The Quality of Parental Responsiveness: The Validity and Reliability of a New Observational Measure

Abstract

La calidad del cuidado materno es una de las variables más relacionadas con el vínculo de apego en los niños y, por ello, objeto de mejora en muchas intervenciones familiares. El objetivo de esta investigación es validar una nueva medida observacional que evalúa la calidad de la responsividad parental (CRP). Los análisis se realizaron con una muestra de 50 participantes. La estructura interna se evaluó a través de un análisis exploratorio (análisis de conglomerados) y arrojó 5 conglomerados. Todos ellos, salvo uno, ofrecen buenos índices de fiabilidad. La fiabilidad interjueces es superior a 0,90 y la relación con otras variables como el estilo de apego adulto y el estrés parental apoyan su validez de criterio. El instrumento CRP promete ser una herramienta útil en la evaluación de la calidad de la responsividad parental para padres con niños entre 1 y 6 años.

The quality of parental responsiveness is one of the most influential di-mensions in child attachment and is, therefore, the target of many family interventions. The purpose of this pilot study was to provide a prelimi-nary validation of the Parental Responsiveness Quality (PRQ). This new observational measure tries to solve some of the limitations of the most commonly used previous instruments. The analyses were performed on a sample of 50 parent-child dyads. The internal structure was evaluat-ed through an exploratory analysis (cluster analysis), which yielded five clusters. Four of them provided good reliability rates. Interjudge reliabil-ity was higher than .90, and the relationship with other variables, such as adult attachment style and parental stress, provides preliminary support for the measure’s criterion validity. The PRQ measure promises to be a valuable tool in the evaluation of the quality of parental responsiveness among families with children between 1 and 6 years of age.