title: Psychometric evaluation of the stress scale for parents with cleft lip and/or palate children--a preliminary study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To develop the Stress Scale for Parents With Cleft Lip and/or Palate Children in Taiwan and to evaluate the psychometric properties of the scale with a group of parents who have children with cleft lip and/or palate.
  
  
  METHODS
  In phase 1, qualitative procedures were conducted in constructing the item pool for the Stress Scale for Parents With Cleft Lip and/or Palate Children. Psychometric properties of the scale were assessed in phase 2.
  
  
  METHODS
  Outpatient department of a children's hospital in northern Taiwan.
  
  
  METHODS
  Phase 1 included 21 parents of children with cleft lip and/or palate. Phase 2 included 184 parents of children with cleft lip and/or palate.
  
  
  METHODS
  The item pool was developed by interview, content analysis, and literature review. Problematic items were identified by item analysis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Exploratory factor analysis was used to examine the construct validity. Reliabilities were evaluated by Cronbach alpha and intraclass correlation coefficients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Thirty-three items with a content validity index greater than .80 were recognized. They were grouped into four categories by exploratory factor analysis and accounted for 42.34% of the total variance. Internal consistency reliability was high for the total scale (Cronbach α = .90) and ranged from .71 to .84 on the subscales. Test-retest reliability with intraclass correlation coefficient was .94 on the total scale (p < .0001, 95% confidence interval) and from .90 to .96 for the subscales.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The Stress Scale for Parents With Cleft Lip and/or Palate Children appears to be a reliable tool with strong evidence of content and construct validity that may be useful in assessing parental stress in the caretakers of children with cleft lip and/or palate.
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ruoh-Lih
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Lei
authors.forename: Shiaw-Ling
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Chung-Ping
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.forename: Philip Kuo-Ting
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Chi-Chun
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Chin
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002648:Child; D002654:Child Care; D002668:Child Rearing; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002971:Cleft Lip / Q000523:psychology*; D002972:Cleft Palate / Q000523:psychology*; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D007223:Infant; D007224:Infant Care; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000145:classification*; D055815:Young Adult