General Information

The Beliefs Questionnaire consists of a list of 18 statements (presented in a standard order) depicting beliefs supporting aggression.

Number of Versions:	1
Version:	Beliefs Questionnaire
Author(s):	Ronald G. Slaby and Nancy G. Guerra
Date of Publication:	1988
Material(s) Needed for Test:	Instrument
Manual:	Not Available
Charge for one form or kit:	No

Purpose and Nature of Test

Construct(s) Measured:	Aggression
Population for which designed:	Age Range: 15 through 18 years old Grade Level: High School Junior to High School Senior
Method of Administration:	Group and Individual
Source of Information:	Self
Subtests and Scores:	Legitimacy of Aggression, Aggression Increases Self-Esteem, Aggresion Helps to Avoid a Negative Image, Victims Deserve Aggression, Victims Don't Suffer
Number of Items:	18
Type of Scale:	Forced choice

Technical Evaluation

Norms: 

Sample Size:	144
Population:	Adolescents incarcerated in a state juvenile correctional facility for having committed one or more criminal acts, and a sample of students attending the 11th or 12th grade of a public high school chosen for its comparability with the correctional facility in terms of geographic location, predominance of lower- and middle-class youth, and high percentage of minority youth (about 55%).
Culture/ethnicity:	African-American, Caucasian, Hispanic/Latino
SES Level:	Low to Middle

Reliability: 

Psychometric information:	Provided for Subscales.
The range of Test-Retest Value:	0.86
The range of Inter-rater reliability:	Not assessed
The range of Internal consistency:	0.37 to 0.72

Validity: 

Criterion validity data has not been presented or published in study.

Practical Evaluation

Scoring Procedure:	Manual Scoring
Examiner Qualifications and Training Required:	None
Permission Required to Use Instrument:	Yes
If yes, by whom:	Nancy G. Guerra

Notes

Original Reference(s):	Slaby, R. G., & Guerra, N. G. (1988). Cognitive mediators of aggression in adolescent offenders: 1. Assessment. Developmental Psychology, 24 (4), 580-588.
Other Reference(s):	Guerra, N. G., Slaby, R. G. (1990). Cognitive mediators of aggression in adolescent offenders. 2: Intervention. Developmental Psychology, 26 (2), 269-277.

Contact

Name:	Nancy G. Guerra
Organization:	University of California
Address:	College Building South 110
City:	Riverside
State:	CA
Zip:	92521
Phone:	(951) 827-6421
Fax:	(951) 827-7394
E-mail:	nancy.guerra@ucr.edu

Last updated by Violence Institute of New Jersey:  August 2006