Personality Test: The Sensitivity to Rejection Scale
Software for the Sensitivity to Rejection Scale
Software is available to administer, score, and interpret this scale. The software runs on IBM-compatible machines and
provides (a) total score, equivalent percentile score, equivalent z-score, and interpretation of scores for each person tested and (b) a database of scores for all individuals tested. The software is extremely
easy to use and is password protected so that the Administrator can control access to the database
of results. In this way, individuals being tested cannot have access to the results, unless the
Administrator chooses to report such results to them.
Sensitivity to Rejection Defined
Sensitivity to rejection in social relationships is almost synonymous
with general social submissiveness. Sensitive individuals generally feel
that they lack control or influence in their social interactions;
instead, they feel controlled and influenced by others. Some
manifestations of this are reluctance to express opinions, avoidance of
arguments or critical discussions, reluctance to make requests or to
impose on others, easily being hurt by negative feedback from others and
fearing such feedback, and reliance on familiar others and situations so
as to avoid rejection.
Scale Description
The Sensitivity to Rejection currently in use (Mehrabian, 1994b) was
developed by Mehrabian (1976). It contains 24 items and subjects
report the degree of their agreement or disagreement with each item
using a 9-point agreement-disagreement scale.
- Administration: does not require tester to be present; can be
used with individuals or groups
- Test format: questionnaire, 24 items
- Appropriate population: English fluency, ages 15 and older
- Time required for administration: approximately 10 minutes
- Scoring: hand scored; yields a single total-scale score
- Manual: contains complete scale, scoring directions, norms
- Background literature: includes a review article on reliability
and validity by Mehrabian (1994a)
Validity Data:
Reliability and validity data for the Sensitivity to Rejection Scale (MSR) were reported by Mehrabian (1994a).
Additional construct validity for the Sensitivity to Rejection Scale was supplied by Mehrabian (1997) from a theoretical analysis of traits that are approximately related to affiliation and sociability (i.e., sensitivity to rejection, empathy, dependency, conformity, popularity, loneliness, and shyness).
Experimental work, reviewed by Mehrabian (1976, 1994a), can be summarized as follows: Persons with higher Sensitivity to Rejection Scale scores, compared with those with lower scores, are more likely to:
- be generally more submissive rather than dominant,
- be less assertive,
- be rated as less competent, less confident, less influential, and
less leader-like by others in group situations,
- do less well in competition, as in sports,
- avoid self-disclosures and feel less socially able and skillful
in social interactions,
- assume posturally tense positions (i.e., submissive postures), and
feel more anxious and less self-confident in dealing with others in
stressful situations,
- be less extroverted, more neurotic, more anxious, more
harm-avoiding, less change seeking, less arousal seeking, less
achieving, less autonomous, less enduring, less exhibitionistic, and
less sensuous on various personality scales.
References:
Mehrabian, A. (1976). Questionnaire measures of affiliative tendency
and sensitivity to rejection. Psychological Reports,38,
199-209.
Mehrabian, A. (1994a). Evidence bearing on the Affiliative Tendency
(MAFF) and Sensitivity to Rejection (MSR) scales. Current
Psychology,13,97-116.
Mehrabian, A. (1994b). Manual for the Sensitivity to Rejection Scale
(MSR). (Available from Albert Mehrabian, 1130 Alta Mesa Road, Monterey,
CA, USA 93940).
Mehrabian, A. (1997). Analysis of affiliation-related traits in terms
of the PAD Temperament Model. Journal of Psychology,131,101-117.