To understand a construct means to set it within an appropriate “nomological net” of lawful relations. For measures of interpersonal constructs, the interpersonal circumplex provides a nomological system of great potential for validating constructs and their measures. Three multidimensional measures—of dependency, empathy, and narcissism–were subjected to an interpersonal analysis, and construct parameters and similarities were estimated by using formulas derived from the circumplex model. The results offered a distinctly interpersonal perspective on the construct validity of the respective measures. Expanded uses for the interpersonal circumplex are discussed.

In their seminal paper, Cronbach and Meehl (1955) set forth the “logic of construct validation” (p. 290), a logic founded on the idea that to understand a construct means to set it within a “nomological network” of lawful relations with other constructs and ultimately with observables. In essence, construct validation involves embedding constructs and their measures within a framework formed by theory—the nomological system that gives meaning to the construct. Thus, constructs are known only through the lens of a theory about the construct, and the process of validation is inseparable from that of general theory development and testing (see also Fiske, 1971, pp. 90–118; Loevinger, 1957; Messick, 1981; Nunnally, 1978, pp. 94–109; Skinner, 1986; Wiggins, 1973, pp. 398–409).

For the nearly 40 years since Cronbach and Meehl (1955) first sketched the principles of construct validation, the nomological net has served as a kind of organizing and inspirational force for the activities of test developers. Yet, for the most part, test developers have paid scant attention to