Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, Vol. 25, No. 1, March 2003 ( C  2003) Development of an Interview for Anxiety-Relevant Interpersonal Styles: Preliminary Support for Convergent and Discriminant Validity 1 J. Gayle Beck 2,3 and Joanne Davila 2 Accepted August 4, 2002 This report presents preliminary psychometric support for a new approach to assess anxiety-relevant interpersonal styles in close relationships, the Social Anxiety Relationship Interview (SARI). The SARI is a semistructured interview, designed to evaluate relevant interpersonal styles (e.g., lack of assertion, conflict avoidance, and fear of expressing strong emotions). In this report, the convergent and discriminant validity of the SARI are examined. Results indicate that the SARI demonstrated good convergent validity, with correlations ranging from .2 to .5 between the subscales and related con- structs such as assertiveness, affective control, assertion of autonomy, lack of social self-confidence, and avoidant problem solving. Examining the relationship between the SARI subscales and four conceptually unrelated constructs (somatization, hostility, paranoia, and psychoticism) indicated few significant associations, controlling for social anxiety. Additionally, most aspects of interpersonal functioning assessed by the SARI appeared specific to social anxiety, on the basis of analyses that controlled for trait anxiety. Finally, SARI responses do not appear to be influenced by social desirabil- ity. These data provide promising support for this measure, which will encourage greater exploration of the role of interpersonal factors in social anxiety. KEY WORDS: social anxiety; interpersonal functioning; validity. There has been growing interest in the interpersonal aspects of psychopathology in the past decade, interest that has focused on mental disorders as diverse as schizophre- nia, depression, and personality disorders (e.g., Coyne, 1976; Hooley, 1998; Leff & Vaughn, 1985; Segrin, 2001). This type of research has highlighted salient features, which appear to both contribute to and result from be- havioral aspects of psychological disorders. For example, depressed individuals have been shown to excessively and persistently seek reassurance from others that they are valued, worthy, and liked (e.g., Joiner, Metalsky, Katz, & Beach, 1999; Joiner, Alfano, & Metalsky, 1992; 1993; 1 Portions of these data were presented at the 2001 meeting of the Associa- tion for Advancement of Behavior Therapy, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 2 Department of Psychology, University at Buffalo—SUNY, Buffalo, New York. 3 To whom correspondence should be addressed at Department of Psy- chology, Park Hall, SUNY Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 14260-4110; e-mail: jgbeck@acsu.buffalo.edu. Joiner & Schmidt, 1998). These behaviors often elicit re- jection from others, which in turn exacerbates the indi- vidual’s negative mood and perpetuates a negative trans- actional cycle (e.g., Kiesler, 1983; Alden, 2001). Despite the growing interest in interpersonal aspects of psycho- logical disorders, there has been relatively little work on this topic within the anxiety disorders. Additionally, the restricted scope of assessment instruments to evaluate interpersonal behaviors among individuals with anxiety problems has limited the types of information on inter- personal functioning and anxiety, particularly with regard to close relationships (e.g., family, friends, and roman- tic partners). A focus on close relationships is impor- tant given that these relationships have implications for both individual and dyadic well-being (Brown & Harris, 1978; Hammen, 1991). The purpose of the present report is to present preliminary data on a new approach for as- sessing anxiety-relevant interpersonal styles within close relationships, the Social Anxiety Relationship Interview (SARI). 1 0882-2689/03/0300-0001/0 C  2003 Plenum Publishing Corporation