Development and validation of the PPROQ3-SF: A revised and shorter version of the theory-informed Person's Positive Relating to Others Questionnaire

Manuscript Supplementary Material
Published: Apr 23, 2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.12681/psy_hps.39788
Keywords:
Person's Positive Relating to Others Questionnaire, interpersonal relationships, psychometric properties, validity, reliability, factor analysis
Argyroula Kalaitzaki
Hellenic Mediterranean University
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6416-9740
Emmanouil Benioudakis
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5874-254X
Joannis Nestoros
University of Crete
https://orcid.org/0009-0000-8926-0412
Abstract

Relating Theory conceptualizes and assesses relating (both negative and positive) around a two-dimensional model with four main and four intermediate positions/dimensions, graphically represented as an octagon (clockwise: upper neutral, upper close, neutral close, lower close, lower neutral, lower distant, neutral distant, and upper distant). Drawing from this theory and considering the psychometric limitations of the formerly developed, theoretically informed questionnaire (i.e., the Person's Positive Relating to Others Questionnaire; PPROQ), this study aimed to refine its items profoundly and improve its psychometric properties. Undergoing a three-step item construction, refinement, shortening, and three respective validation studies of the sequential versions (i.e., PPROQ2, PPROQ3, and PPROQ3-SF, respectively), the revised and shorter 24-item PPROQ3-SF was eventually developed. The eight-factor structure and the internal consistency of the eight scales were significantly improved across the successive versions. Test-retest reliability was also confirmed for the PPROQ3-SF. High correlations (inter-item, corrected item-total, between pairs of neighboring scales) established convergent validity, whereas low inter-scale correlations between pairs of opposite octant scales, Heterotrait-monotrait ratio of correlation, and differences across gender and chronic disease status, established discriminant validity. The final 24-item shortened version demonstrated good psychometric properties, reflecting the pre-defined eight-factor structure of the interpersonal octagon, and exhibited satisfactory reliabilities, and convergent, and discriminant validity. Being psychometrically robust and conforming well to its grounding octagonal structure, the PROQ3-SF is recommended for use in both research and clinical practice.

Article Details
  • Section
  • RESEARCH PAPERS
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

The journal PSYCHOLOGY adopts a Platinum open-access policy. Submission, processing or publication costs are waived by the Hellenic Psychological Society. Papers published in the journal PSYCHOLOGY are licensed under a 'Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International' licence. The authors reserve the copyright of their work and grant the journal the right of its first publication. Third-party licensees are allowed to use the published paper immediately after publication as they wish, provided they retain the defined by the license copyright formalities, regarding the reference to its author(s) and its initial publication in the journal PSYCHOLOGY. Moreover, any adjusted work should be shared under the same reuse rights, so with the same CC license.

Downloads
Download data is not yet available.
References
Birtchnell, J. (1993/1996). How humans relate: A new interpersonal theory. Hardback, Praeger; paperback, Psychology Press.
Birtchnell, J. (1994). The interpersonal octagon: An alternative to the interpersonal circle. Human Relations, 47(5), 511–529. https://doi.org/10.1177/001872679404700503
Birtchnell, J. (2013). Relating in Psychotherapy: The Application of a New Theory. Routledge.
Birtchnell, J. (2016a). What Is Relating Theory? In J. Birtchnell, M. Newberry, & A. E. Kalaitzaki (Eds.), Relating Theory: Clinical and Forensic Applications (pp. 3-14). Palgrave Macmillan.
Birtchnell, J. (2016b). Comparing Birtchnell’s Interpersonal Octagon with Leary’s Interpersonal Circle. In J. Birtchnell, M. Newberry, & A. E. Kalaitzaki (Eds.), Relating Theory: Clinical and Forensic Applications (pp. 15-24). Palgrave Macmillan.
Birtchnell, J., Falkowski, J., & Steffert, B. (1992). The negative relating of depressed patients: A new approach. Journal of Affective Disorders, 24, 165–176. https://doi.org/10.1016/0165-0327(92)90064-d
Birtchnell, J., Hammond, S., Horn, E., De Jong, C., & Kalaitzaki, A. (2013). A cross-national comparison of a shorter version of the Person's Relating to Others Questionnaire. Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy, 20(1), 36-48. https://doi.org/10.1002/cpp.789
Butler, J., & Kern, M. L. (2016). The PERMA-Profiler: A brief multidimensional measure of flourishing. International Journal of Wellbeing, 6(3), 1-48. https://doi.org/10.5502/ijw.v6i3.526
Edwards, P. J., Roberts, I., Clarke, M. J., Diguiseppi, C., Wentz, R., Kwan, I., Cooper, R., Felix, L. M., & Pratap, S. (2009). Methods to increase response to postal and electronic questionnaires. The Cochrane database of systematic reviews, 2009(3), MR000008. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.MR000008.pub4
Gächter, S., Starmer, C., & Tufano, F. (2015). Measuring the Closeness of Relationships: A Comprehensive Evaluation of the 'Inclusion of the Other in the Self' Scale. PloS one, 10(6), Article e0129478. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0129478
Gómez-López, M., Viejo, C., & Ortega-Ruiz, R. (2019). Well-Being and Romantic Relationships: A Systematic Review in Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(13), 2415. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16132415
Hammond, S. (2016). The Psychometric Viability of the Person’s Relating to Others Questionnaire (PROQ). In: Birtchnell, J., Newberry, M., Kalaitzaki, A. (eds) Relating Theory – Clinical and Forensic Applications (pp. 37–51). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-50459-3_4
Henseler, J., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2015). A new criterion for assessing discriminant validity in variance-based structural equation modeling. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 43(1), 115–135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-014-0403-8
Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 6(1), 1–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118
Hughes, M. E., Waite, L. J., Hawkley, L. C., & Cacioppo, J. T. (2004). A short scale for measuring loneliness in large surveys: Results from two population-based studies. Research on Aging, 26, 655–672. https://doi.org/10.1177/0164027504268574
Jankowski, P. J., Sandage, S. J., Bell, C. A., Davis, D. E., Porter, E., Jessen, M., Motzny, C. L., Ross, K.V., & Owen, J. (2020). Virtue, flourishing, and positive psychology in psychotherapy: An overview and research prospectus. Psychotherapy, 57(3), 291–309. https://doi.org/10.1037/pst0000285
Kalaitzaki, A.E., & Birtchnell, J. (2014). The impact of early parenting bonding on young adults’ Internet addiction, through the mediation effects of negative relating to others and sadness. Addictive Behaviors, 39(3), 733–736. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2013.12.002
Kalaitzaki, A. E. & Birtchnell, J. (2016). The Person’s Relating to Others Questionnaire (PROQ). In J. Birtchnell, M. Newberry, & A. E.
Kalaitzaki (Eds.), Relating Theory: Clinical and Forensic Applications (pp. 27-36). Palgrave Macmillan.
Kalaitzaki, A. E., Birtchnell, J., & Nestoros, J. N. (2009). Interrelating within the families of young psychotherapy outpatients. Clinical psychology & psychotherapy, 16(3), 199–215. https://doi.org/10.1002/cpp.613
Kalaitzaki, A. E. & Hammond, S. (2016). The Person’s Positive Relating to Other’s Questionnaire: a new relating instrument grounded on Positive Psychology. In J. Birtchnell, M. Newberry, & A. E. Kalaitzaki (Eds.), Relating Theory: Clinical and Forensic Applications (pp. 137-149). Palgrave Macmillan.
Kalaitzaki, A. E. & Nestoros, J. N. (2003). The Greek version of the Revised Person’s Relating to Others Questionnaire (PROQ2): Psychometric properties and factor structure. Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research, and Practice, 76, 301-314. https://doi.org/10.1348/147608303322362514
Kalaitzaki, A. E., Birtchnell, J., & Hammond, S. (2016). Measuring change in relating and interrelating during the early stages of psychotherapy: Comparison with a non-patients’ sample. Psychotherapy Research, 30, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1080/10503307.2014.939118
Kalaitzaki, A. E., Birtchnell, J., Hammond, S., & De Jong, C. (2015). The Shortened Person's Relating to Others Questionnaire (PROQ3): Comparison of the internet-administered format with the standard-written one across four national samples. Psychological Assessment, 27(2), 513-523. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0000057
Kalaitzaki, A. E., Birtchnell, J., & Kritsotakis, E. (2010). The associations between negative relating and aggression in the dating relationships of students from Greece. Partner Abuse: New Directions in Research, Intervention, and Policy, 1(4), 420-442. https://doi.org/10.1891/1946-6560.1.4.420
Kalaitzaki, A. E., Pattakou-Parasyri, V., & Foukaki, M.-E. (2020). Depression, negative relating with the oldest child and the mediating role of resilience in community elders’ psychological well-being: A pilot study in Greece. Psychogeriatrics, 20(1), 70-78. https://doi.org/10.1111/psyg.12461
Kawachi, I. & Berkman, L. F. (2001). Social ties and mental health. Journal of Urban Health, 78, 458-467. https://doi.org/10.1093/jurban/78.3.458
Koo, T. K., & Li, M. Y. (2016). A Guideline of Selecting and Reporting Intraclass Correlation Coefficients for Reliability Research. Journal of Chiropractic Medicine, 15(2), 155–163. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcm.2016.02.012
Leary, T. (1957). Interpersonal diagnosis of personality. Ronald Press.
Lynn, M.R. (1986). Determination and quantification of content validity. Nursing Research, 35(6), 382–385.
https://doi.org/10.1097/00006199-198611000-00017
Lozano-Hernández, C. M., Cladellas, Y. P., Gil Conesa, M., Garin, O., Forés, M. F., & Del Cura-González, I. (2023). Functional social support: A systematic review and standardized comparison of different versions of the DUFSS questionnaire using the EMPRO tool. PloS one, 18(9), Article e0291635. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0291635
Mertika, A., Mitskidou, P., & Stalikas, A. (2020). “Positive Relationships” and their impact on wellbeing: A review of current literature. Psychology: the Journal of the Hellenic Psychological Society, 25(1), 115-127. https://doi.org/10.12681/psy_hps.25340
Mitskidou, P., Mertika, A., Pezirkianidis, C., & Stalikas, A. (2021). Positive Relationships Questionnaire (PRQ): A Pilot Study. Psychology, 12, 1039-1057. https://doi.org/10.4236/psych.2021.127062
Pedhazur, E. J., & Schmelkin, L. P. (1991). Measurement, Design, and Analysis: An Integrated Approach. Student ed., Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.
Pezirkianidis, C., Galanaki, E., Raftopoulou, G., Moraitou, D., & Stalikas, A. (2023). Adult friendship and wellbeing: A systematic review with practical implications. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1059057. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1059057
Ryff, C. D., & Keyes, C. L. M. (1995). The structure of psychological well-being revisited. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 69(4), 719. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.69.4.719
Seligman, M. (2018). PERMA and the building blocks of well-being. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 13(4), 333–335. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2018.1437466
Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourish: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. Free Press.
Sharma H. (2022). How short or long should be a questionnaire for any research? Researchers dilemma in deciding the appropriate questionnaire length. Saudi Journal of Anaesthesia, 16(1), 65–68. https://doi.org/10.4103/sja.sja_163_21
Tay, L., & Jebb, A. (2017). Scale Development. In S. Rogelberg (Ed), The SAGE Encyclopedia of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 2nd edition. Sage.
Thompson, B. (2004). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis: Understanding concepts and applications. American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/10694-000
Waldinger, R., & Schulz, M.S. (2023). The Good Life: Lessons from the World’s Longest Scientific Study of Happiness. Simon and Schuster. Weir, J. P. (2005). Quantifying test-retest reliability using the intraclass correlation coefficient and the SEM. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 19(1), 231–240. https://doi.org/10.1519/15184.1

Similar Articles

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.

Most read articles by the same author(s)