The development of FIBEL follows the principles of classical test theory (e.g.,
Lienert & Raatz, 1998). Since there is no solid theory of social competencies in the
teaching profession, we used an explorative approach. In a fi rst step, a workshop
with 10 teachers from three different types of schools and with different hierarchical
positions was organized in order to identify the most important competencies
for the teaching profession. The group consisted of highly respected teachers
with successful teaching careers. A requirement analysis according to Flanagan’s
Critical Incident Technique (Flanagan, 1954) was carried out: Each participant of
the workshop generated success-critical situations from everyday working life in
a one-to-one interview and subsequently described good or bad behavior, which
might be shown by a teacher in such situations. All behavior descriptions were later
discussed in the plenum and were qualitatively grouped with the result of obtaining
10 competency dimensions to be measured by means of FIBEL: organizational
skills, perception complexity, ability to work under pressure, innovation
motivation, self-expression, self-assuredness, assertiveness, willingness to cooperate,
prosociality, readiness to educate (defi nitions see Table 3). With the exception
of organizational skills, ability to work under pressure, innovation motivation
and self-assuredness, they are all competencies within the construct range of social
competencies in the narrower sense of the term (see Kanning 2005).
In a second step, items were devised to register the competency dimensions
and were subsequently integrated into reliable scales in the course of an empirical
study (two studies). During the process, the items were drastically reduced (see
Table 2). Items have the form of statements (see Table 2) and are answered by