A Systematic Review of the Psychometric Properties of the Sexual Relationship Power Scale in HIV/AIDS Research

Abstract

The Sexual Relationship Power Scale (SRPS) was developed over a decade ago to address the lack of reliable and valid measures of relationship power in social, behavioral and medical research. The SRPS and its two subscales (relationship control [RC], decision-making dominance [DMD]) have been used extensively in the field of HIV prevention and sexual risk behavior. We performed a systematic review of the psychometric properties of the SRPS and subscales as reported in the HIV/AIDS literature from 2000 to 2012. A total of 54 published articles were identified that reported reliability or construct validity estimates of the scales. Description of the psychometric properties of the SRPS and subscales are reported according to study population, and several cross-population trends were identified. In general, the SRPS and RC subscale exhibited sound psychometric properties across multiple study populations and research settings. By contrast, the DMD subscale had relatively weak psychometric properties, especially when used with specific populations and research settings. Factors that influenced the psychometric properties of the various scales and subscales included the study population, mean age of the sample, number of items retained in the scale, and modifications to the original scales. We conclude with recommendations for (a) the application and use of the SRPS and subscales, (b) reporting of psychometric properties of the scales in the literature, and (c) areas for future research.

Adaptation of the Sexual Relationship Power Scale to Turkish, and validity and reliability criteria of the scale in women

“…CYÜÖ, gelişmekte olan ülkelerde başta HIV/AIDS ile ilişkili durum belirleme ve girişim çalışmalarında kadınların cinsel ilişkide karar alma iktidarını saptamak için kullanılmıştır. 27 Bu çalışmanın amacı CYÜÖ'nün, Türkçeye uyarlanması, psikometrik olarak geçerlilik ve güvenilirliğinin sınanmasıdır.…”

Factors Associated with African American Women’s Sexual Health and Risk Behavior: A Mixed Methods Study

“…Both domains included on the SRPS, demonstrate good reliability and validity with conducted analyses based on factor analysis and construct validity (Matsuda et al, 2012;McMahon et al, 2014;Pulerwitz et al, 2000). Internal consistency was confirmed for SRPS subscales with an estimated Cronbach's α used as a measure of analysis (relationship control: α = 0.86; decision-making dominance: α = 0.63) (Matsuda et al, 2012;Pulerwitz et al, 2000).…”

“…Gender inequality, an important concept related to women's sexual health, has been defined as differences in power that cause inequities between men and women (McMahon, Volpe, Klostermann, Trabold, & Xue, 2014;Pulerwitz et al, 2000). Gender inequality was operationalized in this study using scores on the Sexual Relationship Power Scale (SRPS) (Pulerwitz et al, 2000).…”

“…Critical analysis conducted on the SRPS reveal the instrument to be an acceptable measure of relationship power for both men and women (Matsuda et al, 2012;McMahon et al, 2014). In addition to being developed in part for AAW, psychometric testing has been carried out on an adult sample of AAW demonstrating reliability of the overall instrument (Cronbach's α = 0.89) (Matsuda et al, 2012;McMahon et al, 2014).…”

“…In addition to being developed in part for AAW, psychometric testing has been carried out on an adult sample of AAW demonstrating reliability of the overall instrument (Cronbach's α = 0.89) (Matsuda et al, 2012;McMahon et al, 2014). The fact that the instrument reflects current sexual behaviors and attitudes has established the SRPS as a dependable measure of power in sexual relationships (Matsuda et al, 2012;McMahon et al, 2014). Both domains, relationship control and decision-making dominance will be combined to determine a total score.…”