Development and Validation of the Online and In-Person Dating App Facilitated Sexual Aggression Perpetration Scales for Men Who Have Sex with Men(O-DAFSA-P-MSM and IP-DAFSA-P-MSM)

Dating app facilitated sexual aggression (DAFSA) includes sexually aggressive behaviors that occur during online dating app communication or in-person during an initial meetup with someone from a dating app. Men who have sex with men (MSM) are at heightened risk for DAFSA; thus, validated tools are needed to better understand DAFSA in this population. The present research developed two new measures of DAFSA perpetration among MSM. The Online Dating App Facilitated Sexual Aggression Perpetration Scale for MSM (O-DAFSA-P-MSM) focuses on behaviors perpetrated during app-based communication and includes 25 items across three subscales (Threats and Aggression, Blocking and Rejection, and Message/Image-Based Harassment). The In-Person Dating App Facilitated Sexual Aggression Perpetration Scale for MSM (IP-DAFSA-P-MSM) is a unidimensional, 14-item measure of sexually aggressive behaviors perpetrated during the first in-person meeting with someone from a dating app. In Phase 1, we developed the initial set of items for each measure. In Phase 2, MSM participants (<i>N</i> = 353) completed preliminary versions of the measures, and we used exploratory factor analyses (EFAs) to refine items and establish factor structures. In Phase 3, we conducted confirmatory factor analyses in a new, independent sample of MSM (<i>N</i> = 579), which supported the proposed factor structures and demonstrated measurement invariance across Black, Hispanic/Latino, and White MSM, and across gay and bisexual MSM. Convergent validity was supported by significant positive associations between both measures and single-item indicators of DAFSA perpetration; divergent validity was supported by null or significant but small correlations with prosocial dating app behaviors. Both measures showed significant negative associations with social desirability. While average frequencies for each DAFSA-P type were generally low, initial group comparisons indicated that White MSM engaged in significantly more in-person DAFSA than Black and Hispanic/Latino MSM, and gay MSM engaged in significantly more online DAFSA (i.e. threats and aggression and message/image-based harassment) than bisexual MSM. Together, the O-DAFSA-P-MSM and IP-DAFSA-P-MSM provide critical tools that can be used to advance the study of DAFSA perpetration and inform interventions aimed at reducing DAFSA among MSM.