Development of Anticipated Behavior Scale for Imaginary Infidelity

Abstract

The aim of this study was to develop Anticipated Behavior Scale for Imaginary Infidelity (ABSII) to assess behaviors predicted in the romantic conflict. Participants were 112 undergraduates who were currently in romantic relationships. They were requested to imagine that they witnessed the situation where their partner was dating a stranger for responding to the ABSII in this study. Five factors of ABSII named “aggression-oriented,” “silence-oriented,” “breakup-oriented,” “conversation-oriented,” and “rival-oriented” were demonstrated as results of exploratory/confirmatory factor analyses. The scales of cognitive appraisal for stressor, stress responses, jealousy, and investment model were employed to check the construct validity of ABSII. The results showed that the importance of conflict related positively with “aggression-oriented” and “conversation-oriented,” and negatively with “silence-oriented,” and the stress responses related positively with “aggression-oriented” and “breakup-oriented.” The general tendency of jealousy related positively with “aggression-oriented” and “rival-oriented,” and relational satisfaction related positively with “conversation-oriented” and negatively with “breakup-oriented.” The construct validity of ABSII was confirmed by these results.