UpStart Parent Survey: A New Psychometrically Valid Tool for the Evaluation of Prevention-focused Parenting Programs

Abstract

Parents are the most significant influence on the growth and development of young children. All parents can increase their knowledge of developmental milestones and parenting practices by participating in effective programs that offer information and support. However, there is limited outcome evaluation of programs offering these services. Prevention-focused parenting programs (P-FPPs) are key frontline services designed to educate parents and improve the overall well-being of children. Evaluation of these programs is currently weak; this is not to say they are ineffective, rather that their effectiveness has been poorly evaluated. Rigorous evaluation of P-FPPs would support informed funding and evidence-based policy decisions. The purpose of this study was to conduct a preliminary psychometric analysis of the UpStart Parent Survey (USPS)—a tool developed specifically for evaluating this type of program. Preliminary analysis revealed uni-dimensionality of each scale, strong internal consistency and temporal stability, as well as strong concurrent validity on 9 of the 11 items examined with an urban Canadian population. In its first round of psychometric evaluation, the USPS demonstrated promise as a brief, easy to administer, scientifically rigorous tool for the evaluation of prevention-focused parenting programs.

What’s Happening During Home Visits? Exploring the Relationship of Home Visiting Content and Dosage to Parenting Outcomes

“…Parenting knowledge was assessed with the UpStart Parent Survey (USPS) Parenting Knowledge/Skills subscale (Benzies et al 2013). Parenting attitudes were assessed using Corporal Punishment and Empathy subscales from the Adult Adolescent Parenting Inventory (AAPI-2; Bavolek and Keene 2001).…”

UpStart Parent Survey—Prenatal: A New Tool for Evaluating Prenatal Education Programs

“…For the Program Satisfaction scale, the internal consistency reliability was identical for the Prenatal and Early Childhood (Benzies et al., ) versions, which may reflect the fact that the items were the same on both surveys. The internal consistency reliability on the Program Satisfaction scale was slightly lower for mothers as compared to fathers.…”

“…For the Parenting Experience scale, internal consistency reliability was slightly higher for the Early Childhood version (Benzies et al., ) than the Prenatal version. The lower internal consistency reliability on the Prenatal version may reflect the idea that first‐time expectant parents may not fully comprehend the transition to the role of parenthood (Chin, Hall, & Daiches, ; May & Fletcher, ; Parfitt & Ayers, ).…”

“…To our knowledge, the UpStart Parent Survey—Prenatal is the first evaluation tool designed specifically to capture outcomes of a prenatal education program. In its first round of psychometric evaluation, the UpStart Parent Survey—Prenatal demonstrated psychometric properties that were similar to the Early Childhood version (Benzies et al., ). Internal consistency reliability was high for all three scales of the UpStart Parent Survey—Prenatal, which were demonstrated to be unidimensional.…”

“…For the Parenting Knowledge scale, internal consistency reliability was higher for the Prenatal than the Early Childhood (Benzies et al., ) version, which suggest that items on the Prenatal version more closely capture the same dimension. On the Prenatal version, reliability was similar for mothers and fathers, which suggests that the survey is reliable for use with both expectant parents.…”