Revised Attitudes Towards Violence Scale – RATS
A self-report measure designed to assess attitudes towards violence across multiple domains including war, corporal punishment, domestic violence, and penal code violence.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The Revised Attitudes Towards Violence Scale – RATS was developed by Craig A. Anderson, Arlin J. Benjamin, Phillip K. Wood, & Aaron M. Bonacci (2006). It is designed to measure Attitudes towards violence. The scale is intended for use with Adolescents, college students, and adults.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 39 items organized into 4 factors/subscales: War, Corporal Punishment, Domestic Violence, Penal Code Violence.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| War | 1,2,5,7,11,12,20,21,31,34,37 | 11 |
| Corporal Punishment | 3,9,17,22,23,27,28,33 | 8 |
| Domestic Violence | 13,18,24,25,26,29,30,32,35,36,38,39 | 12 |
| Penal Code Violence | 4,6,8,10,14,15,16,19 | 8 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a 5-point Likert scale (1 = Strongly Disagree to 5 = Strongly Agree).
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Total scores range from 39 to 195. Interpretation guidelines:
- Low acceptance of violence: 39 – 78
- Moderate acceptance of violence: 79 – 156
- High acceptance of violence: 157 – 195
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of Good reliability and validity.
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 10 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.