Psychometric Properties of the Parenting Efficacy Scale among Parents during the Postnatal Period in Singapore.

Parenting self-efficacy is one of the important determinants that assists smooth transition to parenthood and has an impact on the parent-child relationship. The aim of the study was to test the psychometric properties of the Parenting Efficacy Scale (PES) among multi-ethnic parents in Singapore. A descriptive correlational repeated research design was adopted to test the performance measurement among 250 fathers and mothers (125 each). To examine the test-retest reliability of the PES, 211 participants (106 fathers and 105 mothers) were retested 4 weeks after the first test. Demographics such as age, ethnicity, monthly income, gender, and education were used to test the construct validity of the PES. A confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the single factor structure for the PES, fitting both parents. The scale demonstrated good internal consistency and test-retest reliability with Cronbach’s α coefficients of 0.91 and 0.75, respectively and intraclass correlation coefficients of 0.70 and 0.71 for fathers and mothers, respectively. The PES showed good content validity with a scale content validity index of 0.85. Parenting self-efficacy was predicted by age, ethnicity, and monthly household income. The PES is a psychometrically acceptable instrument for measuring parenting self-efficacy among multi-ethnic parents in Singapore. Hence, it can be used routinely to assess parental self-efficacy during the postnatal period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]