Assertiveness Scale for Adolescents (ASA)

1. You and your best friend have four tickets for the football game. Your other two friends do not show up‚ leaving you both with an extra ticket. Your best friend says“If you give me your extra ticket‚ I will try to sell them both.” Your best friend doessell both‚ but doesn’t give you your share of the money. Would you…
A.    You accept your friend’s actions because you think that your friend earned the extra money by selling your ticket.
B.    You say calmly‚ “Give me my money”
C.    You say “You crook. I am telling you now that if you don’t give me the money it will be the end of our friendship.”
2. Your mother has sent you shopping for food. The supermarket is busy and you are waiting patiently at the check-out. Your mother has told you to hurry. Suddenly the woman behind you pushes you with her shopping cart and says “Hey‚ you don’t mind if I go first‚ do you? I’m in a hurry.” Would you…
A.    You are not happy with the way she treats you‚ but you calm yourself down and say “Okay” and let the woman go first.
B.    You push the woman’s cart and say‚ “You’ve got a nerve butting in like that‚” and refuse to give her your place in the line.
C.    You say‚ “Yes I can see that‚ but I am in a hurry too. Please wait your turn or go to another check-out.
3. A school friend of yours has been spreading lies about you. As a result‚ most of your other friends now avoid you and talk about you behind your back. Today you happen to run Into your school friend In the cafeteria. You are greeted as If nothing has happened.
A.    You talk With your friend‚ and pretend that you do not know about the lies your friend has told.
B.    You say‚ “Well‚ well‚ I’m glad I have finally caught up with you. We have a little matter to settle‚ liar.”
C.    You say‚ “I am hurt by the rumors that you have been spreading about me. I thought you were my friend‚ and I am surprised that you did this to me. If you have a reasson would like you to tell me so that we can get this matter sorted out.”
4. You often do favors for your friends One of your friends‚ however‚ requests many more favors than the others. In fact‚ you think that some of this friend’s requests are unreasonable‚ and that you are being used. Today this friend again asks for a favor.
A.    You do the favor because friendship is very important to you.
B.    You make up an excuse and tell your friend that you are too busy to help today.
C.    You say to your friend‚ “lately you have been asking for a lot of favors and somr of them are unreasonable. This time I will say no. Friendship is a two-way street.”
5. You are a member of the school basketball team The coach has promised that everyone will get a chance to play In this game. There are only five minutes left to play In the game and the coach hasn’t put you in yet.
A.    You get up‚ walk over to the coach‚ swear‚ and stomp out.
B.    You stay on the bench. You think that you can learn a lot of things by watching others play.
C.    You approach the coach and remind him that you haven’t been in the game yet.
6. Today you got back your graded test paper. After talking with your classmates‚ you feel that one of your answers was not graded fairly. Later in the day your teacher greets you in the corridor.
A.    You say‚ “Hello. By the way‚ I believe that one of my answers was not graded fairly. Could we go over this together'”
B.    You say‚ “Hello. I think you have been very unfair to me.”
C.    You don’t think that this is the time to argue over a grade so you simply say” Hi‚” and continue walking.
7. A classmate of yours missed a test and asks you for your test paper when you are walking home together. You know that the teacher is going to give the same test to those that missed the first one. You don’t think that it is fair to allow your friend to get a good grade by studying only the answers to the questions on the test.
A.    You refuse to give your test paper to your friend and say that you are no longer friends.
B.    You refuse to give your test paper to your friend and explain why you think it would be wrong for your friend to use it.
C.    Keeping a good classmate means a lot to you‚ so you give your classmate your test paper.
8. Your favorite teacher asks you to volunteer one or two hours a day to help with an extracurricular project. You are doing well in his class‚ but are behind in some of your other subjects and are afraid that you might fail.
A.    You say‚ “I will think about it.” and then do your best to avoid that teacher.
B.    You are not happy about doings It‚ but you are afraid that the teacher’s feelings will be hurt if you refuse. You agree to work on the project.
C.    You say” No‚” and explain that you would like to help‚ but you need the time to catch up on your other subjects.
9. You are ha‎ving dinner at a friend’s house. After sitting down at the table you discover that everything is served on your plate‚ including a vegetable you hate. This vegetable has made you Sick In the past. Your friend’s mother says‚ “The rule in this house is that you eat everything on your plate.”
A.    You don’t wish to cause any embarrassment at your friend’s house‚ so you force yourself to eat the vegetable.
B.    You tell her that in the past this vegetable has made you sick and that you don’t think it would be wise for you to eat it now.
C.    You say nothing‚ but to show your displeasure you get up quietly‚ leave the table‚ and go home.
10. You are standing in a line at the popcorn booth in the movie theater. The show is going to start in a few minutes and you don’t want to miss the beginning. Finally you get to the counter. As the girl is about to serve you‚ a man behind you shouts his order and the girl starts to serve him first.
A.    You simply say‚ “Sorry‚ I was next‚” and proceed to order your popcorn.
B.    You say to the man‚ “You’ve got your nerve pushing in like that‚” and then say to the girl‚ “What’s the idea of serving him first”’
C.    You are upset‚ but you wait until the girl asks for your order. You decide that you never go back to that movie theater again.
11. You buy a game at a store. When you get home you discover that some of the pieces are missing. You go back to the store to ask for a refund or a replacement. When you to the cashier about it‚ she says “That’s too bad‚” but does nothing about It.
A.    You say nothing‚ leave the store‚ and decide never to go back there again
B.    You get angry at the cashier‚ throw the game on the floor‚ and walk out
C.    You say‚ “I know It’s too bad‚ but I insist that the game be replaced or that a relfund be given.”
12. Your teacher singles you out In class by saying loudly‚ “Your answers to these problems are very similar to those of one of your classmates. I’ll let it pass this time‚ but don’t happen again.” You didn’t copy anybody’s work and your teacher is wrong in suggesting that you cheated
A.    You don’t say anything‚ pick up a book‚ and start reading it as if you had never been spoken to.
B.    You say‚ “I didn’t cheat‚ and I resent the suggestion that I did.”
C.    You are angry‚ but don’t say anything‚ hoping you will be able to get back at the teacher later.
13. You are traveling by bus to another City. The bus is crowded and you are sitting in the no smoking section. The man sitting beside you is smoking one cigarette after another. You are beginning to feel Sick.
A.    You do nothing‚ fight off the smoke and hope that the driver will come and give him a warning.
B.    You angrily stare at him and hope that he will get the message soon.
C.    You say to the man‚ “I would appreciate it if you would stop smoking because it is making me sick. You know this is a no smoking section.”
14. It is Saturday and you have just finished doings your chores. Now you would like to go out and play with your friends. Your mother‚ however‚ tells you that you are to babysit your younger sister for the afternoon.
A.    You say‚ “I would like to go out and play with my friends.”
B.    You don’t want to babysit‚ but you say‚ “Yes‚ mother”
C.    You ignore your mother’s request and walk out of the house.
15. During an exam the student behind you asks for a Kleenex Since you have some‚ you pass one back. The teacher sees this and accuses you of cheating.
A.    You are upset‚ but say‚ “I’m sorry‚” and continue working on the exam
B.    You tell the teacher that the student behind you asked for a Kleenex and that you passed one back.
C.    Realizing that only your friend can help you‚ you look back at your friend hoping that he Will speak on your behalf.
16. Your best friend has continually borrowed money from you for several days and hasn’t paid you back. Today you don’t have the money and need a dollar to buy lunch. You ask your best friend for some money and are refused.
A.    Although you are hurt‚ you say nothing and decide that this is the end of your friendship.
B.    You say‚ “Isn’t it great when you continually ask me for money and I give it to you? Well‚ from now on you can forget about asking me for any more money. “
C.    C. You say‚ “I’ve been lending money to you for several days and it bugs me that you can’t return the favor just once.”
17. You are waiting in line at a store. The customer in front of you has been chatting to the cashier for at least five minutes‚ It is almost supper lime and you are In a hurry to get home
A.    You say nothing‚ and walk out of the store‚ without getting what you came for.
B.    You interrupt the cashier and the other customer and say‚ “Hey‚ don’t you people think it’s about time that you shut up? Can’t you see that I’ve been waiting here for more than five minutes?”
C.    C. You say‚ “Excuse me‚ I have waited quite some time and would like to be served now.”
18. Today is Wednesday and your science notebook is due on Friday. One of your friends who is behind In this subject asks to borrow your notebook to catch up. You need to do some more work on the notebook yourself.
A.    You lend your notebook for the sake of your friendship even though you have more work to do on it yourself.
B.    B. You say‚ “No‚ you may not have it. I still have work to do on it before Friday.”
C.    C. You say‚ “Let me think about it‚” and then try to avoid him‚ hoping he will not ask you again.
19. You are waiting at the bus stop with a lot of packages When the bus arrives it is almost full and you are lucky to get the last seat. After you sit down you notice that you have dr‎opped one of your packages. When you leave your seat to pick it up‚ someone else takes your seat.
A.    You don’t want to make a big fuss over a seat‚ so you say nothing and stand up in the aisle.
B.    You say‚ “Excuse me‚ that’s my seat.”
C.    You stare angrily at the person‚ hoping the person will get the message and give up the seat.
20. You and your classmate have just completed a school project together. You‚ however‚ have done most of the work. The teacher is very pleased‚ especially with the drawings you did. The teacher asks which one of you did the drawings. Before you can say anything‚ your classmate claims credit for doing them.
A.    You say‚ “That’s not true. I did the drawings.”
B.    You ignore what has been said because you don’t want to embarrass your classmate in front of your teacher.
C.    C. You say to your teacher‚ “He is a liar‚” and say to your classmate‚ “I will never work on another project with you again.”
21. Your teacher has told you that you have been doing very well in class lately‚ and that your grade will go up from the B you received on your first report card. She has said that you might get an A Today you receive your final mark and discover with disbelief that it is still a B
A.    You ask the teacher why you were given a B when you were told that your grade would be higher.
B.    You accept the fact that you received only a B‚ because you feel that you must have done something recently to change the teacher’s mind
C.    C. You say nothing to your teacher‚ but spread the word among your friends that your teacher lied to you.
22 You have agreed to babysit for your neighbor for 75 cents an hour. You don’t really like the neighbor’s kids because they always give you a hard time at bedtime. Tonight is worse than usual. When your neighbor comes home‚ he says that he will pay you only 50C an hour.
A.    You say nothing‚ take the 50C an hour‚ and decide that you will never babysit his kids again.
B.    You say‚ “You promised me 75C an hour. It is only fall that you give it to me.”
C.    You accept the 50C an hour because it is better than nothing‚ and go home very unhappy.
23. You are playing baseball with your friends in the backyard. One of them accidentally breaks a neighbor’s window. Later‚ when the neighbor comes home‚ you are called over and blamed for breaking the window. Your neighbor says‚ “I know you did it. Be more careful next time. “
A.    You tell her that it was an accident‚ but that you didn’t do it.
B.    You say nothing‚ but the next day break another window on purpose.
C.    You say‚ “Okay‚” and accept the blame so that your friend will not get in trouble
24. Your mother’s friend comes over to your house and asks you to run an errand for her time to go to your swimming lesson and if you do this errand you will be late. To make matters worse‚ your mother supports her friend’s request.
A.    You refuse to do the errand‚ and tell your mother’s friend that she should do it herself.
B.    You say nothing and do the errand‚ even though you’ll be late for your swimming lesson.
C.    You tell your mother and her friend that you have a swimming lesson‚ and that you will be late if you run this errand
25. You and your two friends are hungry‚ so you go to the nearest snack bar. The waitress takes your orders-two hamburgers with the works‚ and one without onion. You hate onions. When she brings back the hamburgers‚ all three have onions on them.
A.    You say nothing‚ and scrape the onion off the hamburger.
B.    You call the waitress over and tell her that you ordered a hamburger without onion. You ask her to get another one with no onions.
C.    You get angry at the waitress and say‚ “You are dumb‚ lady. I told you I didn’t want any onions. “
26. Your best friend has asked to borrow the ring that your parents gave you for doing well in school last year. You value this ring very much and don’t want to lend it‚ even to your best friend.
A.    You say‚ “No‚ this ring is very special to me and I wouldn’t lend it to anyone.”
B.    You don’t want to hurt your friend‚ so you let your best friend borrow the ring.
C.    You say‚ “Well‚ let me think about it‚” and then try your best to avoid your friend so that you won’t have to lend the ling.
27. You are at the beach. It is very crowded but you find a very good spot and place your towel there while you go swimming. When you get back to your spot you find that someone has moved your towel and two people are lying there.
A.    You say nothing‚ pick up your towel‚ and look for another spot.
B.    You tell the people that you were there first‚ and ask them to move to another spot.
C.    You say nothing but angrily stare at them‚ hoping that they get the message and move to a different place.
28. After school you stop at the corner store to buy some candy As soon as you get outside‚ you realize that you have not been given the correct change. You go back into the store and tell the cashier‚ but are not believed.
A.    You say to the cashier‚ “You should believe me. I know that you don’t have to give me the five cents but I would appreciate it.”
B.    You tell the cashier that you will never come back to this store again‚ and that you will tell your friends not to come here‚ either.
C.    You forget about trying to correct the error‚ and tell yourself that you won’t let this happen again.
29. Your parents have just given you a new book. You proudly show it to your sister who immediately wants to borrow it for a day. You don’t want to lend it at this time because you have not had a chance to read it yourself. Your sister‚ however‚ insists on borrowing it.
A.    You tell your sister that you don’t want to lend it to her until you have had a chance to read it yourself
B.    You say nothing and give the book to your sister‚ because you do not wish to argue with her.
C.    You get angry at your sister for asking to borrow something that is yours.
30. You went with your friend to the hospital after school because your friend sprained an ankle In Phys. Ed class. You are late for dinner and your father asks you for an explanation. You tell him the truth. He calls you a liar‚ and tells you to go to your room without supper.
A.    You go to your room‚ thinking that this is the only way to keep peace in your family.
B.    You again tell your father what happened and suggest that he call the hospital and your teacher.
C.    You say to your father‚ “I’ve had enough. I don’t deserve this type of treatment. I won’t go to my room.”
31. You and your friend go over to a classmate’s home. You don’t know the classmate that well and her/his parents are not home. While watching TV the classmate offers you and your friend cigarettes. Your friend accepts and they light up. You don’t want to smoke‚ but your friend and classmate tease you and laugh.
A.    You stand firm by simply saying‚ “No‚ I don’t want to smoke‚ but I guess you’re in the mood for some jokes.”
B.    You don’t really want to‚ but you do because you don’t want them to laugh at you.
C.    You don’t say anything‚ but get up and leave the house‚ not wanting to return.
32. A close friend of yours is nominated to be captain of the basketball team. Another player‚ whom you believe would make a better captain‚ is also nominated. You are to vote by raising your hand. If you do not vote for your friend‚ you may hurt your friend’s feelings.
A.    You vote for the player who you believe will be the best captain.
B.    You don’t want your close friend to feel hurt‚ so you say “This is dumb‚ I’m not going to vote.”
C.    All of a sudden you remember that you have something else to do‚ excuse yourself‚ and say‚ “Go ahead and vote without me.”
33. You have been looking forward to going to your friend’s place after school to listen to a new record‚ and your mother has given you her permission. You rush home from school‚ dr‎op off your books‚ and are about to leave when you mother says‚ ”I’d like you to vacuum the living room. We’re going to have company tonight and I’m very busy.”
A.    You pretend that you did not hear what your mother said and walk out.
B.    You say to your mother‚ “You told me I could go out. It’s not fair to ask me to stay home at the last minute‚”
C.    You say to your mother‚ “You’re always interrupting my plans‚” and rush out the door.
 
“A”: 6‚ 10‚ 14‚ 20‚ 21‚ 23‚ 26‚ 29‚ 29‚ 31‚ and 32
“B”: 1‚ 7‚ 9‚ 12‚ 15‚ 18‚ 19‚ 22‚ 25‚ 27‚ 30‚ and 33
“C”: 2‚ 3‚ 4‚ 5‚ 8‚ 11‚ 13‚ 16‚ 17‚ and 24
 
This instrument can be found in: Fischer‚ Joel.‚ Corcoran‚ Kevin J. (2007 ). Measures for Clinical Practice and research: A sourcebook. (4th ed.). NY. Oxford University Pr. Vol. 1‚ Page (s): 427-434.

Lee‚ D. Y.‚ Hallberg‚ E. T.‚ Slemon‚ A. G.‚ & Hasse‚ R. F.(1985). An assertiveness scale for adolescents. Clinical Psychology‚ 41(1)‚ 51–57

Lee‚ Hallberg‚ Slemon‚ & Hasse. (1985). Assertiveness Scale for Adolescents (ASA). In Fischer‚ Joel.‚ Corcoran‚ Kevin J. (2007 ). Measures for Clinical Practice and research: A sourcebook. (4th ed.). NY. Oxford University Pr. Vol. 1‚ Page (s): 427-434.

Amani hafshejani‚ Zohreh.‚ Fatehizade‚ Maryam.‚ and Yousefi‚ Zahra. (2013). The multiple relations between attachment styles and big five personality traits with assertiveness in a sample of Iranian girl. Journal of Education Research and Behavioral Sciences‚ 2(10)‚ 161-166.

Ghavami‚ Marjan.‚  Emami‚ Maide.‚ Bonakdar‚ Seyed Akbar. (2014).  Effectiveness of Narrative Therapy on the Increase of Self-Assertiveness in Female High School Students (Case Study: Iran (Isfahan)). International Journal of Academic Research in Psychology‚ 1(2)‚ 105-111.

 
 
 
x