Psychometric properties of a youth self-report measure of neglectful behavior by parents

Abstract

Objective This study aimed to empirically assess psychometric properties of a multi-dimensional youth self-report measure of neglectful behavior by parents. Method Data were gathered from 593 12-year-old youth participating in the Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN) consortium; 272 also had data at age 14. Youth responded to a 25-item measure of their experiences of neglect. Expert raters classified items into 4 factors, followed by confirmatory factor analyses. We evaluated cross group measurement equivalence by gender and longitudinal measurement equivalence from age 12 to age 14. Validity was assessed by the relationships between factor scores and (1) neglect reports to child protective services (CPS), (2) quality of parent–child interactions, and (3) parental monitoring. Results A 3-factor model (Physical Needs, Emotional Support, and Parental Monitoring) of neglect was obtained, with equivalence across gender and longitudinally (age 12–14). The pattern of correlations between the factor scores, CPS reports, and measures of the parent–child relationship offered modest to moderate support for convergent validity. Conclusions The findings suggest a promising and relatively brief youth self-report measure of neglect to help advance research in this area.