Development and Psychometric Validation of the Limov Scale for Assessing Sexual Function in Women Experiencing Domestic Violence

Background: Domestic violence is a major public health problem with profound physical, psychological, and reproductive health consequences for women. Despite its significant impact, the limited availability of specific, culturally relevant, and practical instruments for assessing sexual function remains a barrier to early detection in primary health care settings. This study aimed to develop and evaluate the validity and reliability of the Limov Scale for measuring sexual function in women experiencing domestic violence. Methods: A quantitative research and development (R&D) design was employed. The Limov Scale was validated in a sample of 70 women aged 20–45 years with a history of domestic violence, recruited using purposive sampling. This study developed and validated the 17-item Limov Scale, which uses a 3-point response format. Psychometric evaluations were conducted to establish the scale's construct validity and internal consistency. Results: Content validity analysis yielded an Item Content Validity Index (I-CVI) of 0.80 and a Scale Content Validity Index (S-CVI) of 0.91. Construct validity was supported by a Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) value of 0.88 and a significant Bartlett's Test of Sphericity (p < 0.05), confirming the data's suitability for factor analysis. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) revealed two factors with eigenvalues > 1, explaining 64,63% of the total variance. The extraction communalities ranged from 0.411 (item v13) to 0.770 (item v3), demonstrating that all items retained substantial variance. Furthermore, the direct oblimin rotation revealed an inter-factor correlation of 0.304, justifying the use of an oblique rotation method. Conclusion: The Limov Scale demonstrates promising preliminary validity and reliability for assessing sexual function in women experiencing domestic violence.