The Parental Stress Scale: Initial Psychometric Evidence

TLDR

The study introduces the Parental Stress Scale, a new measure of parental stress. The scale was administered to 1,276 parents, with subsets also completing the Parenting Stress Index, Perceived Stress Scale, and emotion/role satisfaction measures, and a subgroup completing the scale twice. Analyses revealed the Parental Stress Scale to be highly reliable, valid through predicted correlations and discrimination between mothers of children with and without treatment, and to exhibit a four‑factor structure.

Abstract

The development of a measure of parental stress, the Parental Stress Scale, is presented. All participants (total N = 1276) completed the Parental Stress Scale and some also completed the Parenting Stress Index, a generic measure of stress called the Perceived Stress Scale, relevant measures of emotions and role satisfaction (e.g. loneliness, marital satisfaction, guilt, etc. ), and one group completed the Parental Stress Scale twice. Analyses suggested that the Parental Stress Scale is highly reliable, both internally and over time, and related to the general measure of stress. Also, results were consistent across parents of differing parental characteristics, suggesting the stability of scale characteristics. The validity of Parental Stress Scale scores was supported by predicted correlations with measures of relevant emotions and role satisfaction and significant discrimination between mothers of children in treatment for emotional/behavioral problems and developmental disabilities vs mothers of children not receiving treatment. Finally, a factor analysis suggested that a 4-factor structure underlies responses to the Parental Stress Scale, despite its high internal reliability.