Development and Psychometric Properties of the Hate-Motivated Behavior Checklist (HMBC)

AuthorRobert J. Cramer,Jason Marsden,Andre Kehn,Cynthia Deitle,Richard c. Fording,Matt R. Nobles,Shelley Smart,Angela King,Stephen M. Griffin,Mariah Sorby,Molly M. Long
Date01 November 2021
Published date01 November 2021
DOI10.1177/00938548211015703
Subject MatterArticles
CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND BEHAVIOR, 2021, Vol. 48, No. 11, November 2021, 1652 –1673.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/00938548211015703
Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions
© 2021 International Association for Correctional and Forensic Psychology
1652
DEVELOPMENT AND PSYCHOMETRIC
PROPERTIES OF THE HATE-MOTIVATED
BEHAVIOR CHECKLIST (HMBC)
ROBERT J. CRAMER
The University of North Carolina at Charlotte
ANDRE KEHN
MARIAH SORBY
University of North Dakota
MATT R. NOBLES
University of Central Florida
MOLLY M. LONG
University of Kentucky
JASON MARSDEN
CYNTHIA DEITLE
Matthew Shepard Foundation
STEPHEN M. GRIFFIN
Strategic Policy Advising LLC
ANGELA KING
SHELLEY SMART
Life After Hate
RICHARD C. FORDING
The University of Alabama
Hate-motivated behavior (HMB) in criminal and noncriminal forms is a public health dilemma. This study is an advanced
measurement of the perpetration of HMB through development of the Hate-Motivated Behavior Checklist (HMBC). Through
a cross-sectional online-administered survey of adults (N = 289), we examined: (a) factor structure and internal consistency
of HMBC behaviors, (b) descriptive patterns of targeted groups and motivations for HMB, and (c) correlates of HMBC
behaviors. Findings support a single-factor HMBC behaviors score with high internal consistency. HMB based on race,
ethnicity, sexual orientation, and sex were the most commonly endorsed. The most highly endorsed motivations for HMB
were perceived intrusion and perceived threat. Antigay prejudice, antilesbian prejudice, positive views of the Ku Klux Klan
(KKK) and Nazis were among significant correlates of HMB perpetration. The HMBC represents a preliminary research
measurement tool for the assessment of HMB in need of further psychometric study.
Keywords: hate crime; microaggressions; hate groups; prejudice; discrimination
AUTHORS’ NOTE: Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Robert J. Cramer,
Associate Professor & Belk Distinguished Scholar, Department of Public Health Sciences, The University of
North Carolina at Charlotte, 9201 University City Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28233; e-mail: rcramer4@uncc.edu.
1015703CJBXXX10.1177/00938548211015703Criminal Justice and BehaviorCramer et al. / Hate-Motivated Behavior Checklist
research-article2021
Cramer et al. / HATE-MOTIVATED BEHAVIOR CHECKLIST 1653
Hate-motivated behavior (HMB) is a growing public health epidemic. The scope of HMB
includes hate crimes, hate speech, and other behavior falling short of an illegal act (e.g.,
microaggressions). What subtypes of HMB share in common is that they are discriminatory
in nature, based on actual or perceived group membership of the targeted person or set of
individuals (Federal Bureau of Investigation [FBI], n.d.; Herek et al., 1999; Wong et al.,
2014). Behaviors may be verbal or nonverbal and may be enacted person-to-person or per-
son-to-property (FBI, n.d.; Sue et al., 2007). Both hate crime (e.g., Herek et al., 1999; Perry
& Alvi, 2012) and microaggression (e.g., Nadal et al., 2016; Wong et al., 2014) victimization
are associated with a host of poor psychological, social, and physical health outcomes.
Design of a comprehensive measurement instrument of HMB is important for the follow-
ing reasons. First, the HMB research currently relies on primarily federal crime reporting or
victimization survey instruments. As is demonstrated below, these approaches tend to under-
estimate HMB and fail to capture the full scope of underlying motivations. Second, a compre-
hensive instrument assessing the perpetrator’s view fills an absence in the current literature, as
existing attempts to do so are restricted to one type of victimized group. Third, a comprehen-
sive, flexible HMB assessment instrument has the potential to be applied in cross-disciplinary
research, as well as to inform areas of practice such as forensic assessment, public health
surveillance, and evaluation of future prevention and intervention programming.
This study reports on the initial development of the Hate-Motivated Behavior Checklist
(HMBC), a self-report inventory of lifetime HMBs, targeted groups, and motivations for the
behavior. This article focuses on initial measure development, factor structure and internal
consistency assessment of an HMB item set, and validity assessment with respect to individ-
ual differences typically associated with prejudice. As the HMBC is new, we first review:
(a) HMB prevalence, measurement, and motivations to set-up the rationale for the HMBC
development and (b) major correlates of HMB that drove the selection of validity correlates.
HMB PREVALENCE, MEASUREMENT, AND UNDERLYING MOTIVATIONS
The HMBC consists of three sections: (a) HMB items, (b) items listing potential targeted
victim groups, and (c) items examining potential motivations for hate-related actions.
Administration of sections follows this order because responses to sections II and III refer
back to section I. Specifically, participants report the frequency with which they engage in
each HMB (section I). Then, reflecting on answers from section I, they are asked to “please
tell us the extent to which you engaged in the actions described in section I because of how
you perceived the person’s . . . [race, ethnicity, etc.].” Thus, section II asks how frequently
HMB is based on specific demographic categories. Section III then asks “please tell us the
extent to which you engaged in the actions described in section I because . . . [insert motiva-
tion item].”
Hate crime and microaggression statistics, theory, and existing measures provide the
groundwork for development of these HMBC sections. Federal hate crime data indicate
5,818 hate crime offense incidents were documented in 2015 (FBI, 2016), and yet the total
from the recent 2018 report is 7,036 (FBI, 2019). This represents about a 17% increase in 3
years. The most commonly targeted group memberships in descending order included race/
ethnicity/birth country, religion, and sexual orientation (FBI, 2019). Almost two-thirds of
offenses were against persons, with the most common being intimidation, simple assault,
and aggravated assault. Property destruction/vandalism was also common (22% of reported

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