The CTS2: One Size Does Not Fit All

Thesis (Ph.D.), Counseling Psychology, Washington State UniversityIntimate partner violence (IPV) victimization and perpetration has many clinical and research implications as high stakes decisions are made using data collected with IPV measures. Because of these implications, it is of utmost importance that the construct of interest is accurately measured – especially when instruments are adopted as universal assessments of violence. In the current study the psychometric properties of the Revised Conflict Tactics Scales (CTS2; Straus et al., 1996), a measure of IPV, were evaluated. The CTS2’s five-factor model (i.e., Straus' theory of violence) was also tested by imposing it upon data collected from American men and women experiencing IPV. Consequently, the data was evaluated through confirmatory and measurement invariance tests. A 10 factor model of violence, IPV perpetration and victimization, was used to conduct the confirmatory factor analyses. The results revealed that the data was a poor fit with the model across gender and type of violence experienced. Measurement invariance tests were also conducted on this data; the results indicate that gendered comparisons in this sample will be inaccurate. The study’s findings support the need to take a more critical approach toward the assessment of IPV across genders.Washington State University, Counseling Psycholog