Measuring Social Support in Battered Women: Factor Structure of the Interpersonal Support Evaluation List (ISEL)

• NCJ Number: 239188
• Journal: Violence Against Women Volume: 18 Issue: 1 Dated: January 2012 Pages: 30-43
• Author(s): Emily M. Bauman; David A. F. Haaga; Stacy Kaltman; Mary Ann Dutton
• Date Published: January 2012
• Length: 14 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2001-WT-BX-0001
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Program/Project Evaluation
• Award: Ecological Model of Battered Women's Experience Over Time

Annotation

This study examined if social support is related to mental health outcomes among battered women.

Abstract

Social support is related to mental health outcomes among battered women. It is unclear, however, whether researchers should measure social support as a unidimensional or multidimensional concept. Efforts to identify the latent dimensions underlying a common measure of social support, the Interpersonal Support Evaluation List (ISEL), have yielded inconsistent results. This study used exploratory factor analytic procedures to determine the most appropriate factor structure for the ISEL. The ISEL was completed by two samples (one help seeking, one non-help seeking) of primarily African-American, low-income battered women who had experienced intimate partner violence (IPV) within the previous year. Results indicated that social support in battered women is best conceptualized as unidimensional. (Published Abstract)