Abuse Within Intimate Relationships Scale (AIRS)

Abstract

The Abuse Within Intimate Relationships Scale (AIRS) is a specialized psychological scale designed to measure the occurrence and severity of various forms of abuse experienced or perpetrated within intimate relationships. Developed by Borjesson, Aarons, and Dunn (2003), the AIRS was rigorously developed and validated using advanced statistical methods, including Confirmatory Factor Analysis. The instrument aims to provide a reliable and comprehensive assessment of relationship violence, moving beyond simple physical aggression to include dimensions of psychological coercion and control.

Keywords

Abuse Within Intimate Relationships Scale (AIRS), Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), relationship abuse, victimization, perpetration, assessment tool, psychological abuse, Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA).

Authors

Borjesson, W. I., Aarons, G. A., Dunn, M. E.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the AIRS is to standardize the measurement of abuse within intimate contexts, ensuring researchers and clinicians have a robust tool for identifying individuals involved in abusive relationships, either as victims or perpetrators. It was specifically developed to address the limitations of earlier instruments by providing a detailed, multi-faceted assessment of relational harm.

The scale is crucial for epidemiological studies of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) and for clinical settings where accurate identification of abuse is necessary for intervention planning and safety assessment. Its development focused on providing clear psychometric properties that support its use in diverse research populations.

Construct

The core construct measured by the AIRS is the spectrum of abuse experienced or enacted within a close, romantic relationship. This construct typically encompasses several domains of relationship functioning, including:

• Physical Abuse: Acts involving bodily harm or threat of harm.

• Psychological/Emotional Abuse: Behaviors designed to intimidate, control, isolate, or demean the partner, often resulting in significant emotional distress.

• Sexual Coercion: Unwanted sexual contact or pressure within the relationship.

The scale operationalizes abuse as a set of measurable behaviors rather than a subjective feeling, allowing for detailed analysis of the dynamics of intimate partner violence.

Validity

The validity of the Abuse Within Intimate Relationships Scale (AIRS) was extensively established during its development phase. The use of Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) (Borjesson et al., 2003) confirmed that the items loaded onto the intended theoretical factors, demonstrating strong construct validity.

Further evidence of validity typically includes convergent validity (showing high correlation with other established measures of relationship aggression, such as the Conflict Tactics Scale) and discriminant validity (showing lower correlation with measures of unrelated constructs). These robust psychometric properties ensure that the AIRS measures the specific dimensions of abuse it intends to assess.

Reliability

Reliability data for the AIRS, as reported in the literature, demonstrates high internal consistency, typically assessed using Cronbach’s alpha. High alpha coefficients suggest that the items within the scale are homogenous and reliably measure the same underlying construct of relationship abuse.

Test-retest reliability, which assesses the stability of scores over time, is generally expected to be high, provided that the relationship status and context of the participant have not significantly changed between assessments. This reliability is vital for clinical applications where repeated measurements are used to track intervention effectiveness.

Factor Analysis

The development of the AIRS utilized Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). CFA is a sophisticated statistical technique used to verify the factor structure of a set of observed variables, ensuring that the scale accurately reflects the underlying theoretical model of abuse (e.g., distinct factors for physical vs. psychological abuse).

Borjesson, Aarons, and Dunn (2003) specifically reported on the success of the CFA, indicating that the hypothesized factor structure—which likely separated victimization experiences from perpetration behaviors, or perhaps different types of abuse—was statistically supported by the data collected from the development sample. This robust structural validation is a hallmark of high-quality scale development.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report psychological inventory

Format: Likert-type scale or frequency-based response format

Language Available: Primarily English (as developed in the United States)

Population Group: Individuals in intimate relationships (heterosexual and potentially non-heterosexual samples)

Age Group: Adults (typically 18 years and older)

Population Details: Used in both community samples and clinical populations, including those seeking mental health services or involved in domestic violence intervention programs.

Test Methodology: Structured questionnaire requiring participants to report on specific behaviors related to abuse, either as experienced victims or as perpetrators, over a defined timeframe (e.g., the past year). Scoring involves summing or averaging responses across subscales.

Keywords

Psychological Assessment Resources (PAR), validity, reliability, relationship dynamics, abuse measurement, victimization, stalking.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not specified in source content.

Affiliation Email addresses: Not specified in source content.

Correspondence Address:
To see entire scale, obtain permission to use, and obtain scoring information, contact:
Psychological Assessment Resources, Inc.
16204 N. Florida Avenue
Lutz, FL 33549

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The scale was developed in 2003, based on work copyrighted in 2000 and 2001. Permission to use the Abuse Within Intimate Relationships Scale (AIRS) must be obtained directly from the copyright holder, Psychological Assessment Resources, Inc. (PAR).

The instrument is commercially distributed by Psychological Assessment Resources, Inc. (PAR), accessible via their website, www.parinc.com. Potential users should contact PAR directly regarding current licensing fees and specific permissions for research or clinical use.

Reference’s

Borjesson WI, Aarons GA, Dunn ME. Development and confirmatory factor analysis of the Abuse Within Intimate Relationship Scale. Journal of Interpersonal Violence 2003;18:295–309.

The instrument is also cataloged in the public health literature. This instrument can be found on page 106 of Measuring Intimate Partner Violence Victimization and Perpetration: A Compendium of Assessment Tools. The original PDF can be downloaded here: http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/pub-res/IPV_Compendium.pdf

Items of the Abuse Within Intimate Relationships Scale (AIRS)

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

• stalking Victimization
• School Abuse