worries about being defeated in competitions or disputes. The 14 deactivation items focus on attempts to avoid assert-
ing power and authority as well as feelings of uneasiness about competition and disputes.
Sample
Shaver et al. (2011) validated the Power Behavioral Systems Scale (PBSS) was validated on a sample of
211 female and 151 male Israeli undergraduates.
Reliability
Internal Consistency
Cronbach’s alphas were .85 for the hyperactivation items and .90 for deactivation items ( Shaver et al., 2011 ).
Test/C0Retest
Shaver et al. (2011) showed good stability of the PBSS (analyzed with a different sample) over a 4-month
test/C0retest interval, being .74 and .79, respectively, for the hyperactivation and deactivation subscales.
Validity
Convergent/Concurrent
PBSS hyperactivation correlated positively with trait anger, anger externalization, hostile outlook, rumination
on anger-related thoughts, and problems in controlling anger expression ( rsranging from .31 to .58). None of
these variables were significantly associated with PBSS deactivation. Deactivation was correlated with anger
internalization (.37). Hyperactivated power correlated positively with both ECR anxiety (.26) and avoidance (.54),
while deactivation was associated only with anxiety (.22).
Divergent/Discriminant
The pattern of results obtained by Shaver et al. (2011) suggests that power and the associated emotion of anger
do not work in the same way as attachment and caregiving.
Construct/Factor Analytic
The PBSS scales were created by subjecting an initial 50-item pool to a principal components analysis followed
by varimax rotation. A two-component structure corresponding to the constructs of hyperactivated and deacti-
vated power was obtained.
Location
Shaver, P.R., Segev, M., & Mikulincer, M. (2011). A behavioral systems perspective on power and aggression.
In P.R. Shaver & M. Mikulincer (Eds.), Human aggression and violence. Causes, manifestations, and consequences
(pp. 71 /C087). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Results and Comments
PBSS hyperactivation has been associated with reports of physical and verbal aggression, anger, and hostility;
risk of violent behavior; and abusive behavior in intimate relationships. None of these variables has been signifi-
cantly associated with deactivation. Hyperactivation has also been associated with trait anger, anger externaliza-
tion, anger arousal, hostile outlook, rumination on anger-related thoughts, and problems in controlling anger
expression. Deactivation has been significantly associated with anger internalization, suggesting that an angry
state of mind is still active despite deactivation of the power system and that anger-related feelings are directed
toward the self rather than other people.
Finally, both hyperactivation and deactivation have been associated with lower scores on measures of feelings
of dominance and power, implying that these orientations are two different ways of coping with lack of power.
In addition, deactivation but not hyperactivation is associated with measures of submissiveness and self-abase-
ment, indicating that people who score high on deactivation of the power system suppress their own needs and
desires while deferring to others.
Hyperactivated power was associated significantly with both ECR anxiety and avoidance, and deactivation was
associated only with anxiety. These results are quite different from ones for other behavioral systems measures, sug-
gesting that power and the associated emotion of anger do not work in the same way as, for example, caregiving.444 15. MEASURES OF ADULT ATTACHMENT AND RELATED CONSTRUCTS
IV. INTERPERSONAL STYLES