The Brief Aggression Questionnaire: Reliability, validity, and structure

Author

Gregory D. Webster, University of Florida
C. Nathan DeWall, University of Kentucky
Richard S. Pond, University of North Carolina - Wilmington
Timothy Deckman, University of Kentucky
Peter K. Jonason, University of Western Sydney
Bonnie M. Le
Austin Lee Nichols
Tatiana Orozco Schember
Laura C. Crysel
Benjamin S. Crosier
C. Veronica Smith
Elizabeth Layne PADDOCK, Singapore Management UniversityFollow

Publication Type

Journal Article

Version

publishedVersion

Publication Date

11-2015

Abstract

In contexts that increasingly demand brief self-report measures (e.g., experience sampling, longitudinal and field studies), researchers seek succinct surveys that maintain reliability and validity. One such measure is the 12-item Brief Aggression Questionnaire (BAQ; Webster et al., 2014), which uses 4 3-item subscales: Physical Aggression, Verbal Aggression, Anger, and Hostility. Although prior work suggests the BAQ's scores are reliable and valid, we addressed some lingering concerns. Across 3 studies (N = 1,279), we found that the BAQ had a 4-factor structure, possessed long-term test–retest reliability across 12 weeks, predicted differences in behavioral aggression over time in a laboratory experiment, generalized to a diverse nonstudent sample, and showed convergent validity with a displaced aggression measure. In addition, the BAQ's 3-item Anger subscale showed convergent validity with a trait anger measure. We discuss the BAQ's potential reliability, validity, limitations, and uses as an efficient measure of aggressive traits.

Keywords

aggression, personality, anger, measurement

Discipline

Industrial and Organizational Psychology | Organizational Behavior and Theory

Research Areas

Organisational Behaviour and Human Resources

Publication

Journal of Personality Assessment

Volume

97

Issue

6

First Page

638

Last Page

649

ISSN

0022-3891

Identifier

10.1080/00223891.2015.1044093

Publisher

Taylor & Francis

Embargo Period

11-28-2021

Citation

Webster, Gregory D.; DeWall, C. Nathan; Pond, Richard S.; Deckman, Timothy; Jonason, Peter K.; Le, Bonnie M.; Nichols, Austin Lee; Schember, Tatiana Orozco; Crysel, Laura C.; Crosier, Benjamin S.; Smith, C. Veronica; and PADDOCK, Elizabeth Layne. The Brief Aggression Questionnaire: Reliability, validity, and structure. (2015). Journal of Personality Assessment. 97, (6), 638-649.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/lkcsb_research/6847

Copyright Owner and License

Publisher

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

Additional URL

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223891.2015.1044093