| |
Received: 9 January 2020    Revised: 26 June 2020    Accepted: 10 July 2020
DOI: 10.1111/sode.12475
METHODS ARTICLE
Interpersonal skills scale: Development and
validation in urbanized sample of adolescents
Sayyeda Taskeen Zahra  
Zahid Mahmood
Institute of Clinical Psychology, University
of Management and Technology, Lahore,
Pakistan
Correspondence
Sayyeda Taskeen Zahra, Institute of Clinical
Psychology, University of Management and
Technology, Lahore, Pakistan.
Email: s2018166004@umt.edu.pk
Social Development. 2021;30:23–37. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/sode © 2020 John Wiley & Sons Ltd  |  23
| Sadia Saleem | Sara Subhan |
Abstract
Interpersonal skills play a vital role in the growth and de-
velopment of adolescents. The current study explored
the experience and manifestation of interpersonal skills in
Pakistani adolescents. In phase I, using open-ended phe-
nomenological approach, key components of interpersonal
skills were elicited from 32 adolescents (boys = 16; girls = 16)
aged 11–19 years (M = 14.48; SD = 1.06). In phase II, Content
Validity Index for items (I-CVIs) and scale (S-CVI) was es-
tablished. In phase III, pilot testing was carried out on 21
adolescents (boys = 11; girls = 10). In Phase IV, a sample of
674 adolescents (boys = 47%; girls = 53%) aged 11–19 years
(M = 14.88; SD = 1.33) were tested for psychometric proper-
ties of Interpersonal Skills Scale along with Social Intelligence
Scale for Adolescents and Self-Esteem Scale for Children.
Exploratory Factor Analysis (n = 221) generated three fac-
tors of the Interpersonal Skills Scale social engagement, so-
ciability, and social etiquettes. Confirmatory Factor Analysis
(n  =  453) also supported the three-factor structure of the
Interpersonal Skills Scale. Furthermore, the scale found to
have high internal consistency, construct validity, discrimi-
nant validity, split-half reliability, and test–retest reliability.
The results are discussed in the light of factorial structure in
the Pakistani cultural context.
KEYWORDS
adolescence, interpersonal skills, reliability, sociability, social
engagement, social etiquettes, validity
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24       ZAHRA et al.

1 |  I NTRO D U C TI O N

During the normal growth and development, psychosocial needs become more significant particularly in ado-
lescence period, and contemporary research is more focused on the understanding individual’s relations with
parents, siblings, peers, social world, and significant others (Bester, 2019; Bowlby, 1973; Mestre, Carlo, Samper,
Malonda, & Mestre, 2019). Social interactions are central to the developmental process during adolescence and
human abilities like rational thinking, helping behavior, cooperation, social manners, social etiquettes, sharing qual-
ities, and confidence are only develop in the process of social interaction (Gottlieb & Halpern, 2002; Sadovnikova,
2016; Washington, Cohen, Berlin, Hsueh, & Zhou, 2018). Both individual and family theories have identified that
development and maintenance of dynamic and stable interpersonal relationships as a key developmental task for
adolescents (Backman, Laajasalo, Jokela, & Aronen, 2018; Mufson et al., 2018). From a family system theory’s
viewpoint, Carter and Mc-Goldrick (1988) explained that the fundamental task of adolescents is to separate from
their family, seeking autonomy and independence, developing a sense of self, and new relationships with peers.
From an individual’s standpoint, Erikson (1968) theorized a psychodynamic approach to explain that developing
a sense of personal identity during adolescence serves as a base for establishing new interpersonal and social
relationships in adolescents (Okros, 2020). Moreover, Ainsworth (1963), Beck (1973), and Bowlby (1973) also posit
that there is a universal need for close emotional significant relationships that contribute to an individual’s sense
of security that allows exploration of the self, others, and the world.
During adolescence, several social changes take place that significantly influence development and adjustment
(Sadovnikova, 2016). It is a period of intensifying social world, where an individual tends to develop social relation-
ships with peers and friends. (Rodriguez, Donenberg, Emerson, Wilson, & Javdani, 2015). Social network outside
the family widens as adolescents are exposed to a variety of new social situations, interaction with strangers, and
acquaintances (Bester, 2019). Independence from adults is generally accompanied by an escalation of friendships
with peers and these relationships play a vital role in the construction of social and interpersonal skills that are
essential for personal growth, development, and adjustment of adolescents (Sadovnikova, 2016). The success-
ful development of interpersonal skills during this period are associated with many positive outcomes including
overall well-being, a better quality of life, high academic achievement and performance, better adjustment, high
self-esteem, and lower mental health problems (Backman et al., 2018; Lin & Tsai, 2016; Padilla-Walker, Memmott-
Elison, & Coyne, 2018; Sadovnikova, 2016; Xia, Ding, Hollon, & Yi, 2015; Zhang & Eggum-Wilkens, 2018). On the
contrary, poor interpersonal skills during adolescence are associated with negative outcomes including a sense of
loneliness, low self-esteem and self-confidence, high dropout rate, and a higher level of mental health problems
(Hamilton et al., 2016; Malaquias, Crespo, & Francisco, 2015; Owens et al., 2019; Ranta, Greca, Kaltiala-Heino,
& Marttunen, 2016). Furthermore, literature also suggested that interpersonal skills increase with age (Cichy,
Fingerman, & Lefkowitz, 2007) and there are significant gender differences (Abdi, 2010; Salavera, Usan, & Jarie,
2017). Girls tend to have a higher level of interpersonal and social skills than boys (Jenkins, Demaray, Fredrick, &
Summers, 2016; Salavera, Usan, & Jarie, 2018). Keeping in view of the long-lasting influence of interpersonal skills
in adolescents, there is a dire need to understand the nature, manifestation, and pattern of interpersonal skills
during the adolescence period.
Cultural norms and values play a key role in social growth and development (An & Eggum-Wilkens, 2019),
and also influence the manifestation of interpersonal skills (Marsella, 1988). Individualistic cultures posit more
emphasize on individuality, self-reliance, individual growth, self-actualization, and individual’s choices and pref-
erences are given value over group choices and preferences (Phinney, Ong, & Madden, 2000; Saleem, Mahmood,
& Subhan, 2015) and that individualization requires different skills and social competence. On the contrary, col-
lectivistic cultures focus on conformity, group cohesion, and harmony (Saleem & Mahmood, 2011). These cultural
differences also shape the definition of the self and relationships with others (Wang & Ollendick, 2001; Wu &
Keysar, 2007). In individualistic cultures, a person’s social relationships are grounded more on dominance, self-re-
liance, equality, having self-oriented goals, and clearer boundaries (Tamis-LeMonda et al., 2007). Whereas, in the
ZAHRA et al. |
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collectivistic culture, an individual experiences interdependence, social support, a sense of belongingness, and a
lack of boundaries concerning others (Dwairy, 2010; Triandis, 2001).
These variances in individualistic and collectivistic societies in social relationships reflect insightful tendencies
to develop different patterns of interpersonal skills. As Pakistan is a traditional collectivistic culture where con-
formity, obedience, compliance, and interdependence are preferred traits (Nadeem, Saleem, & Mahmood, 2017).
Individual’s social relationships are based on interdependence, experiences of mutual social support, sense of
belongingness, and group conformity (Nadeem, Mahmood, & Saleem, 2018). As a result, they tend to develop a
different set of interpersonal styles and skills (Chao, 1994) and it would be interesting to study interpersonal skills
in adolescents in a traditional Pakistani cultural context. Furthermore, there is a need for developing a culturally
sensitive valid and reliable scale for assessing experience and manifestation of interpersonal skills in Pakistani
adolescents as there is a dearth of empirical literature that focused on the cultural-specific manifestation of in-
terpersonal skills especially in adolescence. Recently few attempts have been made to study interpersonal diffi-
culties with university students (Saleem, Ihsan, & Mahmood, 2014). Therefore, the present research is an attempt
to explore the key features of interpersonal skills in a sample of Pakistani adolescents. The adolescence period is
said to be a transitional stage where an individual is expected to learn certain social and emotional skills to deal
with the changing expectations and demands from the family and society at large. Since interpersonal skills can
play a role as a protective factor against growing mental health concerns in adolescence, this construct becomes
even more pertinent to explore and study. Finally, Pakistan is a traditional religious and collectivistic culture where
emotional, personal, and social growth is largely dependent on family harmony, obedience, and group conformity.
The current study aimed to develop a culturally appropriate and psychometrically sound scale to assess inter-
personal skills in adolescence having the age range of 11–19 years. The rationale of selecting this age range for
the current study is that during adolescence years, the social world is expanding and adolescents get the wider
opportunity to interact, verbalize, and share with people outside the family to develop intense peer relationships
(Saleem, Asghar, Subhan, & Mahmood, 2019). A younger child below teens may have a limited social interaction
and expression to have a social interaction. Furthermore, in collectivistic cultures, the childhood period is some-
how prolonged and children remain under the shadow of their parents and do not learn to interact independently
unless they start schooling schools (Wu & Keysar, 2007). On the contrary, young adults are more mature and
socially skilled because their social expectations and demands have changed radically with diverse gender role
identification and romantic attraction with another gender (Nadeem et al., 2017; Saleem et al., 2014). Therefore,
adolescence is a critical period where they learn social skills which can make a base for future interpersonal re-
lationships (Erikson, 1968). Since interpersonal skills have not been explored in Pakistani cultural contact, there-
fore, in the first phase of the current research a phenomenological open-ended approach is used based on the
emic-perspective in mind. Phase 2, 3, and 4 comprised of establishing content validity, reliability, and validity of
the new measure.

2 |  M E TH O D

2.1 | Phase 1: Item generation

2.1.1 | Participants and procedure

This phase was aimed to explore, collect, and collate the manifestation and expression of interpersonal skills
in adolescents. The current project was approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB). A sample of 32 ad-
olescents (boys  =  16; girls  =  16), having the age range from 11 to 19  years (M  =  14.48; SD  =  1.06), recruited
through multistage sampling technique from six mainstream government schools (three boys schools and three
girls schools) of Lahore (provincial capital of Punjab), a highly urbanized city of Pakistan, were interviewed using a
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26       ZAHRA et al.

phenomenological approach through open-ended interview technique. For the current study, interpersonal skills
were operationally defined as “skills that facilitate a relationship or construct a relationship” (McConnell, 2004).
Each participant was interviewed in one to one setting and it took approximately 20–25 minutes on average to
complete each interview. Participants were asked using McConnell’s definition “what are the key characteristics
of those children who easily mingle and have a good relationship with their other age fellows?”.
Further, open-ended questions were asked to clear vagueness and ambiguities reported by participants. After
the successful completion of interviews, all interviews were transcribed by the researcher and were transformed
into phrases. After omitting vague, dubious, and overlapping items, a list of 46 items was generated in Urdu (The
National Language of Pakistan), Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS).

2.2 | Phase II: Content validity

2.2.1 | Participants and procedure

In this phase content validity of IPSS was established. For this purpose, nine clinical psychologists, having mini-
mum one-year experience were given the operational definition of interpersonal skills and asked to rate each
item on a 4-point (1–4) rating scale “1 (not relevant), 2 (somewhat relevant), 3 (quite relevant) and 4 (highly relevant)”.
Content Validity Index for items (I-CVIs) and scale (S-CVI) was calculated. Items having, I-CVIs lower than .78 were
excluded (Lynn, 1986). In this way, three items from the list of IPSS were omitted and 43 items were retained for
the final scale and used for additional psychometric properties. Furthermore, the averaging approach (S-CVI/Ave)
was used to calculate the S-CVI of IPSS. Waltz, Strickland, and Lenz (2005) and Lynn (1986) recommended that
S-CVI/Ave should be 0.90 or higher. For the current research, S-CVI/Ave was found. 90 indicating good content
validity of IPSS. Finally, IPSS was converted into a self-report measure consisting of a 5-point rating scale (0–4)
where 0 (not at all) and 4 (always).

2.3 | Phase III: Pilot study

2.3.1 | Participants and procedure

Pilot Study was aimed to determine the user-friendliness of layout, font size and style, response options, and writ-
ten instructions of the final scale. The final Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS) was piloted on 21 adolescents of 8th
class (boys = 11; girls = 10), with the age range of 11–19 years. Participants were encouraged to give their feedback
on the comprehensibility of items and instructions and layout of the IPSS. Participants reported no difficulty and
ambiguity on any aspect of the measure. The average time to complete the scale was 5 min.

2.4 | Phase IV: Psychometric properties

This phase was aimed to establish psychometric properties of the Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS).

2.4.1 | Participants

A sample of 674 participants (boys  =  47%; girls  =  53%) from grade 8th (n  =  223[boys  =  107, girls  =  116]), 9th
(n  =  245[boys  =  109, girls  =  136]), and 10 th (n  =  206 [boys  =  99, girls  =  107]) was recruited from seven main-
stream government schools (three boys’ schools and four girls’ schools) of Lahore using multistage sampling
ZAHRA et al. |
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technique. Government schools were selected to maintain the homogeneity of the sample. There are three paral-
lel educational systems in Pakistan, government-run public sector schools, private sector schools, and madrassa.
Government-run school is the most popular schooling system in Pakistan because of its uniformity in curriculum,
teaching methodology, and affordability, and the majority of lower, lower-middle and middle class get education
from there. Furthermore, in Pakistan schooling is separate for both gender until university levels. The sample was
divided into main strata based on gender (boys and girls) and further substrata were made according to the grade of
the participants, that is, 8th, 9th, and 10 th grade. Age range of the participants for both genders (boys and girls) was
11–19 years (M = 14.88; SD = 1.33). Age range of the participants for 8th grade was 11–16 (M = 13.96; SD = 1.11),
9th grade was 14–17 (M = 14.85; SD = 1.09), and 10 th grade was 15–19 (M = 15.89; SD = 1.04). Participants were
predominantly living in nuclear family system (59%).

2.4.2 | Measures

2.4.2.1 | Interpersonal skills scale (IPSS)

Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS) polished in phase III was used to assess the interpersonal skills of the participants.
It is consisted of 43 items having a 5-point rating scale. Options included “0 (not at all), 1 (rarely), 2 (to some extent),
3 (very much), and 4 (always)”. Scores were obtained by calculating the sum of scores on each item of the scale.
Possible scores ranged from 0 to 172 and high scores indicate greater interpersonal skills.

2.4.2.2 | Social intelligence scale for adolescents (SISA)

Construct and discriminant validity of the Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS) were established using the Social
Intelligence Scale for Adolescents (SISA) (Yousaf, 2012) consisting of 57 items having a 4-point rating scale.
Response options are “0 (not at all), 1(rarely), 2 (to some extent), and 3 (very much so)”. The scale is consisted of four
subscales named as social deviousness, social facilitation, dominance and control, and social etiquettes. Scores were
obtained by calculating the sum of scores on each item of the scale. Possible scores ranged from 0 to 171 with
a high score representing the higher level of social intelligence. Social Intelligence Scale for Adolescents (SISA)
found to have sound psychometric properties for Pakistani adolescents (Ashiq, Saleem, Jabeen, & Mahmood,
2019). Cronbach alpha of Social Intelligence Scale for Adolescents (SISA) for current research was 0.78 represent-
ing good internal consistency of the scale.

2.4.2.3 | Self-esteem scale for children (SESC)

Self-Esteem Scale for Children (Saleem & Mahmood, 2011) was used to establish the construct and discriminant
validity of the Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS). It is consisted of 44 items with a 5-point rating scale 0 (not at all)
and 4 (very much). The scale is consisted of four subscales academic self-esteem, self-confidence, social self-esteem,
and low self-esteem. Scores were obtained by calculating the sum of scores on each item of the scale with possible
scores ranged from 0 to 176. Self-Esteem Scale for Children (SESC) proved to have good reliability and validity for
Pakistani adolescents (Saleem & Mahmood, 2011). For the current study, Cronbach alpha for Self-Esteem Scale
for Children (SESC) was 0.76 indicating good internal consistency of the scale.

2.4.3 | Procedure

After getting permission from the Institutional Review Board (IRB), initially, 10 schools (five boys and five girls)
were approached and sent brief aims and objectives of the study. Among 10 schools, 7 schools gave the consent
for data collection. The main objectives and outcomes of the study were informed to the competent authorities of
the schools. After the permission was gained school authorities were requested to provide 8th, 9th, and 10 th class
adolescents. Participants were approached in their classrooms. Data were collected in groups and each group
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28       ZAHRA et al.

comprised of average 30 participants. The final protocol was given to only those participants who were agreed to
participate in the study. Participants were also guaranteed the privacy and confidentiality of the information taken
from them. The average time to complete the protocol was about 25 min. At the end, participants were given
some time for any query, feedback, and debriefing. After completion of data collection, data were divided into two
data sets one comprising of 221 participants (boys = 41 %; girls = 59%) and other comprising of 453 participants
(boys = 49%; girls = 51%). Exploratory Factor Analysis was carried out on a data set consisting of 221 participants
and Confirmatory Factor Analysis was conducted on a data set comprising 453 participants.

3 |   R E S U LT S

3.1 | Exploratory factor analysis of interpersonal skills scale (IPSS)

Preliminary analysis indicated that current data of adolescents is normally distributed (skewness = −0.58, kur-
tosis = 0.64, M = 98.85, 5% trimmed M = 99.38). Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) with Varimax rotation was
conducted on a data set comprising of 221 participants (boys = 41 %; girls = 59%) to explore the key dimensions
associated with Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS). The number of participants for Exploratory Factor Analysis was
determined based on criteria given by Tabachnick and Fidell (2007). This criterion suggests that there should be
five cases/participants for each item of the scale. Initially, appropriateness of the current data for factor analy-
sis was checked. Initial Cronbach alpha for IPSS was found to be 0.85 indicating good internal consistency and
scale is suitable for factor analysis. Furthermore, in the existing research, Kaiser-Myer-Olkin Measure of Sample
Adequacy (KMO) value was found .88 which was statistically significant as Field (2013) suggested that statistically
significant value of Kaiser-Myer-Olkin Measure of Sample Adequacy (KMO) should be ≥ 0.70. Moreover, Field
(2013) also proposed that Bartlett’s test of sphericity should be statistically significant (p < .05). In the present
research, the value of the Bartlett test of sphericity was also statistically significant (p < .001), which is satisfactory
for factor analysis. Therefore, the factor analysis is considered appropriate as shown in Table 1.
The number of factors for IPSS was determined based on Eigenvalue greater than 1 (Kaiser, 1974) and factor
loading greater than .35 on that particular factor (Kline, 1994; Tabachnik & Fidell, 2013). Scree plot showing the
Eigenvalues of each factor is given in Figure 1. Afterward, factor analysis was conducted with four, three, and
two-factor solutions. The three-factor solution was found to be the best as it has minimum dubious items and
the most interpretable factor structure. Therefore, Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) with Varimax Rotation was
conducted on 43 items of IPSS with three-factor solution. Seven items having factor loadings less than .35 were
omitted. The factor loadings of 36 items are given in Table 1.
Table 1 suggests that items having .35 or above loading were retained in their corresponding factors and re-
maining were omitted. The results given in Table 1 indicated that 36 items of IPSS could be lumped under three
key factors which were given the label as social engagement, sociability, and social etiquettes by the researcher.

3.1.1 | Factors description

After close examination, each factor of the scale was labeled by considering the commonality of items in the factors.

3.1.1.1 | F1: Social engagement

The first factor of IPSS comprised of 18 items which denotes the degree of involvement in social interaction in the
peer group. Sample items include doing daily tasks together, sharing others pains, helping others in difficulty, re-
solving issues in friends, giving others a sense of right and wrong, living with unity, and being sensitive for others.
ZAHRA et al. |
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TA B L E 1   Varimax rotation of factors underlying interpersonal skills scale (IPSS) (N = 221)

Items F1 F2 F3 Items F1 F2 F3

3 0.51 0.16 −0.14 1 0.04 0.45 0.01

5 0.51 0.03 0.04 2 0.23 0.40 −0.03
7 0.60 0.00 0.02 8 0.09 0.45 0.26
12 0.36 0.31 0.22 10 −0.35 0.40 0.32
13 0.53 0.07 0.02 11 −0.03 0.41 0.20
14 0.65 −0.02 0.10 20 −0.20 0.47 0.33
15 0.46 0.04 0.31 27 0.11 0.43 0.24
18 0.52 0.09 0.37 29 0.01 0.44 0.25
21 0.59 −0.01 0.14 30 0.19 0.44 −0.08
23 0.61 −0.05 0.23 37 −0.28 0.47 0.05
24 0.41 −0.01 0.35 38 −0.21 0.43 −0.02
28 0.37 0.21 0.30 40 0.10 0.50 −0.01
31 0.50 0.17 0.19 41 0.20 0.38 −0.01
32 0.40 0.18 0.22 9 0.13 0.12 0.39
33 0.57 −0.02 0.17 17 0.33 0.06 0.47
34 0.44 −0.13 0.33 19 0.31 0.08 0.38
35 0.58 0.07 −0.09 25 0.01 0.04 0.51
42 0.55 0.07 0.24 39 0.05 0.07 0.56
Eigen Values 6.08 3.13 2.62 Cumulative % 14.14 21.42 27.51
% of Variance 14.14 7.28 6.09

Note: Boldface items belonging to the factor.

F I G U R E 1   Scree plot showing extraction of factors of interpersonal skills scale (IPSS)

3.1.1.2  | F2: Sociability

The second factor of IPSS consisted of 13 items. It describes the quality of being sociable. The sample items in-
clude mingling together, sharing one’s feelings, feeling pleased with friends, making friends easily, making fun with
others, working in groups, visiting each other’s place, being together on social occasions, and sharing personal
things with others.
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30       ZAHRA et al.

3.1.1.3 | F3: Social etiquettes

The third factor of IPSS comprised 5 items that describe the code of ethical behavior regarding social relation-
ships. The sample items include taking other people’s jokes, hiding others mistakes, keeping secrets, and being
open-hearted for others.

3.2 | Confirmatory factor analysis of interpersonal skills scale (IPSS)

The three-factor solution of Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS) derived from Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was
cross-validated on a separate data set comprising of 453 participants (boys  =  49%; girls  =  51%). Reporting of
Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was in line with recommendations and guidelines given by Jackson, Gillaspy,
and Purc-Stephenson (2009). Preliminary analysis was conducted to ensure multivariate normality (Jackson et al.,
2009) of the existing data (skewness = −0.52, kurtosis = 0.61, M = 99.10, 5% trimmed M = 99.58). Confirmatory
Factor Analysis (CFA) with the maximum likelihood method (Jackson et al., 2009) was conducted by using Analysis
of Moment Structure (AMOS) 24.0 version. The number of participants for Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA)
was determined by considering the criteria given by Kline (2016) and Schumacker and Lomax (2015). They recom-
mended to recruit at least 10 cases per item of the scale. The following goodness of fit indices as recommended
by Jackson et al. (2009) and Hooper, Coughlan, and Mullen (2008) were used to assess the degree of fit between
the model and the sample, CMIN/df, Tucker Lewis Index (TLI), Comparative Fit Index (CFI), Goodness of Fit Index
(GFI), Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA), and Standardized Root Mean Square Residual (SRMR).
Figure 2 shows the final CFA for the sample. The initial model was run and resulted in a poor fit. The analysis of
the modification indices in AMOS (Arbuckle & Wothke, 1999; Kline, 2016) indicated that significant improvement
could be achieved if error terms of items of the scale are correlated. Covariance between the error terms was
added, though it was tried to add a minimum number of covariance to obtain the model fit. It was ensured that
all the covariances have strong theoretical or logical grounds. Moreover, after covarying the error terms, items
explaining minimum variance and having low loading were removed to improve the model as these items are also
considered as a source of error in the model. In this way, eight items were removed from the model. However,
factor structure remained the same as it was explored in EFA.
Table 2 shows the Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) of the Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS). The model re-
sulted from CFA indicated good fit to the data with CFI = 0.90, GFI = 0.92, TLI = 0.90, RMSEA = 0.04, SRMR =
0.05 (Jackson et al., 2009; Schumacker & Lomax, 2015). The chi-square value being significant suggested a poor
fit, CIMIN (df) = 572.27 (333) p < .001, yet, the CMIN/df value (CMIN/df = 1.72) appeared in recommended range
(Hooper et al., 2008; Schumacker & Lomax, 2004). Keeping in view the values of these indices, item loadings,
and squared multiple correlations of three factors of the Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS) are examined as shown
in Table 3. Table 3 depicts that all items associated with three factors of the Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS) fall
within the acceptable range and meet the selection criteria of having factor loadings ≥ 0.30.

3.3 | Inter-factor correlation of interpersonal skills scale (IPSS)

Table 4 depicts the inter-factor correlation of the Interpersonal Skills Scale. Findings suggested that social engage-
ment, sociability, and social etiquettes are significantly positively associated with each other (r = .24 to .45; p < .001).

3.4 | Item-total correlation of interpersonal skills scale (IPSS)

The association between 28 items of IPSS and total scores of 28 items was also calculated. The item-total correla-
tion for each item was ranged .14 to .58 (p < .001).
ZAHRA et al. |
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F I G U R E 2   Confirmatory factor analysis of interpersonal skills scale (IPSS)

3.5 | Validity of interpersonal skills scale (IPSS)

Social Intelligence Scale for Adolescents (SISA) (Yousaf, 2012) and Self-Esteem Scale for Children (SESC) (Saleem
& Mahmood, 2011) were used to establish validity of the Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS). Results indicated that in-
terpersonal skills are significantly positively associated with social facilitation (r = 0.43; p < .001), social etiquettes
(r = 0.29; p < .001), academic self-esteem (r = 0.49; p < .001), self-confidence (r = 0.54; p < .001), and social self-
esteem (r = 0.64; p < .001) providing the evidence of construct validity. Moreover, findings also suggested signifi-
cant negative association of interpersonal skills with social deviousness (r = −0.17; p < .001) and low self-esteem (r
= −0.13; p < .01) confirming the discriminant validity of Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS).
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32       ZAHRA et al.

TA B L E 2   Confirmatory factor analysis of interpersonal skills scale (N = 453)

CMIN (df) CMIN/df CFI GFI TLI RMSEA SRMR

Model 1 1336.51(591) 2.26 0.77 0.85 0.76 0.05 0.07

Model 2 572.27(333) 1.72 0.90 0.92 0.90 0.04 0.05

TA B L E 3   Factors loadings of items on interpersonal skills scale (N = 453)

Item No. λ1 λ2 R2

5 0.49 0.49 0.24

7 0.55 0.53 0.28
13 0.50 0.48 0.23
14 0.62 0.61 0.37
15 0.53 0.53 0.28
18 0.58 0.60 0.36
21 0.58 0.59 0.35
23 0.65 0.65 0.42
24 0.46 0.46 0.21
31 0.56 0.57 0.32
32 0.47 0.46 0.21
33 0.54 0.53 0.28
34 0.44 0.43 0.18
42 0.57 0.58 0.34
1 0.45 0.44 0.19
2 0.38 0.40 0.16
8 0.51 0.54 0.29
20 0.50 0.42 0.18
27 0.47 0.49 0.24
29 0.45 0.42 0.18
30 0.39 0.41 0.17
38 0.31 0.30 0.09
41 0.42 0.44 0.19
9 0.39 0.39 0.15
17 0.64 0.59 0.35
19 0.52 0.49 0.24
25 0.31 0.30 0.09
39 0.32 0.32 0.10
2
Note.: λ1 = Factor loadings from initial model, λ2 = Factor loadings from final model, R  = Squared multiple correlations

3.6 | Reliability of interpersonal skills scale (IPSS)

Test retest reliability of IPSS was calculated by retesting 12% (n = 81) participants after one-week interval. Findings
revealed good test retest reliability of all subscales of IPSS, social engagement (r = 0.63, p < .001), sociability (r =
0.62, p < .001), and social etiquettes (r = 0.47, p < .001). Moreover, Odd–Even method was used to determine the
ZAHRA et al. |
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TA B L E 4   Summary of inter-factor correlations, mean, standard deviations, and Cronbach Alpha (N = 674)

Factors 1 2 3

1. Social Engagement − 0.24*** 0.45***

2. Sociability − − 0.31***
3. Social Etiquettes − − −
M 55.86 29.09 13.92
SD 9.61 7.01 3.29
α 0.86 0.70 0.68

***p < .001.

split-half reliability of the IPSS by dividing the all subscales into two equal halves, one containing all odd items
and other comprising of all even items. The split-half correlation coefficient for all subscales, social engagement
(r = 0.83, p < .001), sociability (r = 0.62, p < .001), and social etiquettes (r = 0.39, p < .001) was found statistically
significant.

3.7 | Age and interpersonal skills

Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted to explore significant differences in interpersonal skills during
early, middle, and late adolescence. Findings of current research revealed no significant differences in early (11–
13 years), middle (14–16 years), and late (17–19 years) adolescence in total scores of interpersonal skills (F [2,669] =
0.16, p = .85) as well as social engagement (F [2,670] = .17, p = .85), sociability (F [2,670] = 2.21, p = .11), and social
etiquettes (F [2,671] = 2.02, p = .13). These findings indicated that interpersonal skills are universal throughout
this adolescence period.

3.8 | Gender differences in interpersonal skills

Independent sample t test was used to explore gender differences in interpersonal skills. Results indicated signifi-
cant gender differences in interpersonal skills (t = −2.23, p < .05). Girls (M = 100.06, SD = 14.83) reported higher
level of interpersonal skills as compared to their counterpart’s boys (M = 97.47, SD = 15.24).

4 |  D I S CU S S I O N

Interpersonal changes during adolescence play a significant role in growth, development, and adjustment of ado-
lescents and successful development of interpersonal skills during this period lead toward positive consequences
like school performance and adjustment, well-being, quality of life, self-esteem, and lower level of mental health
issues (Backman et al., 2018; Bester, 2019; Mestre et al., 2019). One of the most significant factors that form
interpersonal skills is culture. The concept of interpersonal skills may be universal but its expression and mani-
festation varies from culture to culture and are determined by cultural orientation (Individualism/collectivism)
(Kim, 2005). Individualistic culture promotes self-growth, self-sufficient, self-reliance, independence, conformity,
and autonomy (Tamis-LeMonda et al., 2007). Whereas individual from collectivistic cultures tend to show more
conformity to social norms than personal interests, values, and choices and their behavior is largely influenced by
others expectation and group values (An & Eggum-Wilkens, 2019). Parents in collectivistic cultures promote more
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34       ZAHRA et al.

interpersonal skills and prosocial behavior (helping, sharing, cooperation, caring, and politeness) in their children
as compared to their counterpart’s parents in individualistic cultures (Feygina & Henry, 2015). Therefore, keeping
in view of the importance of interpersonal skills the purpose of the current study was to explore the experience,
manifestation, and expression of interpersonal skills in adolescents of Pakistani collectivistic society.
In the current study, the most common interpersonal skills as experienced by adolescents were collected
and transformed into a 5-point rating scale given the name of the Interpersonal Skills Scale (IPSS). Exploratory
Factor Analysis of IPSS yielded three factors of IPSS named as social engagement, sociability, and social etiquettes.
Furthermore, this factor structure was also confirmed by Confirmatory Factor Analysis. The first factor of IPSS
denotes to a degree of involvement in community or society. Social engagement can also be seen in other mea-
sures of interpersonal or social skills as well measuring the same construct denoted to cooperation in Social Skills
Questionnaire (SSQ) (Gresham & Elliott, 1990). Furthermore, this factor explained the maximum variance in the
factor structure of IPSS. As, Pakistan is a collectivistic culture where the focus is on “We” rather than “I” and a
person’s social identity, values, and preferences are more important than personal identity and choices. Social
cohesion and group harmony are the most preferred traits (An & Eggum-Wilkens, 2019; Tamis-LeMonda et al.,
2007). Social engagement is a cultural-specific manifestation of Pakistani culture where children are supposed to
follow the social and religious rituals together as accepted by parents and family (Saleem et al., 2019). Involvement
in family issues and having intense involvement is valued than being aloof and uninvolved in family life. A socially
engaged personal gets familial and societal approval and appreciation that determines his personal and social
image. Therefore, social engagement is the hallmark of interpersonal skills in Pakistani adolescents and dominated
the factor analysis of IPSS.
The second factor denotes to quality of being friendly and enjoying being with others. Eysenck (1997) and Jung
(1916) also described that being sociable and extravert is the fundamental component of human social growth and
development. Being sociable is the state of primarily obtaining gratification from outside oneself. They take plea-
sure in activities that involve large social gatherings, such as community activities, parties, public demonstrations,
and visit other’s homes. As discussed earlier that in Pakistan being a collectivistic society group harmony, social
cohesion, and sociability are more important than independence and isolation (Saleem et al., 2014). The third fac-
tor of IPSS denotes to set of guidelines and rules for politeness, good manners, and the kindness with which we
should adopt while interacting with each other. As human beings are social beings who need to live near and with
each other to survive and flourish (Bowlby, 1973). This factor of IPSS is the ethical and moral implication of being
social. Sociability and social etiquettes are highly valued and universally manifested characteristics in collectivistic
cultures (An & Eggum-Wilkens, 2019) because it is considered a sign of respect and mannerism toward elders and
agemates that ensure group harmony.
As far as the validity of the scale is concerned findings are also in line with the literature (Allport, 1932;
Sadovnikova, 2016; Sampthirao, 2016; Yeun & Woo, 2018) which suggested that higher the interpersonal skills
higher will be the social facilitation, social etiquettes, academic self-esteem, self-confidence, and social self-es-
teem. Moreover, a higher level of interpersonal skills is associated with a lower level of social deviousness and
low self-esteem. Additionally, the results of the current study also revealed that girls reported a higher level of
interpersonal skills as compared to boys. These findings are also consistent with previous literature (Abdi, 2010;
Jenkins et al., 2016; Salavera et al., 2018) that suggested that girls have a higher level of cooperation, interper-
sonal, and social skills. Findings also indicate no significant difference in interpersonal skills during early, middle,
and late adolescence. In Pakistani cultural context, the childhood period is somehow prolonged and children re-
main under their parental shadow for a longer period for major life decisions (Saleem et al., 2019). Furthermore, in
government-run schools, no noticeable differences can be found in school ecology where most of the things are
uniform with the same background, same language, same curriculum and teaching methodology, and same gen-
der (Saleem & Mahmood, 2011). Therefore, the expression of interpersonal skills remains more or less the same
throughout the adolescence period.
ZAHRA et al. |
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4.1 | Limitations and recommendations

Despite numerous implications and strengths, the current research has some limitations. First, data were col-
lected only from an urbanized sample of adolescents which may limit the generalizability of the construct. Future
research is needed to focus on the inclusion of various subcultural samples with a broader age range. Second,
self-report measures used for validity of scale may leave insufficient room for variation in choices. Finally, this
study used a cross-sectional research design, future research might use a longitudinal research design where
interpersonal skills can be studied over a period of time.

5 |  CO N C LU S I O N

The current study is a groundbreaking work to understand the interpersonal skills of adolescents in collectivis-
tic Pakistani cultural context as the concept of interpersonal skills is universal but its manifestation and expres-
sion are different from culture to culture. A reliable and valid tool was developed in this study to assess the
interpersonal skills of adolescents. This research will further help in understanding the complex phenomenon
of interpersonal skills.

AC K N OW L E D G M E N T S
This study was supported by Higher Education Commission Pakistan. We are highly thankful to study participants
as well as school authorities whose cooperation made it possible to complete the study effectively.

C O N FL I C T O F I N T E R E S T
The authors have no conflict of interest.

DATA AVA I L A B I L I T Y S TAT E M E N T

Data supporting the current findings are not shared with any repository as this research is part of the doctoral
project therefore it is university property that we cannot share to any repository but the data is available when-
ever required.

ORCID
Sayyeda Taskeen Zahra  https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9913-6300

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S U P P O R T I N G I N FO R M AT I O N
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How to cite this article: Zahra ST, Saleem S, Subhan S, Mahmood Z. Interpersonal skills scale: Development
and validation in urbanized sample of adolescents. Social Development. 2021;30:23–37. https://doi.
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