Victim Gaslighting Questionnaire
AUTHORS: Mahnoor Mahmood Bhatti, Kanwar Hamza Shuja, Muhammad Aqeel, Zainab
Bokhari, Syeda Nasreen Gulzar, Tabassum Fatima, Manahil Sama
INSTRUCTIONS: This instrument is designed to measure your daily experiences in general.
It is not a test, so there are no right or wrong answers. Please answer the questions as honestly
as possible. Using the scale below, indicate your level of agreement or disagreement in the
space which is next to each statement.
Item Strongly Disagree Undecided/ Agree Strongly
Statement Disagree Unclear Agree
No.
You constantly change your
1 words or thoughts before
speaking.
Your point of view is
2 dismissed or said to be
"wrong" completely.
You get accused for
3 "overreacting" when you try
to explain your feelings.
You apologize without
4 knowing what you did
wrong.
Most interactions leave you
5 feeling small or ashamed of
yourself.
They assign motives to your
6 actions that are opposite to
your intentions.
You often feel that you have
7 to defend your reality from
them.
Complete article available at: [Link]
0119/full/html
Cite as: Bhatti, M. M., Shuja, K. H., Aqeel, M., Bokhari, Z., Gulzar, S. N., Fatima, T., & Sama, M. (2021).
Psychometric development and validation of victim gaslighting questionnaire (VGQ): across female sample from
Pakistan. International Journal of Human Rights in Healthcare.
They make you believe that
8 nobody can be trusted
except them.
You often find them
9 denying things even when
there is proof.
You feel unsure of your
decision-making abilities
10
because of their
disagreement.
They accused you of lying
and manipulation, when in
11
reality they are the ones
doing it.
Their positive actions don't
12 complement their degrading
words.
You find yourself
questioning your beliefs and
13
opinions because of their
opposition.
You often find yourself
14 questioning your own sanity
because of their words.
Complete article available at: [Link]
0119/full/html
Cite as: Bhatti, M. M., Shuja, K. H., Aqeel, M., Bokhari, Z., Gulzar, S. N., Fatima, T., & Sama, M. (2021).
Psychometric development and validation of victim gaslighting questionnaire (VGQ): across female sample from
Pakistan. International Journal of Human Rights in Healthcare.
Scoring System
Each item is scored on a 5 likert scale scoring system from 1 to 5 (Strongly Disagree to
Strongly Agree). The higher the score the stronger the experiences of gaslighting in the
individual. There are no reverse items in the scale and the scale is comprised of two domains
given in the table below.
Item
No Domains Item Statement
No.
You often find yourself questioning your own sanity
14
because of their words.
Their positive actions don't complement their degrading
12
words.
You feel unsure of your decision-making abilities
10
because of their disagreement.
They accused you of lying and manipulation, when in
11
reality they are the ones doing it.
Peer You often find them denying things even when there is
1 9
Disagreement proof.
You often feel that you have to defend your reality from
7
them.
They assign motives to your actions that are opposite to
6
your intentions.
You find yourself questioning your beliefs and opinions
13
because of their opposition.
They make you believe that nobody can be trusted
8
except them.
You constantly change your words or thoughts before
1
speaking.
Loss of Self- Your point of view is dismissed or said to be "wrong"
2 2
Trust completely.
You get accused for "overreacting" when you try to
3
explain your feelings.
Complete article available at: [Link]
0119/full/html
Cite as: Bhatti, M. M., Shuja, K. H., Aqeel, M., Bokhari, Z., Gulzar, S. N., Fatima, T., & Sama, M. (2021).
Psychometric development and validation of victim gaslighting questionnaire (VGQ): across female sample from
Pakistan. International Journal of Human Rights in Healthcare.
4 You apologize without knowing what you did wrong.
Most interactions leave you feeling small or ashamed of
5
yourself.
Complete article available at: [Link]
0119/full/html
Cite as: Bhatti, M. M., Shuja, K. H., Aqeel, M., Bokhari, Z., Gulzar, S. N., Fatima, T., & Sama, M. (2021).
Psychometric development and validation of victim gaslighting questionnaire (VGQ): across female sample from
Pakistan. International Journal of Human Rights in Healthcare.
