Modification and psychometric evaluation of the Peterson War Scale

A measure on attitudes toward war was administered to 125 student participants at a California university to assess psychometric properties for this scale for possible use in current research. A 5-point scale was substituted for the 2-point one originally. Item analysis indicated 23 of 32 items were viable. Using Cronbach reliability coefficient alpha and factor analysis, the shortened measure had an internal consistency reliability of .85. Factor analysis yielded a 4-factor structure: (1) War is Bad, (2) War is Necessary, (3) Positive Aspects of War, and (4) No Justification. These results indicate this seemingly outdated measure of war attitudes remains useful for current research purposes involving measuring attitudes toward war. However, longitudinal research is necessary.