Psychometric Properties of a Screening Instrument for Domestic Violence in a Sample of Iranian Women

Abstract

BackgroundDomestic violence against women is regarded as an important health problem among women and a serious concern in issues related to human rights. To date, a few screening tools for domestic violence exist for Iranian married women, but they assess only some of the domestic violence components.ObjectivesThe present study aimed to design and determine the validity and reliability of a screening instrument for domestic violence in a sample of Iranian women.Materials and MethodsThe present study was a cross-sectional psychometric evaluation conducted on 350 married women in Ilam, Iran, in 2014. The samples were selected through multistage sampling and the main method was cluster sampling. A 20-item, self-administered questionnaire was validated by exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). An Eigen value > 1 and a loading factor > 0.3 for each component were considered as indices for extracting domestic violence components. Reliability was calculated by test-retest and Cronbach’s alpha. Also, the content validity index (CVI) and content validity ratio (CVR) were used to measure content validity. The data were analyzed using SPSS-13 and LISREL 8.8 software programs.ResultsThe self-administered instrument was completed by 334 women. The CFA and EFA methods confirmed embedding items and the three-factor structure of the instrument including psychological, physical, and sexual violence, which explained 66% of the total variance of the domestic violence. The ICC and Cronbach’s alpha coefficients were > 0.7 for the components of the questionnaire. The test-retest also revealed strong correlations for each of the domestic violence components (r > 0.6).ConclusionsThe used instrument for measuring domestic violence had desirable validity and reliability and can be used as a suitable instrument in health and social researches in the local population.

Prevalence and predictability of domestic violence against Iranian women

“…This is consistent with the results of the current study, except for the negotiation violence. In a study, psychological, physical, sexual and total violence was reported 18.12%, 14.1%, 12.08%, and 44.47% respectively 12 .…”

“…Some surveys showed that women living in developing countries experience more violence than women in developed countries 8,11 . However, generally, no country is exempt from physical and psychological harm due to violence 12 .…”

Clinical Utility of the Cognitive Test for Severe Dementia: Factor Analysis, Minimal Detectable Change, and Longitudinal Changes

“…However, as it is important to evaluate test factors when interpreting results, an exploratory factor analysis was performed using principal factor analysis, and the loadings were estimated with promax rotation to determine the CTSD factor structure. An eigenvalue > 1 and a loading factor > 0.3 [ 14 ] were considered. The analyses were conducted with SPSS version 23 (IBM, Armonk, NY, USA).…”

Toward a Contextually Valid Assessment of Partner Violence: Development and Psycho-Sociometric Evaluation of the Gendered Violence in Partnerships Scale (GVPS)

“…Furthermore, acceptance of physical violence against women seems to be widespread, as 63% of women participating in a survey study conducted in Iraq indicated that they approved of the use of beatings in partnerships ( Linos et al, 2012 ). Despite its comparatively high IPV levels, the Middle East is among the regions for which very few validated IPV instruments exist ( Boy and Kulczycki, 2008 ; Azadarmaki et al, 2016 ), one of the few exceptions is the Arab version of the Composite Abuse Scale ( Alhabib et al, 2013 ). Hence, additional IPV instruments are necessary, which consider the full variety of experiences of women living in the context.…”