Validation in a Latin American context of the Parenting and Family Adjustment Scale (PAFAS)

Abstract

Objective: To explore the psychometric properties of the Parenting and Family Adjustment Scale (pafas) and propose its validation in a Colombian context. Methods: Cultural adaptation and validation by experts were performed, and this version was applied to a sample of 151 caregivers of children and adolescents aged eight to thirteen years (m= 9.2; standard deviation= 3.41) to assess the language changes. Subsequently, the scales were administered to sample one (n=151) to explore the dimensionality of the scale and then confirm the proposed models in sample two (n= 130). Results: A moderate-to-high reliability was found (alpha= 0.734), which increased to 0.79 with the final version. Regarding content validity, there was good agreement among experts (Kappa index= 0.85-0.94 and Cohen’s Delta= 0.53-0.60). The final instrument consisted of 16 items in two components: parenting (57.53% of the variance), comprising the parent-child relationship and coercive parenting, and family adjustment (59.51% of the variance), comprising parental adjustment and family relationships. Correlations between these domains and the Zarit Scale were statistically significant, with correlations found between parent-child relationship (0.244), coercive parenting (0.21), and family adjustment (0.184), as well as with the phq-9, with parental adjustment (0.218) and family relationships (0.201)Conclusion: pafas is a reliable and easy-to-administer tool that can be used in family and community settings within the primary care level.