| Name: | Description: | Size: | Format: | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.34 MB | Adobe PDF |
Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
This study investigated the construct validity of a proposed measure of parenting quality derived from
extensively used observational ratings of parenting in mother-child interaction procedures with 2-yearolds in two large samples. Data included global ratings of mother-child interaction in an unstructured
free-play and a semi-structured teaching task from the Behavior Outlook Norwegian Developmental
Study (N = 1157) and from the Three Boxes procedure used in the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and
Youth Development (N = 1364). Confirmatory Factor Analyses, including ratings of mothers’ sensitivity,
detachment, intrusiveness, cognitive stimulation, positive regard and negative regard, revealed a similarly structured latent parenting construct across samples and observational procedures, supporting the
structural and content validity, and the generalizability of the measure. In the Norwegian sample, better
predictive validity to child outcomes at age 4 was found from the semi-structured teaching task than
from the less structured free-play task. Comparable predictive validity to child outcomes was found for
the U.S. sample’s latent parenting quality construct. The results hold implications for the careful selection
and study of observational procedures for measuring parenting quality in early childhood.
Description
Keywords
Parenting quality Construct validity Observational methods Structured interaction Measurement model
Pedagogical Context
Citation
Nordahl, K. B., Owen, M. T., Ribeiro, L. A., & Zachrisson, H. D. (2020). Parenting quality from observational ratings at age 2: validation from Norwegian and US Samples. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 53, 379-390
Publisher
Elsevier