Clashes between a star player on a championship team who expresses no affection, and a coach who craves it, are predictable- without a crystal ball. And what we see in the corporate world is that a CEO who dominates control but refuses to include board members in their vision can similarly be predicted by The FIRO-B.

After measuring how a person’s interpersonal needs influence their communication style and behavior toward others, the FIRO-B (Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation-Behavior) assesses three core dimensions. Inclusion, Control, and Affection, which are behaviors that are ‘Expressed’ (What people want for themselves) or ‘Wanted’ (What people want from others) in each dimension, and the FIRO-B rates these to predict how people would likely interact, communicate, and work together.

The FIRO-B is a tool for make-or-break decisions that can deliver an uncommonly high Return on Investment, whether in corporate, social, personal or other environments where diverse characters strive for a common goal.

What are the 3 interpersonal needs of FIRO-B?

Developed by William C. Schutz, the influential American psychologist and pioneer of the human potential and encounter group movements, FIRO is a multi-dimensional theory of interpersonal behavior in the context of human needs.

What do people need? As Schutz observed, “People need people.” Schutz- with theories from other foundational luminaries in psychology, psychotherapy, and philosophy (who some refer to as “Fathers of Depth Psychology,” including Freud, Adorno, Adler, and Jung)- concluded that a person’s interpersonal needs could be summarized into three foundational areas. The FIRO-B test expresses these as:

• Inclusion
• Control
• Affection

The 3 Dimensions of FIRO-B

 The Need For Inclusion: “The Cool Table”

Whether it’s sitting at the cool table or vibing with the it crowd, being in the loop has always been something humans crave. For cave dwellers, being in the right group often meant you didn’t starve or leave most of the great beast you killed to rot and waste in the sun. Human connection drives us; it’s key to our survival.

And Schutz recognized this need for inclusion as a fundamental human drive to establish and maintain a satisfactory relationship with others through interaction and association. How people interacted based on this need, and how these scales helped or hindered the group as a whole, is the cornerstone of the first dimension of the FIRO-B: The need for Inclusion.

Someone fearful of being excluded, for example, would be driven by this need for inclusion to interact personally and to feel accepted and significant within the group. Schutz calls this the need for “express inclusion,” and the shy recluse, fearful of being excluded, wants to be included.

Similarly, those with the urge to be worthwhile by making others feel worthwhile- not necessarily the mailroom worker who fawns over the boss as a route to the corner office, but someone with an authentic high need to reach out to people so that they won’t feel lonely or isolated- are often extroverted.

Both Score high on the Need For Inclusion, but usually, the shy recluse rates high on Wanted Inclusion but low on Expressed Inclusion, while the extrovert rates high on Expressed Inclusion.

Wanting and Expressing Inclusion are separate issues, driven by what the person wants or needs for themselves and what they want or need from others, and other wants often dictate how they play out.

Similarly, there is a difference between Leagues and Love- or Inclusion and Affection in FIRO-B terms. Inclusion is about breadth (being in the room, being known), while affection is about depth (being liked, being close).

 

The Need For Control: “The Ladder”

According to Schutz, the interpersonal need for control is “the need to establish and maintain a satisfactory relation with people with respect to control and power.” It’s about the hierarchy, and each person’s place on the ladder.

But when it comes to control, it’s not always obvious. A submissive person can actually be the one controlling the outcome by empowering others. A quiet person with a high need to direct the activities may covertly try to lead the team and shape the outcome, or, more overt people could be less subtle- blatantly bidding to dominate and dictate the end result.

One wants to give power to others, and the other wants to get power for themselves. Both on the same team can mean constant clashes. And in both cases, it’s a need for control. One may be submissive and dependent, yet still controlling the outcome by empowering others, while the other needs to be in direct control.

This competitive symmetry is one of the most inspired parts of the FIRO-B theory.

Conflict Spotlight: Competitive Symmetry

• Friction between two people, both looking for control, usually happens in the gaps.

• Example: If Person A has a high “Wanted Control” (wants to be led) and Person B has a high “Expressed Control” (wants to lead), it’s a match. If both have high “Expressed Control,” it’s a war.

• FIRO-B can preempt these wars by identifying Interpersonal compatibility and leveraging the need for control, expressed or wanted, in team members to deliver exceptional results- and ROI for the assessment.

 

While it’s notable that a high need for both getting and giving power is not usually found in the same person, “control” and “bossiness” are not the same thing. Control isn’t always a shout; sometimes it’s a whisper. It measures the ‘who’ and ‘how’ of influence, whether that’s through direct command or strategic dependence.

 The Need For Affection: “The Couch”

The need for affection, Schutz said, is “the need to establish and maintain a satisfactory relation with others with respect to love and affection.” It’s about the feelings team members have for others in the team- and how these feelings influence outcomes.

And it is distinctly different from the need for inclusion. If Inclusion is about being invited to the party, Affection is about who you want to sit on the couch and talk to for two hours.

For example, if a person in a group seeks a positive attachment to another member, this, according to Schutz, is “a natural consequence of his need to see himself as lovable.” Positive feelings rather than achievements then gauge success, as the person takes great pleasure in making people feel nurtured and loved.

But the need to receive affection doesn’t automatically imply there’s also an urge to give it to others. Some people crave affection, but are cool and distant. The need for affection is prevalent in both, but is expressed in one and wanted in the other.

Schutz’s profile of the person with a strong need for inclusion can work two ways. In addition to wanting inclusion from others, a person may also have a high need to reach out to people to avoid feeling lonely or isolated. Both are needs for affection, but they are not the same as the need to receive recognition.

Needs vs. Skills: The Introvert’s Insight

The 3 dimensions of the FIRO-B look through the lenses of what people do (expressed behavior) and what people want from others (wanted behavior). Introverts, for example, struggle to initiate contact with others, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t want to include others or be included. They would generally love to, and many say being found and included by a kind extrovert is a blessing. Plus, they often have valuable insights gleaned from the critical art of listening.

It is vital to remember that the FIRO-B measures Needs, not Skills. An introvert might be highly skilled at public speaking (Expressed Control) but still need a high degree of solitude (Low Wanted Inclusion). Many introverts possess the critical art of listening, but they may wait to be “found” and included by a kind extrovert—a dynamic that is only understood when you look at their “Wanted” scores.

What Does The FIRO-B Measure?

Using several scales, Schutz’s FIRO theory predicts how groups would function under pressure. He identified three universal needs that drive all human interaction: Inclusion, Control, and Affection. The assessment measures interpersonal needs across these three dimensions by analyzing both ‘Expressed’ (behavior toward others) and ‘Wanted’ (behavior desired from others) scores.

What the FIRO-B then measures is these six scales:

 

DIMENSION	EXPRESSED BEHAVIOUR (What you do)	WANTED BEHAVIOUR (What you want from others)
Inclusion	How much you initiate contact with others.	How much you want others to include you.
Control	How much influence/responsibility you take.	How much leadership you want from others.
Affection	How much warmth/closeness you show to others.	How much warmth/closeness you want from others.

 

Building on Schutz’s body of work on the FIRO, psychologists Hammer and Schnell developed the statistical standard in their FIRO-B Technical Guide, providing what is regarded as psychometric proof of the theory. In their research, they found a high internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha values ranging from 0.85 to 0.96) and strong test-retest reliability.

Further research on the FIRO-B includes Macrosson’s 2000 work on the application of the FIRO-B for team dynamics and compatibility- key for successful team outcomes. Macrosson suggested that the four scales associated with Inclusion and Affection are facets of a “nurturance” superfactor. In comparison, the two Control scales represent a “dominance” superfactor.

Industrial psychologists continue to develop the FIRO-B for fit-for-purpose applications, providing increasingly reliable predictions of cohesion in the many ways humans interact. The FIRO-B is often used to build high-performance teams by aligning individuals’ needs within a group, reducing friction, and improving outcomes.

Expert Insight: Can The FIRO-B Predict Leadership Level?

A compelling study on the application of the FIRO-B published by Furnham and Crump (2015) analyzed the interpersonal needs of over 5,000 managers and non-managers. The researchers identified a distinct “leadership profile” based on The FIRO’s dimensions, suggesting that, as individuals move up the corporate ladder, their FIRO-B scores tend to shift in these predictable ways: start here

FIRO-B Rating
Effect

High expressed control Senior leaders consistently show a stronger need to influence others and take responsibility for decisions than those in entry-level roles.

Low Wanted Inclusion Senior executives often report a lower need to be “invited” or included by others. They are more comfortable operating independently and do not require constant social validation from the group.

On the “compatibility” factor, the study highlights that team friction often occurs not because of personality clashes, but because of “Competitive Symmetry,” for example, when two leaders both have high Expressed Control but low Wanted Control, leading to a struggle for dominance.

It’s significant that, when using the FIRO-B for coaching, these findings suggest that “growth” often means learning to dial your Expressed Control up or down, based on the team’s needs, rather than natural preference. This kind of self-awareness is one of the FIRO-B’s greatest strengths.

Can your FIRO-B scores change?

There are no “good” or “bad” scores; there are only preferences. Still, unlike the MBTI (which measures “inborn” type), FIRO-B measures behaviors that can shift depending on your environment or role.

FIRO scores could change depending on:
• Life Events and Trauma: Drama at home changes perspective.
• Roles/Environments: New jobs provide an opportunity to take stock of ourselves mindfully.
• Stress and Mood: We’ve all seen a ‘Control Freak’ retreat into their shell when they’re burnt out.
• Conscious Adaptation to be more effective

The context is essential. When answering the FIRO-B questions, the right answer is the honest answer at that moment. It depends on whether the assessment relates to your personal life or work life.

Using The FIRO-B

Leaders generally want to take charge but have a lower need for constant belonging compared to non-managers. Every project or endeavor requires different traits and skills to achieve a good outcome, and there are multiple equally essential configurations of FIRO-B types.

The FIRO-B’s ability to foster self-awareness is where its intrinsic, but nuanced value lies. By understanding the six FIRO-B dimensions, gaps in communication and leadership can be addressed, fostering better trust and building teams that are scientifically more likely to perform cohesively. And deliver outstanding results- whether it’s on a sports or sales team, or any other situation where outcomes depend on co-operation between more than one human contributor.