Measuring insecure attachment in middle childhood: Psychometric evaluation of the short form of the Preoccupied and Avoidant Coping Questionnaire

Abstract

The short form of the Preoccupied and Avoidant Coping Questionnaire (PACQ; Younger, Corby, Perry, 2005) is a widely used self-report questionnaire measuring insecure attachment toward mother and father in middle childhood. However, its factorial structure has not yet been examined, and evidence concerning its concurrent and convergent validity is extremely sparse. In Study 1 (N = 378, M = 9.37 years), we evaluated the factorial structure of the PACQ and its measurement invariance across Italian boys and girls. In Study 2 (N = 199, M = 9.27 years), we tested the mutual associations between the PACQ and the Experiences in Close Relationships–Revised Child version (ECR-RC; Brenning, Van Petegem, Soenens, 2014), and their convergent and predictive validity. Results supported the factorial validity of the PACQ, its satisfactory internal consistency and structural invariance across child gender. However, findings lent only partial support to the association between the PACQ and the ECR-RC, and convergent and predictive validity were found only for the avoidance subscale of these questionnaires. Overall, the Italian version of the PACQ is a psychometrically sound instrument to assess insecure attachment in middle childhood, but further research is needed to shed light on the conceptual significance of the preoccupied dimension.