Development and validation of an intimate relationship security scale

Abstract

Relationships form an integral part of our lives, a key function being attachment. While newlineromantic relationships have mainly been studied with attachment theories as the basis,collectivistic cultures like India emphasize on togetherness more than individualism. To understand and measure security in any intimate relationship, a tool was developed, utilizing both qualitative and quantitative methods. An initial thematic analysis helped develop a basic model of relationship security that guided item generation. Items were developed to help newlinemeasure the newly operationalized construct, using stakeholders, literature review and social media. 520 participants, including both, marital and pre-marital and 7 experts, helped cut down the 206 item pool to (in the first phase of data collection) to 84 items. Exploratory factor analysis was conducted the second time on a sample of 486 participants that further narrowed down the scale to 58 items. The final confirmatory factor analysis, using SPSS AMOS, involved data collected from 408 participants. Validity, Reliability analysis and norms were developed for the final scale of 43 items.