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A Methodological Study of Order Effects in Reporting Relational Aggression Experiences
Journal article   Peer reviewed

A Methodological Study of Order Effects in Reporting Relational Aggression Experiences

Jennifer M Serico, Amanda NeMoyer, Naomi E S Goldstein, Mark Houck and Stephen S Leff
Journal of interpersonal violence, pp 886260518760008-886260518760008
01 Mar 2018
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260518760008
PMID: 29514551
Featured in Collection :   UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel

Abstract

relational aggresion aggression mental health and violence bullying
Unlike the overt nature of physical aggression, which lends itself to simpler and more direct methods of investigation, the often-masked nature of relational aggression has led to difficulties and debate regarding the most effective tools of study. Given concerns with the accuracy of third-party relational aggression reports, especially as individuals age, self-report measures may be particularly useful when assessing experiences with relational aggression. However, it is important to recognize validity concerns-in particular, the potential effects of item order presentation-associated with self-report of relational aggression perpetration and victimization. To investigate this issue, surveys were administered and completed by 179 young adults randomly assigned to one of four survey conditions reflecting manipulation of item order. Survey conditions included presentation of (a) perpetration items only, (b) victimization items only, (c) perpetration items followed by victimization items, and (d) victimization items followed by perpetration items. Results revealed that participants reported perpetrating relational aggression significantly more often when asked only about perpetration or when asked about perpetration before victimization, compared with participants who were asked about victimization before perpetration. Item order manipulation did not result in significant differences in self-reported victimization experiences. Results of this study indicate a need for greater consideration of item order when conducting research using self-report data and the importance of additional investigation into which form of item presentation elicits the most accurate self-report information.

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9 Record Views
5 citations in Web of Science
4 citations in Scopus

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UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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#3 Good Health and Well-Being

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Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
Web of Science research areas
Criminology & Penology
Family Studies
Psychology, Applied
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