U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Intimate Partner Violence Control Scale: Development and Initial Testing

NCJ Number
234348
Journal
Journal of Family Violence Volume: 26 Issue: 3 Dated: April 2011 Pages: 171-184
Author(s)
Linda K. Bledsoe; Bibhuti K. Sar
Date Published
April 2011
Length
14 pages
Annotation
The purpose of this study was to conduct testing of the Intimate Partner Violence Control Scale (IPVCS).
Abstract
Although control has long been considered central to understanding intimate partner violence (IPV), there continues to be a notable lack of validated scales measuring control (e.g., Strauchler et al. Journal of Family Violence, 19(6), 339-354, 2004). The purpose of this study was to develop and empirically validate a brief assessment tool, the Intimate Partner Violence Control Scale (IPVCS), designed to measure control in the context of IPV. Data from a sample of male undergraduate and graduate students (n = 436) were used to examine the scale's properties. After reviewing theoretical conceptualizations and measurement issues of control, psychometric properties of the IPVCS and results of exploratory hypotheses tests are presented. The availability of a brief and reliable measure of control offers a tool for professionals in the judicial system, for IPV victims' advocates, and for human services workers in practice settings to adequately assess for control and fills a gap in this area of research and practice. (Published Abstract)