REVISED ATTITUDES TOWARDS VIOLENCE SCALE: Scoring version

The Revised Attitudes Towards Violence Scale (RATS) is a selfreport measure designed to assess attitudes towards violence. It is composed of 40 items that measure four distinct subscales: acceptance of violence, aggression, justification of violence, and perceived consequences of violence. The items are rated on a 5point Likert scale that ranges from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). The acceptance of violence subscale measures the extent to which an individual is willing to accept the use of violence in certain situations. The aggression subscale measures the extent to which an individual believes that aggressive behavior is a valid way of resolving conflicts. The justification of violence subscale measures the extent to which an individual believes that violence is justified in certain situations. Finally, the perceived consequences of violence subscale measures the extent to which an individual believes that violence has negative consequences. The RATS has been used in numerous studies to assess attitudes towards violence in different populations, including adolescents, college students, and adults. It has been found to have good reliability and validity, and has been used to predict aggressive behavior. The RATS can be used to identify individuals who are at risk for engaging in violent behavior, as well as to assess the effectiveness of interventions designed to reduce violent behavior.


This version was first published in Anderson‚ C.A.‚ Benjamin‚ A.J.‚ Wood‚ P.K.‚ & Bonacci‚ A.M. (2006). Development and testing of the Velicer Attitudes Toward Violence Scale: Evidence for a four-factor model. Aggressive Behavior‚ 32‚ 122-136.

 Please indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with the following statements. Write the number corresponding
to your level of agreement or disagreement in the blank line in front of each item.
Please indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with the following statements. Write the number corresponding
to your level of agreement or disagreement in the blank line in front of each item.
1 = Strongly Disagree
2 = Disagree
3 = Neither Agree or Disagree
4 = Agree
5 = Strongly Agree
____ 1. War is often necessary.
____ 2. Any nation should be ready with a strong military at all times.
____ 3. Children should be spanked for temper tantrums.
____ 4. Any prisoner deserves to be mistreated by other prisoners in jail.
____ 5. Violence against the enemy should be part of every nation’s defense.
____ 6. Prisoners should have more sever labor sentences than they do.
____ 7. Killing of civilians should be accepted as an unavoidable part of war.
____ 8. No matter how severe the crime‚ one should pay an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.”
____ 9. Punishing a child physically when she/she deserves it will make him/her a responsible and mature adult.
____ 10. Violent crimes should be punished violently.
____ 11. Our country has the right to protect is borders forcefully.
____ 12. The manufacture of weapons is necessary.
____ 13. It is all right for a partner to choke the other if insulted or ridiculed.
____ 14. The death penalty should be a part of every penal code.
____ 15. Prisoners should never get out of their sentence for good behavior.
____ 16. Universities should use armed police against students who destroy university property.
____ 17. Giving mischievous children a quick slap is the best way to quickly end trouble.
____ 18. It is all right for a partner to slap the other’s face if insulted or ridiculed.
____ 19. Capital punishment is often necessary.
____ 20. Our country should be aggressive with its military internationally.
____ 21. A violent revolution can be perfectly right.
____ 22. A parent hitting a child when he/she does something bad on purpose teaches the child a good lesson.
____ 23. A child’s habitual disobedience should be punished physically.
____ 24. It is all right for a partner to slap the other’s face if challenged.
____ 25. Partners should work things out together even if it takes violence
____ 26. The male should not allow the female the same amount of freedom as he has.
____ 27. An adult should beat a child with a strap or stick for being expelled.
____ 28. Young children who refuse to obey should be whipped.
____ 29. It is all right for a partner to choke the other if they hit a child.
____ 30. It is all right to coerce one’s partner into ha‎ving sex when they are not willing by forcing them.
____ 31. Every nation should have a war industry.
____ 32. It is all right for a partner to shoot the other if they flirt with others.
____ 33. A teacher hitting a child when he/she does something bad on purpose teaches the child a good lesson.
____ 34. War in self-defense is perfectly all right.
____ 35. The partner is the appropriate one to take out the frustrations of the day on.
____ 36. It is all right for a partner to shoot the other if they are unfaithful.
____ 37. War can be just.
____38. It is all right to coerce one’s partner into ha‎ving sex when they are not willing by giving the other alcohol or
drugs.
____ 39. The dominant partner should keep control by using violence.
 
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