BTI

Betrayal Trauma Inventory (BTI)

Please send citations of studies using the BTI to Jennifer Freyd at jjf@dynamic.uoregon.edu

BTI History and Description

Jennifer Freyd and Anne DePrince developed the BTI in 1997. This was prior to the development of the BBTS. The first BTI participants were tested in 1998 (see Freyd, DePrince, Zurbriggen, 2001).

The BTI is a fairly lengthy self-report inventory developed from two existing, well-validated measures. Thirteen physical and 20 sexual abuse behaviorally-defined items were drawn from the Abuse and Perpetration Inventory (API; Lisak, Conklin, Hopper, Miller, Altschuler, & Smith, 2000). Because the API was originally used with men, we added 3 sexual abuse items specific to females to parallel items relevant only to males. Adult interpersonal violence and other forms of trauma (e.g., natural disasters, car accidents) were assessed using 17 items from the Life Stressor Checklist - Revised (LSC; Wolfe & Kimerling, 1997); items that did not meet the PTSD criterion for a trauma were not included in analyses (e.g., severe money stress, divorce). Because the LSC included only one emotional abuse item, we added 12 items to more fully assess childhood emotional abuse (e.g., "Before you were age 16, someone told you that if you did not do what they wanted, someone you love (for example, a sibling or pet) would be hurt or killed"). For each item reported on the trauma inventory, participants are asked to respond to a series of subquestions. Participants generally take from 30-60 mins to complete the BTI. (In comparison the BBTS takes under 10 mins to complete.)

Lisak, D., Conklin, A., Hopper, J., Miller, P., Altschuler, L., & Smith, B.M. (2000). The Abuse-Perpetration Inventory: Development of an assessment instrument for research on the cycle of violence. Family Violence & Sexual Assault Bulletin, Spring-Summer, 21-30.

Wolfe, J. & Kimerling, R. (1997). Gender issues in the assessment of posttraumatic stress disorder. In J.P. Wilson & T.M. Keane (Eds.) Assessing Psychological Trauma, New York: Guilford Press, pp. 192-238.

Dissertations and Published Studies using the BTI:

Becker-Blease, K.A., & Freyd, J.J. (2007). Dissociation and Memory for Perpetration among Convicted Sex Offenders. Co-published in Brown, L.S. & Quina, K. (Eds.). Trauma and Dissociation in Convicted Offenders: Gender, Science, and Treatment Issues. New York: Haworth Press, and a special issue of the Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 8(2), 69-80.

Freyd, J.J., DePrince, A.P., & Zurbriggen, E.L. (2001). Self-reported memory for abuse depends upon victim-perpetrator relationship. Journal of Trauma and Dissociation, 2, 5-16. [202 undergraduates completed the BTI]

DePrince, A. P. (2001). Trauma and posttraumatic responses: An examination of fear and betrayal. Doctoral dissertation, University of Oregon: Eugene, OR. [75 community participants with trauma histories completed the BTI].

Goldsmith, R.E. (2004) Physical and Emotional Healh Effects of Betrayal Trauma: A Longitudinal Study of Young Adults. Doctoral dissertation, University of Oregon: Eugene, OR. [185 participants completed it one time, and 96 returned to complete it again at follow-up]

Freyd, J.J., Klest, B., & Allard, C.B. (2005). Betrayal trauma: Relationship to physical health, psychological distress, and a written disclosure intervention. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation. [Approximately 50 of 100 community participants with health problems were randomly assigned the BTI to complete during the first session of a 4-session study, and all 80 who returned completed the BTI during the 4th session.]

Please send citations of studies using the BTI to Jennifer Freyd at jjf@dynamic.uoregon.edu

Return to BBTS Home Page

Return to
Jennifer J. Freyd home page