Psychometric properties of the parenting belief scale in a multi-country sample of parents from high-income countries

Abstract

BackgroundParents' beliefs about how private/public their parenting role is and their acceptability of the use of corporal punishment as a disciplinary measure have been associated with how parents raise their children and their willingness to seek support. However, there are no reliable and valid instruments measuring these beliefs. ObjectiveThis study evaluated the psychometric properties of the Parenting Belief Scale, a self-reported brief measure targeting parents' perception of parenting as a private concern and their attitudes towards the use of corporal punishment. Participants and settingParticipants were 6949 parents from several high-income countries (i.e., Australia, Belgium, Canada, Germany, Hong Kong, Australia, and the UK) who completed the International Parenting Survey, an online cross-sectional survey focused on parents' self-report of their parenting, children, and family. MethodsThis study evaluated the internal consistency, factor structure (i.e., exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses), and convergent and discriminant validity of the Parenting Belief Scale. ResultsFindings indicated that this scale was a relatively reliable measure to evaluate parents' perceived privacy in their role and acceptability of corporal punishment. A two-factor structure was confirmed by both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Correlations with scales of parenting practices supported the convergent and discriminant validity of the Parenting Belief Scale. ConclusionsThis study supported the use of the Parenting Belief Scale across high-income countries to evaluate parenting beliefs in influencing parenting practices and parents' help-seeking behaviours.