I NDICADORES

Construct:

Evaluation is defined as the assessment of the positive and/or negative qualities of an object. The need to evaluate is assumed to be one of the most pervasive and dominant of human responses. In accordance with this view, Jarvis and Petty (1996, p. 172) view the need to evaluate as the chronic tendency for individuals to engage in evaluative responding. Furthermore, the need to evaluate is believed to be an individual difference variable that affects, and is affected by, numerous socially based attitudes. Thus, the Need to Evaluate Scale (NES) assesses individual differences in the propensity to engage in evaluation.

Description:

The NES is composed of 16 items scored on 5-point scales where 1 = extremely uncharacteristic, 2 = somewhat characteristic, 3 = uncertain, 4 = somewhat

characteristic, and 5 = extremely characteristic. Item scores are summed to form an overall NES score that can range from 16 to 80. The NES is considered a single-factor, unidimensional measure.

Development:

Numerous recommended scaling procedures were used to derive the final form of the scale and to test for reliability and construct validity. Five studies encompassing numerous samples were used. After generating 46 initial items to reflect the

intercorrelations among items, item mean (standard deviation) scores, and face validity from four pilot studies. Study 1 then examined the structure and internal consistency of the NES via principal and confirmatory factor analyses, item analyses, and coefficient alpha. Study 2 examined the validity of the NES by correlating it with related constructs. Study 3 looked at the NES's relation to social and political attitudes, and Study 4

examined the relation to “spontaneous evaluative thoughts.” Finally, Study 5 examined the validity of the NES within the context of recalling “autobiographical narratives” from the previous day. All in all, consistent evidence for the dimensionality, internal consistency, and validity of the NES was found.

Samples:

The “pilot” studies were composed of n = 357 undergraduate psychology students. Three samples of n = 131, n = 160, and n = 266 (all undergraduate psychology students) were used in Study 1. Study 2 used n = 600 students, Study 3 used n = 52 students; Study 4 used n = 35 students (females only), and Study 5 used n = 93 students.

Validity:

By comparing four different factor structures, including two structures that included the presence of “methods” factors, it was determined that the NES could be reasonably represented by a single, unidimensional 16-item factor (although a two-factor solution offered a better “fit” to the data). (See “Notes” to actual scale items below.) For the three samples of Study 1, coefficient alphas ranged from 0.82 to 0.87 for the 16- item NES. Test-retest reliability for a subsample of n = 70 over a 10-week period was 0.84. For Study 2, the coefficient alpha estimate of the NES was 0.84. As evidence of discriminant validity, the NES was correlated with nine other constructs and a measure of social desirability. The correlations between the NES and affective intensity, desire for control, and need for cognition were 0.17, 0.22, and 0.35 (p < 0.05), respectively. All other correlations were not significant. In support of predictive validity, regression analyses in Study 2 showed significant relations with attitudes toward social and political

issues. Finally, Studies 4 and 5 showed that actual evaluative responding behavior could be predicted by NES scores.

Scores:

Mean scores were consistently reported by male and female subsamples. For the most part, men scored slightly higher on the NES than did women; however, some of these differences were not significant. Some of the mean scores were 53.21 and 51.05, and 53.20 and 51.05, for males and females, respectively, from Study 1. For Study 2, the mean NES score was 52.80 for males and 50.88 for females (p < 0.05).

Study 3 reported an overall mean score of 53.0, and Study 4 reported an overall mean of 53.6. Individual item means were also reported. Also, the NES was split at the

median, or tertiary splits were used, to create high/low or high/medium/low NES groups for purposes of analysis.

Source:

Jarvis, W. Blair G. and Richard E. Petty (1996), “The Need to Evaluate,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 70 (1), 172–94.

© 1996 by the American Psychological Association. Scale items taken from Table 1 (p. 176). Reprinted with permission.

[p. 38 _↓ ]

Need to Evaluate: NES

(Jarvis and Petty 1996)

• I prefer to avoid taking extreme opinions.

• It is very important to me to hold strong opinions.

• I want to know exactly what is good and bad about everything. • I often prefer to remain neutral about complex issues.

• If something does not affect me, I do not usually determine if it is good or bad.

• I enjoy strongly liking and disliking new things.

• There are many things for which I do not have a preference. • It bothers me to remain neutral.

• I like to have strong opinions even when I am not personally involved. • I have many more opinions than the average person.

• I would rather have a strong opinion than no opinion at all. • I pay a lot of attention to whether things are good or bad. • I only form strong opinions when I have to.

• I like to decide that new things are really good or really bad. • I am pretty much indifferent to many important issues.

Notes: Items 2, 5, 6, 8, 9, 14, and 16 require reverse scoring and were labeled as a NEVAL(–) or “Preference for Neutrality” factor in a two-factor solution. The remaining items were labeled as a NEVAL(+) or “Need to Evaluate” factor in a two-factor solution. Items scored on 5-point scales where 1 = extremely uncharacteristic, 2 = somewhat uncharacteristic, 3 = uncertain, 4 = somewhat characteristic, and 5 = extremely characteristic