Parenting Sense of Competence Scale – PSOC
Measures parents' self-perceived competence, including their feelings of satisfaction and efficacy in the parenting role.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The Parenting Sense of Competence Scale – PSOC was developed by Gibaud-Wallston, J., & Wandersman, L. P. (1978). It is designed to measure Parenting Sense of Competence. The scale is intended for use with Parents.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 17 items organized into 2 factors/subscales: Efficacy, Satisfaction.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| Efficacy | 1,6,7,10,11,13,15 | 7 |
| Satisfaction | 2,3,4,5,8,9,12,14,16,17 | 10 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 1 = Strongly Disagree, 2 = Somewhat Disagree, 3 = Disagree, 4 = Agree, 5 = Somewhat Agree, 6 = Strongly Agree.
The scale includes 9 reverse-scored items to reduce acquiescence bias.
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Total scores range from 17 to 102. Interpretation guidelines:
- Low Parenting Sense of Competence: 17 – 45
- Moderate Parenting Sense of Competence: 46 – 73
- High Parenting Sense of Competence: 74 – 102
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of Alpha values typically range from 0.75 to 0.88 for the subscales..
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 5 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.