Expectations test: trauma scales for sexual abuse, physical abuse, exposure to family violence, and posttraumatic stress.

Abstract

Gully's 2000 Expectations Test was developed as a tool to use with children ages 4 through 17 to measure social information processing. Prior research suggested it could help identify abused and emotionally traumatized children. Results from regression analyses were used to develop four scales that could be calculated simply. Prior research demonstrated excellent interrater reliability for the variables from the Expectations Test used in the regression analyses. The minimum Cronbach's alpha for any scale is .75. The minimum test-retest reliability is .88. Classification results indicated each scale can provide data to help evaluate children: Sexual Abuse Scale (sensitivity = 81% and specificity = 78%), Physical Abuse Scale (84% and 78%), Exposure to Family Violence Scale (65% and 63%), and Posttraumatic Stress Scale (86% and 54%). However, careful attention needs to be given to the potential limitations of these scales to prevent their misuse.