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Quick Facts

  • Initial psychological research that the FIRO-B is based on was conducted for the United States Naval Research Labs.
  • FIRO-B is an acronym for Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation-Behavior.
  • CPP has been the exclusive publisher of the FIRO-B for over 30 years.

Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation™ (FIRO®)

The Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation™ (FIRO®) instruments help people understand their interpersonal needs and how those needs influence their communication style and behavior—and in the process improve their personal relationships and professional performance. These tools have helped individuals, teams, and organizations around the world grow and succeed by serving as a catalyst for positive behavioral change.

The FIRO assessments are based on social need theory: all living things seek equilibrium between their basic needs and getting those needs met. They address, gather, and present critical insights around these fundamental areas:

  • How you tend to behave toward others
  • How you want others to behave toward you

Explore the FIRO Model

After taking the assessment, the user receives scores indicating low, medium, or high wanted and expressed needs for each of the six elements within the below FIRO table.

Why They're Popular

The FIRO assessments are trusted tools because they:

  • Facilitate behavioral change by providing specific insights into people’s interpersonal needs
  • Identify existing communication and interpersonal dynamics—helping people overcome issues and sometimes prevent them from forming
  • Detail strengths and development recommendations
  • Are backed by excellent support and guidance through CPP’s global distributor network

  • “CPP assessments [including the FIRO-B] will continue to help us find new ways to overcome bureaucratic hurdles and get people to think and work in ways that improve the ability of the Air Force to defend our country.”

    Blaise J. Durante, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Acquisition Integration
    U.S. Air Force

  • “Our patients depend on us for high-quality, compassionate care. To accomplish this, we must develop strong leaders. The FIRO instrument supports our efforts.”

    Joan Evans, Chief Learning Officer
    Moses Cone Health System

  • “FIRO-B insights gave us the language to have delicate or more difficult conversations easily, quickly, and smoothly. Staff decisions that might have taken months were completed in a few days.”

    Katie Albright, Executive Director
    SFCAPC

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How They Help

The FIRO assessments are ideal for a wide range of applications, including the following:

  • Team building—to accelerate the team formation process and allow members to overcome barriers and progress to higher levels of performance
  • Leadership and executive development—to identify leadership styles and help leaders unlock greater team performance by meeting the interpersonal needs of managers, peers, and direct reports
  • Relationship building—to ensure that employees get the most out of working relationships by helping them understand how to meet the interpersonal needs of customers and stakeholders
  • Professional development—to increase employees’ self-awareness for better understanding of how their positive behavioral changes boost morale, productivity, and engagement
  • Conflict management—to improve skills for assessing different types of conflict and applying emotionally intelligent strategies

Featured Case Studies

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FIRO Brand Portfolio

FIRO-B® Key Highlights

The 54-item FIRO-B assessment measures interpersonal needs on three scales: Inclusion, Control, and Affection. It is of particular value because it:

  • Reveals how interpersonal needs drive people’s behavior
  • Shapes people’s ability to build trust, influence others, and create productive relationships
  • Facilitates the formation and reengagement of teams
  • Highlights perceptual gaps that may inadvertently derail relationships
  • Generates a variety of comprehensive interpretive reports to support applications

FIRO Business® Key Highlights

The 30-item FIRO Business assessment addresses the specific requirements of organizations. It helps develop professionals, thus improving organizational performance. In addition to encompassing the above benefits, it specifically measures needs in three business-focused areas: Involvement, Influence, and Connection.

FIRO Business is of particular value to organizations because it:

  • Quickly gathers key insights for relating to direct reports, superiors, and peers
  • Addresses influencing and negotiating, making decisions, and setting priorities
  • Identifies existing communication and interpersonal dynamics that affect leadership success
  • Helps people overcome workplace obstacles and/or prevent workplace issues
  • Supports professional and leadership development, coaching, and team performance initiatives
  • Generates two reports: Client Feedback Report and Coaching Report for Leaders

Get Started

There are four routes to eligibility:

  • FIRO™ Certification Program
    The FIRO® Certification Program is designed to equip you with the knowledge to guide your employees or clients toward greater self-understanding and self-awareness, improved one-to-one relationships and teamwork, and greater opportunities for leadership development. You will walk out of the program with the information and experience you need to professionally and ethically administer the FIRO-B® and FIRO Business® instruments and interpret results. Learn More »
  • On-Site FIRO™ Certification Program
    CPP offers on-site training delivery to groups of five people or more. The FIRO™ Certification Program teaches participants how to professionally and ethically use the FIRO assessments and provides them with the greatest level of expertise. Learn More »
  • Educational Eligibility
    Many practitioners are able to purchase CPP products right away by verifying their educational and/or professional license eligibility. If you hold a master’s or doctoral degree in psychology or a related field and/or hold a specific state license or national or state certification, you are considered educationally eligible. If you hold the appropriate credentials, applying for eligibility is as simple as completing a brief form. Learn more about Educational Eligibility Requirements.