NCJ Number
120989
Journal
Violence, the Family, and Society Volume: 8 Issue: 4 Dated: (July 1986) Pages: 36-51
Date Published
1986
Length
16 pages
Annotation
After reviewing the literature that supports the danger of homicide for battered women, this article describes the development of an instrument to assess the danger of homicide for such women, the results of a test to determine the reliability and validity of the instrument, and suggestions for the instrument's future use and research.
Abstract
Fifteen yes-no items in the Danger Assessment instrument are designed to help battered women analyze the precise nature of the violence directed against them and the frequency with which it has occurred. The instrument is scored by totaling the number of items that have been answered affirmatively. A total of 79 battered women completed the instrument. The instrument's reliability was assessed by using the alpha coefficient. The construct validity was assessed by predicting positive, moderate-to-strong correlations with the prevalence of conflict and severity-of-conflict tactics according to the Conflict Tactics Scale and the severity of injury using a scale adapted from Berk et al. Study results support the instrument's reliability and validity. 3 tables, 44 references.