Cumulative Recall Across Frequent Brief Assessments of Interpersonal Violence: Reliability and Validity

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Sociology
• Public Health

Background:

• Traditional surveys assessing interpersonal violence over long periods may lack accuracy.
• Frequent brief assessments (FBAs) are proposed as a potentially more reliable method.
• Understanding fluctuations in intimate partner violence (IPV) and related behaviors is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the convergent and lagged convergent validity of FBAs for psychological and physical IPV, stalking, and nonconsensual sexual contact.
• To determine if FBA-based measures explain additional variance in individual and relationship functioning compared to traditional surveys.
• To assess the utility of FBAs in capturing dynamic patterns of interpersonal violence.

Main Methods:

• A representative sample of young adults transitioning from high school was recruited.
• Participants completed enrollment surveys, with some randomly assigned to FBAs of interpersonal violence.
• All participants completed a 6-month retrospective survey including measures of individual and relationship functioning.

Main Results:

• Cumulative FBA measures demonstrated excellent convergent validity and good lagged convergent validity.
• FBAs showed significant incremental validity, particularly for IPV and relationship functioning.
• FBA-based measures accounted for additional variance in PTSD symptoms, depression, substance use, relationship satisfaction, flooding, and coercion.

Conclusions:

• FBAs are a valid and potentially superior alternative to standard surveys for assessing interpersonal violence.
• FBAs can capture dynamic changes in violence perpetration and victimization.
• This approach may enhance our understanding of the complex interplay between violence and individual/relationship outcomes.