Psychometric Properties and Factor Analysis of a Short Form of the Multidimensional Measure of Emotional Abuse.

The 28-item Multidimensional Measure of Emotional Abuse (MMEA) assesses four common forms of emotional abuse in intimate relationships and has been used extensively to study the development of intimate partner violence (IPV), the consequences of emotional abuse, and the outcomes of IPV interventions. The current study provides psychometric analyses of a shortened version of the MMEA using self-report data from a sample of men receiving treatment at a community-based relationship violence intervention program (RVIP; N = 467) and reports from their relationship partners (N = 252), and data from a sample of undergraduate students (N = 194) who reported on their own and their partners' abusive behavior. Theoretical and statistical considerations, including internal consistency after item deletion, were used to select items for the shortened version. In the clinic sample (for self- and partner reports) and in the undergraduate sample (for self-report only), the 16-item MMEA-Short Form (MMEA-SF) retains the 4-factor structure of the 28-item MMEA. In both samples and across reporting methods (self and partner), the 16-item MMEA-SF has good internal consistency, good concurrent validity with the Revised Conflict Tactics Scales (CTS2) psychological aggression subscale, and similar correlations with CTS2 physical assault subscale as the original 28-item MMEA version. The MMEA-SF can reduce assessment burden while maintaining good domain coverage and strong psychometric properties and will be an asset to researchers and practitioners who need a brief, multifaceted measure of emotional relationship abuse in both clinic and undergraduate samples.

Anger Problems Predict Long-Term Criminal Recidivism in Partner Violent Men.

The current study investigated the influence of anger problems on partner violent men's long-term response to treatment, as indicated by criminal recidivism during an 8-year period after treatment initiation. Participants were 132 men who presented for treatment services at a community-based domestic violence agency. Results indicated that individuals with extensive anger problems had more charges for general violence (GV) offenses and more ongoing problems with protection orders than did those with Normal Anger (NA) profiles. Examinations of specific anger scales indicated that low Anger Control (LAC) and high Anger Expression predict GV recidivism. These findings indicate that a standard cognitive-behavioral treatment program may not adequately reduce the recidivism risk of partner violent men with pronounced anger problems, stress the importance of further research to understand the role of anger problems in partner violence treatment, and highlight the need to develop and evaluate new intervention approaches for partner violent men with serious anger dysregulation.