Development of the psychosocial status assessment scale for parents (1–3 years of age): Validity and reliability study

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to develop and evaluate the validity and reliability of the psychosocial status assessment scale for parents with children aged 1 to 3 years. Design and method: This study was conducted with 336 parents with children aged 1 to 3 between November 15 and December 15, 2022. Data were collected using the Parent and Child Descriptive Data Form and the Psychosocial Status Assessment Form for Parents (1–3 years of age). The validity of the scale was tested with content validity and construct validity. To determine the reliability of the scale, the test-retest, Cronbach's alpha reliability coefficient, and item total score correlation coefficient were examined. Results: The scale showed a total explained variance of 44%. Factor loadings were found to be higher than 0.30 in both explanatory and confirmatory factor analyses. Explanatory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis fit indexes of the scale, which consists of four factors with a total of 25 items, were found as Chi-square/degree of freedom = 1.803, Root Mean Square Error of Approximation = 0.04, Comparative Fit Index = 0.90, Incremental Fit Index = 0.90, Goodness-of-Fit Index = 0.90, and Tucker–Lewis Index = 0.88. The Cronbach's alpha reliability value was 0.81, and the test-retest correlation coefficient was 0.81. Conclusions: The scale is a reliable and valid tool for assessing the psychosocial well-being of children aged 1to 3 years. Practice implications: The scale can be utilized by parents of children aged 1 to 3 years to evaluate their children's psychosocial status, providing them with valuable insights into their well-being.