validation of the persian ori-vsf: assessing obsessive relational intrusion-victim short form in an iranian population

Background :obsessive relational intrusion (ori) refers to unwanted and repeated behaviors aimed at initiating or rekindling a relationship with someone who does not reciprocate the same level of interest. the obsessive relational intrusion-victim short form (ori-vsf) is designed to assess such intrusive experiences from the victim's perspective. objectives :the present study aimed to validate the persian version of the ori-vsf in an iranian sample by examining its psychometric properties and measurement invariance across gender. methods :a cross-sectional study was conducted between january and august 2024 in zanjan, iran. a total of 773 iranian adults (68% female; mean age = 26.45 ± 8.06) were recruited through online posters via local social networks using convenience sampling. participants completed the ori-vsf, relational rumination questionnaire (relrq), obsessive relational intrusion and celebrity stalking scale (ori&cs), depression, anxiety, and stress scales (dass-21), and the satisfaction with life scale (swls). results :confirmatory factor analysis (cfa) supported the original two-factor structure of the ori-vsf after the removal of items 1, 2, and 3 due to low factor loadings, yielding a final 20-item version with excellent fit indices [χ2 = 417.04, df = 142, p < 0.001; goodness of fit index (gfi) = 0.950, comparative fit index (cfi) = 0.960, tucker-lewis index (tli) = 0.946, root mean square error of approximation (rmsea) = 0.050]. the persian ori-vsf demonstrated strong internal consistency (cronbach's alpha = 0.919 for the total scale; 0.845 for the pursuit subscale; 0.894 for the aggression subscale). convergent and discriminant validity were supported through significant correlations with relational rumination (r = 0.275), psychological distress (r = 0.234), and life satisfaction (r = -0.149). measurement invariance analyses confirmed configural, metric, and scalar invariance across gender (δcfi ≤ 0.006, δrmsea ≤ 0.001). conclusions :the persian version of the ori-vsf is a psychometrically sound instrument for assessing ori victimization among iranian adults. its robust reliability, validity, and gender-based measurement equivalence make it suitable for use in both clinical and research contexts in persian-speaking populations.