Validation and measurement of the fundamental themes of relational communication

TLDR

A new relational communication schema identifies up to 12 distinct themes underlying relational message exchange. The authors conducted three measurement studies employing exploratory oblique and orthogonal factor analyses followed by confirmatory factor analysis. Empirical validation confirmed seven to ten of the proposed themes, and seven experiments yielded reliability estimates and predictive validity, leading to a recommended 30‑item scale with eight independent themes.

Abstract

A recently advanced schema for relational communication proposes as many as 12 fundamental and distinctive themes underlying relational message exchange. Reported here are the results of three measurement studies using exploratory oblique and orthogonal factor analyses and confirmatory factor analysis. These offer empirical validation for seven to 10 of the themes. Additionally, results from seven experiments using the relational communication measure provide reliability estimates and predictive validity data. The final recommended measurement instrument is a 30‐item scale incorporating eight independent themes or clusters of themes.