Development and Validation of Extremism and Violence Risk Identification Scale

Abstract

The present study aimed to develop and validate an indigenous scale to measure risk factors associated with extremism and violence tendencies among young people from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK). The scale was constructed through successive three phases; where in phase I, 55 items were generated whilst reviewing relevant books, journals, and blog posts published on print and social media. In phase II items were tested for their face validity and comprehension and understanding by potential participants and 50 items were finalized for main study. Phase III of the study was carried out on the sample of 240 students from educational institutions in KPK. A Principal Component Analysis was performed using varimax rotation. Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure of sampling adequacy was found and Bartlett’s test of sphericity was also significant indicating appropriate values to carry out subsequent factor analysis. Resultantly, final scale comprised of 26 items with four domains identified, including uncertainty in life, lack of social support, violent aggression, and religious intolerance. Additionally newly developed Extremism and Violence Risk Identification Scale was validated with constructs of self-esteem and depression to establish discriminant and convergent validity, respectively.