title: Validation of the Sexual Assault Symptom Scale II (SASS II) using a panel research design.
abstract: To examine the utility of a self-report scale of sexual assault trauma, 223 female victims were interviewed with the 43-item Sexual Assault Symptom Scale II (SASS II) at 1, 3, 7, 11, and 15 months postassault. Factor analyses using principal-components extraction with an oblimin rotation yielded 7 common factors with 31 items. The internal consistency was high for 4 factors and moderate for 2 factors. The multitrait-multimethod matrix, correlating the factor subscale scores of self-reported trauma and clinical assessment ratings, demonstrated both convergent and discriminant validity, indicating that the SASS II has construct validity. Correlations between the SASS II subscales and the intrusion subscale of the Impact of Events Scale also indicated the convergent and discriminant validity of the SASS II. Significant positive correlations between current and prior trauma levels further evidence the validity of the SASS.
authors.affiliation: University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA. ruch@hawaii.edu
authors.forename: Libby O
authors.initials: LO
authors.lastname: Ruch
authors.forename: Chang-Hwai
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000145:classification* / Q000523:psychology; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008875:Middle Aged; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000295:instrumentation*; D011788:Quality of Life; D012107:Research Design; D012647:Self-Assessment; D012742:Sex Offenses / Q000145:classification* / Q000523:psychology; D018434:Sickness Impact Profile; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D016387:Women's Health