Interpersonal Orientation Scale

What it measures

The CAD Scale is the foundational measure of interpersonal orientation in consumer behaviour research, assessing how individuals' characteristic ways of relating to others shape their marketplace behaviour and preferences. Compliant individuals tend toward brand conformity and social sensitivity in purchasing. Aggressive consumers show differentiated brand preferences and higher prestige-seeking. Detached consumers show distinctive patterns of self-reliance and avoidance of socially conspicuous choices. Widely used in early consumer behaviour research; continues to be used as a baseline personality measure in social influence and susceptibility-to-influence studies.

Response format

6-point Likert (1=extremely undesirable to 6=extremely desirable); subscale scores summed

Scale items

Compliant (C) — moving toward others; items 2,3,9,13,17,20,25,28,32,35 (scored 1=extremely undesirable to 6=extremely desirable)

• Giving comfort to those in need of friends is:
• The knowledge that most people would be fond of me at all times would be:
• To feel that I like everyone I know would be:
• Basing my life on duty to others is:
• To give aid to the poor and underprivileged is:
• To have something good to say about everybody seems:
• Sharing my personal feelings with others would be:
• Wanting to repay others' thoughtless actions with friendship is:
• Putting myself out to be considerate to others' feelings is:
• To be fair to people who do things which I consider wrong seems:

Aggressive (A) — moving against others; items 4,7,8,11,12,14,16,18,21,23,24,26,29,31,33 (scored 1=extremely undesirable to 6=extremely desirable)

• To refuse to give in to others in an argument seems:
• For me to be able to own an item before most of my friends are able to buy it would be:
• Knowing that others are somewhat envious of me is:
• Using pull to get ahead would be:
• For me to have enough money or power to impress self-styled 'big-shots' would be:
• To be able to work under tension would be:
• Pushing those who insult my honor is:
• Standing in the way of people who are too sure of themselves is:
• Telling a waiter when you have received inferior food is:
• To be able to spot and exploit weaknesses in others is:
• A strong desire to surpass others' achievements seems:
• To have the ability to blame others for their mistakes is:
• Having to compete with others for various rewards is:
• To defend my rights by force would be:
• Correcting people who express an ignorant belief is:

Detached (D) — moving away from others; items 1,5,6,10,15,19,22,27,30,34 (scored 1=extremely undesirable to 6=extremely desirable)

• Being free of emotional ties with others is:
• Enjoying a good movie by myself is:
• For me to pay little attention to what others think of me seems:
• To be able to work hard while others elsewhere are having fun is:
• If I could live all alone in a cabin in the woods or mountains it would be:
• Being free of social obligations is:
• Planning to get along without others is:
• For me to avoid situations where others can influence me would be:
• If I knew that others paid very little attention to my affairs it would be:
• For me to work alone would be:

Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.

Usage notes & scoring

Alpha coefficients are modest across studies (compliant: 0.60–0.72; aggressive: 0.36–0.68; detached: 0.43–0.51), with the aggressive dimension showing most variability. Factor structure has been questioned — some studies yield a four-factor rather than three-factor solution. The detached subscale shows weakest psychometric properties. Item stem format ('Being X is:') is unusual. An earlier 4-point response format was used in Cohen's (1967) original studies; the 6-point format is recommended.

Recommended companion scales

Citation

Cohen, J.B. (1967). An interpersonal orientation to the study of consumer behavior. Journal of Marketing Research, 4, 270–278.

Keywords