Making Sense of the Role Category Questionnaire

Despite over 30 years of review and analysis, researchers still are unclear as to what W.H. Crockett's Role Category Questionnaire (RCQ) of interpersonal differentiation actually measures. Among the constructivists, at least four different explanations have been advanced. The "orthodox" interpretation holds that the RCQ constitutes a representative sample of the constructs available for construing others. A review of the literature suggests that it is time to shift from seeing RCQ based differentiation as a representation to viewing it as a measure of process. A process/motivational explanation incorporates the core insights of each of the alternate positions and simultaneously explains the relationship between several RCQ measures of construct system development, namely differentiation, construct abstractness, and impression integration. Existing research on impression formation during interaction shows that the frequency of dispositional constructs on the RCQ clearly discriminates between low differentiated and high differentiated perceivers. A review of studies of impression formation in face-to-face interaction concludes that the RCQ contents consist primarily of the recall of previous construal activity. Numerous studies have examined the factors which affect the quantity and content of impressions. Studies have also shown that differentiation is typically associated with an intimacy motivation. Because it is likely that there are functionally different forms of interpersonal differentiation, careful attention should be given to both the description task in its social context and the actual content of the situated impressions. Future studies should examine construct system content as well as construct system structure. (Contains 52 references.) (RS)