The Brief Aggression Questionnaire: Structure, Validity, Reliability, and Generalizability

Abstract

In contexts that increasingly demand brief self-report measures (e.g., experience sampling, longitudinal and field studies), researchers seek succinct surveys that maintain reliability and validity. One such measure is the 12-item Brief Aggression Questionnaire (BAQ; Webster et al., 2014), which uses 4 3-item subscales: Physical Aggression, Verbal Aggression, Anger, and Hostility. Although prior work suggests the BAQ's scores are reliable and valid, we addressed some lingering concerns. Across 3 studies (N = 1,279), we found that the BAQ had a 4-factor structure, possessed long-term test-retest reliability across 12 weeks, predicted differences in behavioral aggression over time in a laboratory experiment, generalized to a diverse nonstudent sample, and showed convergent validity with a displaced aggression measure. In addition, the BAQ's 3-item Anger subscale showed convergent validity with a trait anger measure. We discuss the BAQ's potential reliability, validity, limitations, and uses as an efficient measure of aggressive traits.

Schadenfreude and the spread of political misfortune

“…Our schadenfreude scale correlated positively with the six-item schadenfreude measure [11], envy, aggressive humor, and the Dark Triad traits. Aggression also correlated positively with schadenfreude: the BAQ [34,35] subscales of physical aggression, anger, and hostility correlated positively with schadenfreude, but the verbal aggression subscale did not. This null result was surprising because schadenfreude is associated with intentions to spread news of failure [10].…”

“…We measured trait aggression using the Brief Aggression Questionnaire (BAQ; [34,35]). The BAQ is a 12-item measure of individual differences in trait aggression consisting of 4 three-item subscales: physical aggression, verbal aggression, anger, and hostility.…”

An actor–partner interdependence model of the Dark Triad and aggression in couples: Relationship duration moderates the link between psychopathy and argumentativeness

“…Displaced aggression involves (a) provocation, (b) reluctance or inability to aggress against the provocation's source, and consequently (c) aggression against an uninvolved third party (Hovland & Sears, 1940). We measured it using a nine-item Brief Displaced Aggression Questionnaire (BDAQ; see Webster, DeWall, et al, 2015), which was based on the 31-item Displaced Aggression Questionnaire (Denson, Pedersen, & Miller, 2006). The BDAQ has three 3-item subscales including angry rumination ("I keep thinking about events that angered me for a long time"), revenge planning ("When someone makes me angry, I can't stop thinking about how to get back at that person"), and displaced aggression ("When feeling bad, I take it out on others").…”

Examining the link between facial affect recognition and violent offending: A comparison between web‐recruited volunteers with histories of violent and non‐violent offending

“…The BAQ is intended to be a short, but accurate research tool. Cronbach's alpha reliabilities range from .86 to .62 (Webster et al, 2014; Webster et al, 2015). Evidence of validity is high correlations with related measures of aggression such as the Buss–Durkee Hostility Inventory (BDHI; Buss & Durkee, 1957), the Trait Anger Scale (Spielberger, Jacobs, Russell, & Crane, 1983) and the Aggression Questionnaire (Buss & Perry, 1992), see Webster et al (2014, 2015) for specific correlations between measures.…”