MENU

Partner Cyber Abuse Questionnaire

The Partner Cyber Abuse Questionnaire (PCAQ) is a 9-item self-report measure of cyber abusive acts by a partner. Cyber abuse includes harassment, monitoring, humiliation, and verbal abuse perpetrated through technology, such as cell phones, social media or electronic mail.

Categories

Geographies Tested: United States of America

Populations Included: Female, Male

Age Range: Adolescents, Adults

Items:

Instructions: Participants are instructed to answer each question in regard to their current romantic relationship.

  1. My partner sent messages from my Facebook profile without my permission
  2. My partner wrote something negative about me on social media such as Facebook or Twitter when he was angry.
  3. My partner sent angry or insulting text messages to me.
  4. My partner forwarded embarrassing online or text messages or pictures about me.
  5. My partner changed my password so I couldn’t access my (or our) accounts, such as bank or credit card accounts.
  6. My partner checked or read my emails or texts without my permission.
  7. My partner monitored my profile or used phone applications as a way to keep tabs on me.
  8. My partner sent me frequent emails or texts when he knew I didn’t want them.
  9. My partner checked up on my location by getting me to send cell phone pictures of where I was.

Response options: A 6-point Likert scale ranging from 0 (“never”) to 5 (“five or more times”).

Scoring Procedures

The PCAQ score is computed from the sum of participants’ responses to all the nine items; higher scores refer to higher partner cyber abuse.

Original Citation

Wolford-Clevenger, C., Zapor, H., Brasfield, H., Febres, J., Elmquist, J., Brem, M., Shorey, R. C., & Stuart, G. L. (2016). An examination of the Partner Cyber Abuse Questionnaire in a college student sample. Psychology of Violence, 6(1), 156. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0039442


Psychometric Score

Ease of Use Score

Scoring breakdown

Formative Research

Qualitative Research

Existing Literature/Theoretical Framework

Field Expert Input

Cognitive Interviews / Pilot Testing

Reliability

Internal

Test-retest

Interrater

Validity

Content

Face

Criterion (gold-standard)

Construct

KEY

Ease of Use

Readability

Scoring Clarity

Length

Join the EMERGE Community

to get the latest updates on new measures and guidance for survey researchers