Positively in-sync: Convergent validity across three distinct assessments of the affective quality of social interaction

Abstract

The affective quality of social interaction is linked to the well-being of individuals, relationships, and communities. This construct has been measured in multiple ways, albeit rarely concurrently. The current study tests for convergent validity across three methodologically distinct measures of the affective quality of social interaction. In a video-recorded laboratory session, a sample of university students (N = 274) got acquainted with an unknown peer in a 10-min semi-structured conversation that used the fast friends procedure with escalating self-disclosure. After the conversation, participants privately completed the Perceived Positivity Resonance Scale to indicate the degree to which they experienced mutual, kind-hearted positive affect. Later, trained observers coded videos (with audio) to identify wide-ranging dyad-level behavioral indicators of positivity resonance. In addition, audio recordings were submitted to an automated voice-to-text transcription service that provided high-resolution time stamps for turn-taking to compute participants’ conversational response time. A confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated good fit with all three indicators loading significantly on a single latent factor. In addition, relative to single indicators, the resulting factor score (i.e., affective quality of social interaction) showed the most consistent associations with prosocial tendencies and positive mental health. These findings (1) are the first to show the convergence of self-reported and observer-coded positivity resonance, (2) extend the evidence that these indices of positivity resonance align with conversational response time in the context of strangers getting acquainted, and (3) replicate past evidence of benefits linked to the positive affective quality of social interaction. Discussion centers on theoretical and methodological implications for studies of social connectedness.