Gender Dynamics in Rape Myth Acceptance: A Psychometric Evaluation of the IRMA-S “She Asked For It” Subscale in Spanish

Authors

  • Carmen M. Leon
    School of Law, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Albacete, Spain
  • Eva Aizpurua
    Centre for Social Survey Transformation, National Centre for Social Research, London, United Kingdom
  • Tatiana Quiñonez-Toral
    School of Law, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Albacete, Spain

Abstract

Although men consistently endorse rape myths at higher rates than women, valid gender comparisons require evidence that instruments function equivalently across groups. This study evaluates the psychometric properties and gender-based measurement invariance of the “She Asked For It” subscale from the Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance Scale-Subtle (IRMA-S) in a Spanish community sample (N = 1,003; 50.7% men). Analyses included Multi-Group Confirmatory Factor Analysis and Item Response Theory-based approaches, specifically Differential Item Functioning (DIF) and Differential Response Functioning (DRF). At the subscale level, analyses supported metric invariance and satisfactory internal consistency. However, five of six items exhibited significant DIF, predominantly uniform in nature. DRF analyses indicated that the cumulative impact of item-level DIF on expected total scores was modest, particularly for respondents with moderate levels of rape myth acceptance. These findings highlight the value of multi-method approaches to measurement invariance and underscore the need for cautious interpretation of raw gender differences in rape myth acceptance.