated, although person and situational variables are widely accepted parameters. Although a plethora of assessment instruments and strategies have emerged, more attention needs to be diverted to establishing their psychometric properties. There have been some promising starts, though there continues to be relatively little psychometric support for the adequacy of existing measures. Several self-report instruments have reasonably well-documented reliability and validity, but questions remain regarding the accuracy of self-reported assertion. In addition, a flood of new instruments continues the proliferation of measures. Researchers would be better advised to direct their efforts to establishing psychometric support for the more promising of the existing instruments than in continuing to expand energy on unproven new measures. Serious reservations have emerged regarding, in particular, the external validity of role-play assessment and cloud the confidence that can be placed on findings generated from role-play measures. The issues that have been critically identified throughout this chapter are not new. They occur time and time again in the assessment literature of the past decade. Yet the field continues to reflect inattention to cautions that have been repeatedly voiced. Measures continue to flood the literature without adequate psychometric support, and researchers rush toward outcome evaluation without attending to the questionable utility of findings generated from unproven measures. There has been a great deal of progress in a relatively short period of time. However, clearer answers are necessary before scientific credibility can be established for social skills research in general--and assertion research in particular.