Development and Preliminary Validation of the Drinking Expectancy Sexual Vulnerabilities Questionnaire (DESV-Q): A Purpose-Specific Instrument for Rape-Perception Research

ABSTRACT

Background: Alcohol expectancies likely play a role in people's perceptions of alcohol-involved sexual violence. However, no appropriate measure exists to examine this link comprehensively. Objective: The aim of this research was to develop an alcohol expectancy measure which captures young adults' beliefs about alcohol's role in sexual aggression and victimization. Method: Two cross-sectional samples of young Australian adults (18–25 years) were recruited for scale development (Phase 1) and scale validation (Phase 2). In Phase 1, participants (N = 201; 38.3% males) completed an online survey with an initial pool of alcohol expectancy items stated in terms of three targets (self, men, women) to identify the scale's factor structure and most effective items. A revised alcohol expectancy scale was then administered online to 322 young adults (39.6% males) in Phase 2. To assess the predictive, convergent, and discriminant validity of the scale, participants also completed established measures of personality, social desirability, alcohol use, general and context-specific alcohol expectancies, and impulsiveness. Results: Principal axis factoring (Phase 1) and confirmatory factor analysis (Phase 2) resulted in a target-equivalent five-factor structure for the final 66-item Drinking Expectancy Sexual Vulnerabilities Questionnaire (DESV-Q). The factors were labeled (1) Sexual Coercion, (2) Sexual Vulnerability, (3) Confidence, (4) Self-Centeredness, and (5) Negative Cognitive and Behavioral Changes. The measure demonstrated effective items, high internal consistency, and satisfactory predictive, convergent, and discriminant validity. Conclusions: The DESV-Q is a purpose-specific instrument that could be used in future research to elucidate people's attributions for alcohol-involved sexual aggression and victimization.

KEYWORDS:

• Alcohol expectancy
• sexual coercion
• sexual vulnerability
• young adults
• Australia

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Louise Charlotte Starfelt

Louise Charlotte Starfelt, PhD, is a senior research assistant in the School of Psychology and Counselling, Queensland University of Technology. Her primary research interest is the social psychology of violence and she has expertise in blame attribution and third-party rape perceptions. She has worked in several research teams in the areas of social psychology and criminology. She recently commenced a role as Project Manager in the Research & Evaluation Unit, The Swedish Prison and Probation Service.

Ross McD Young

Ross McD Young, PhD, is the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology. He is a clinical psychologist with a research background in integrating genetic and environmental risks for mental illness. He was Executive Director of the Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation at Queensland University of Technology from 2006 until joining the Faculty of Health in early 2013. Professor Young has research interests in the psychological and biological factors contributing to substance misuse, and major psychiatric illness, such as schizophrenia.

Katherine M. White

Katherine M. White, PhD, is a social psychologist with expertise in attitude-behavior relations. Her research includes applications of decision-making theories and models to a range of social and health behaviors such as alcohol consumption, smoking, mobile phone use, physical activity, and helping and altruism (volunteering, donation behaviors).

Gavan Palk

Gavan Palk, PhD, is Barrister-at-Law, Forensic Psychologist and Senior Lecturer. He currently lectures and undertakes research in the injury prevention and forensic psychology at the Queensland University of Technology. He also provides professional supervision to intern trainee psychologists. His research interests include: violence prevention, alcohol and drug misuse; psychophysiology and aggression; sex offenders; drink driving recidivism; cost effectiveness of rehabilitation programs; applied traffic law, the law and indigenous issues and the neural basis of deviant sexual arousal.