Acceptance of Couple Violence Scale – ACVS
Measures an individual's acceptance of violence in intimate and dating relationships.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The Acceptance of Couple Violence Scale – ACVS was developed by Vangie A. Foshee, G. F. Linder, Karl E. Bauman, S. A. Langwick, X. B. Arriaga, J. L. Heath, P. M. McMahon, & S. Bangdiwala (1996). It is designed to measure Acceptance of intimate partner violence. The scale is intended for use with Adolescents (grades 8-9).
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 11 items organized into 3 factors/subscales: Acceptance of Male on Female Violence, Acceptance of Female on Male Violence, Acceptance of General Dating Violence.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| Acceptance of Male on Female Violence | 1,3,4 | 3 |
| Acceptance of Female on Male Violence | 5,6,8 | 3 |
| Acceptance of General Dating Violence | 2,7,9,10,11 | 5 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 1 = Strongly disagree, 2 = Disagree, 3 = Agree, 4 = Strongly agree.
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Total scores range from 11 to 44. Interpretation guidelines:
- Low acceptance of couple violence: 11 – 22
- Moderate acceptance of couple violence: 23 – 33
- High acceptance of couple violence: 34 – 44
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of High internal consistency.
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 5 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.