Differences in the prevalence of partner aggression according to the Revised Conflict Tactics Scale: individual and dyadic report

In the present study, the reliability and validity of the maximum dyadic report in the estimation of the prevalence of partner aggression was examined by means of the Revised Conflict Tactics Scale. The participants were 590 heterosexual couples from the Madrid Autonomous Community. The maximum dyadic report identified more aggressive behaviors and similar prevalences, in men and women, of psychological aggression (80.7% vs. 81.4%) and physical aggression (16.8% vs.17.6%), except for sexual aggression (26.8% vs.16.1%). The internal consistency of the Psychological Aggression Scale was similar and comparable in magnitude to the reliability of the perpetrators’ and the victims’ individual reports, although the same pattern was not observed in the remaining scales. The correlations between the scales of Psychological and Physical Aggression in the maximum dyadic report were significant. Lastly, the results reveal the existence of a bias in men’s and women’s self-report measures and also the relevance of the maximum dyadic report in legal and clinical contexts when assessing couples’ level of aggression.