Validation of the English Language Version of the Violent Ideations Scale

Psychometric properties of an Arabic translation of the long (12 items) and short (7 items) forms of the Violent Ideations Scale (VIS) in a non-clinical sample of adolescents

BACKGROUND

Accurately measuring violent ideations would be of particular high relevance in Arab countries, which are witnessing an unprecedented increase in violence rates among adolescents because of the widespread social, economic and political unrest in the region. Therefore, the present study aimed to test the psychometric properties of an Arabic translation of the 12-item and the 7-item forms of the Violent Ideations Scale (VIS and VIS-SF) in a sample on non-clinical Arabic-speaking adolescents.

METHODS

Five hundred seventy-seven community adolescents (mean age of 15.90 ± 1.73 years, 56.5% females) answered an anonymous online survey comprising an Arabic translation of the Violent Ideations Scale (VIS) and a measure of physical aggression.

RESULTS

Confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) offered support for the single-factor structure of the Arabic VIS and the VIS-SF. Both the long and short forms of the scale yielded excellent internal consistency, with McDonald's ω coefficients of 0.96 and 0.94 and Cronbach's α coefficients of 0.96 and 0.94, respectively. Multi-group CFA established measurement invariance across gender groups. Finally, results revealed significant and positive correlations between the two forms of the VIS and physical aggression scores, thus supporting concurrent validity.

CONCLUSION

Both the VIS and VIS-SF have demonstrated good psychometric properties in their Arabic versions, and suitability for sound assessment of violent ideations. We therefore expect that these measures assist clinicians in risk assessment and management of violence, and help foster research in this area in Arab countries.

Validation of the Violent Ideations Scale (VIS) in Spain

Research has shown that violent ideations (VIs) may play a key role in aggression and violence. However, there is no tool to measure this construct adapted to the Spanish language so far. The current study aims to translate and evaluate the psychometric properties of the Violent Ideations Scale (VIS) in European Spanish. This study counts with a convenience sample of 752 native Spaniards or Spanish speakers residing in Spain, between 18- and 75-years old, 53% identified as female and 47% identified as male. The dimensionality, gender measurement invariance, concurrent validity and reliability of scores were assessed. Initial evidence of external validity was collected. Results confirmed the unidimensionality of the instrument. Measurement invariance held across females and males and reliabilities were high. VIS-ES scores correlated with aggressive behavior during the previous month. The VIS-ES seems suitable for use in non-clinical Spanish speaking samples.

Validation of an Extended Violent Ideations Scale to Measure Both Non-Sexual and Sexual Violent Ideations (The VIS-X)

Abstract. A previous study developed and validated a multi-item instrument for the assessment of violent ideations, the “Violent Ideations Scale” (VIS). However, the final 12-item scale contained no items relating to sexual violence and was thus lacking an important dimension of violence. The current study explores an expansion of the original VIS to include ideations of sexual violence and investigates the psychometric properties of this new version: The Violent Ideations Scale-Extended (VIS-X). The VIS-X was completed by participants in the latest wave of the z-proso study ( N = 1,177; 595 females, 580 males aged 19–22 years). Exploratory factor analysis was conducted in a calibration sample and confirmatory factor analysis in a validation sample to establish a two subscale structure as optimal. Cronbach’s α and Composite Reliability suggested good internal consistency. Nomological analysis supported the convergent validity of the scores.