ObjectivesApproaches to measuring intimate partner violence (IPV) in populations often privilege physical violence, with poor assessment of other experiences. This has led to underestimating the scope and impact of IPV. The aim of this study was to develop a brief, reliable and valid self-report measure of IPV that adequately captures its complexity.DesignMixed-methods instrument development and psychometric testing to evolve a brief version of the Composite Abuse Scale (CAS) using secondary data analysis and expert feedback.SettingData from 5 Canadian IPV studies; feedback from international IPV experts.Participants31 international IPV experts including academic researchers, service providers and policy actors rated CAS items via an online survey. Pooled data from 6278 adult Canadian women were used for scale development.Primary/secondary outcome measuresScale reliability and validity; robustness of subscales assessing different IPV experiences.ResultsA 15-item version of the CAS has been developed (Composite Abuse Scale (Revised)—Short Form, CASR-SF), including 12 items developed from the original CAS and 3 items suggested through expert consultation and the evolving literature. Items cover 3 abuse domains: physical, sexual and psychological, with questions asked to assess lifetime, recent and current exposure, and abuse frequency. Factor loadings for the final 3-factor solution ranged from 0.81 to 0.91 for the 6 psychological abuse items, 0.63 to 0.92 for the 4 physical abuse items, and 0.85 and 0.93 for the 2 sexual abuse items. Moderate correlations were observed between the CASR-SF and measures of depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and coercive control. Internal consistency of the CASR-SF was 0.942. These reliability and validity estimates were comparable to those obtained for the original 30-item CAS.ConclusionsThe CASR-SF is brief self-report measure of IPV experiences among women that has demonstrated initial reliability and validity and is suitable for use in population studies or other studies. Additional validation of the 15-item scale with diverse samples is required.

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This study assessed the incremental impact of performing acts of kindness, beyond the benefits seen from providing a resource booklet on stress management (that is available to all students at the host institution) with regard to the affect, social interaction anxiety, and mood of undergraduate students. This repeated-measures mixed methods study involved 69 full-time undergraduate students allocated to the intervention (kindness + stress booklet; n = 35) or comparator (stress booklet; n = 34) condition. The Brief Mood Introspection Scale, the International-Positive and Negative Affect Schedule-Short Form, and the Social Interaction Anxiety Scale-Straightforward were administered at pre-and immediate post-intervention. Inductive content analysis was performed on open-ended questions exploring participants' experiences with the study. No statistically significant results were found. Several themes highlighted self-perceived improvements in the wellbeing of intervention group participants. This study was perceived as a positive experience by many participants and demonstrated promise for a larger-scale university-based intervention. Keywords Kindness. Social interaction anxiety. Mood. Affect. Undergraduate students In recent years, the mental health of post-secondary students has been increasingly recognized as critical to understand (Auerbach et al. 2016; Blanco et al. 2008; Bruffaerts et al. 2018). This may, in part, be due to the many mental health issues that develop during young adulthood (Gibbons et al. 2018). In fact, some researchers

Purpose: Breastfeeding-related pain is commonly experienced early in the postpartum period and is an important contributor to breastfeeding cessation, yet little is known about what this pain means to women and how it is experienced. The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of the phenomenon of breastfeeding-related pain, how women experience this pain, and the meaning it holds for them. Study Design and Methods: Interpretive descriptive methods and inductive content analysis were used. Women were recruited using purposive sampling with a snowball approach. Data were collected via one-to-one interviews using a semistructured interview guide with postpartum women having experienced breastfeeding-related pain in the past 2 months. Results: Fourteen postpartum women who met inclusion criteria were interviewed. They were predominantly Caucasian, well educated, and had greater than average Canadian annual household incomes. The dominant emerging discourse revealed three key themes: (a) interplay between breastfeeding pain and context, (b) action enablers and/or barriers, and (c) breastfeeding outcomes. Clinical Implications: Breastfeeding-related pain is an unpleasant sensory and affective experience for women during the postpartum period. Availability and accessibility of breastfeeding supports are essential to enable women to achieve their breastfeeding goals. Providing anticipatory guidance may help women to cope more effectively with their breastfeeding-related pain.