Abstract
The present research attempted to construct the functional flexibility index (FFI) by examining the circumplexity of the interpersonal structure. In study one, the circumplexity of Wiggin (1979) 's 16 representative interpersonal behaviour words was not replicated. In study two, the circumplexity of 85 words, which were mainly selected from Japanese researches, was confirmed and 15 representative words were selected. In study three, the FFI was constructed based on these 15 words. It was considerably reliable, however the correlations with other scales measuring the interpersonal flexibility were generally modest. In study four, a sociometric study revealed that subjects who were regarded as intimate friends or agreeable persons by more people scored higher in the FFI. These findings indicated that the FFI was reliable and valid, yet it was also suggested that the FFI might be applicable to limited samples.
