Parkinsonism & Related Disorders
Volume 16, Issue 3 , Pages 181-185, March 2010

Refinement and validation of the Parental Illness Impact Scale☆

  • David Morley

      Affiliations

    • School of Psychology, Thames Valley University, Paragon House, Brentford, Middlesex TW8 9GA, UK
    • Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London WC1N 3BG, UK
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Tel.: +44 (0) 20 8209 4094.
    • ,
  • Caroline Selai

      Affiliations

    • Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London WC1N 3BG, UK
    • ,
  • Anette Schrag

      Affiliations

    • Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London WC1N 3BG, UK
    • UCL Medical School, University College London, London NW3 2PF, UK
    • ,
  • Alan J. Thompson

      Affiliations

    • Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London WC1N 3BG, UK
    • ,
  • Marjan Jahanshahi

      Affiliations

    • Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London WC1N 3BG, UK

Received 22 May 2009; received in revised form 13 October 2009; accepted 3 November 2009.

Abstract 

Objective

To refine and validate the Parental Illness Impact Scale (PIIS), a questionnaire designed specifically to measure the quality of life of adolescent and adult children of neurologically affected parents.

Methods

Key informant interviews and a literature review were conducted to ensure all relevant themes were incorporated in the revised PIIS (PIIS-R). Pre-testing was achieved through a 17 member expert panel and cognitive interviews with eight adolescent and adult children. The revised instrument was administered to 169 adolescent and adult children of people with Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis and stroke and subjected to psychometric analysis.

Results

Principal components analysis resulted in eight subscales accounting for 60.6% of explained variance. The PIIS-R showed good concurrent and discriminant validity through correlations with established measures of quality of life and psychosocial well-being. Internal consistency was high (Cronbach's α .92), and test-retest reliability values for subscales (r = .59–.74) and total score (r = .79) were moderate to high.

Conclusions

The PIIS-R is a scientifically robust measurement tool for assessing the impact of parental illness, and currently shows strong psychometric properties. Longitudinal data will be required to assess predictive validity and sensitivity to change. The instrument is available to other investigators, who are encouraged to further evaluate its scientific properties.

Keywords: Questionnaire, Validity, Reliability, Parental, Children

To access this article, please choose from the options below

Login to an existing account or Register a new account.

  • Purchase this article for 31.50 USD (You must login/register to purchase this article)

    Online access for 24 hours. The PDF version can be downloaded as your permanent record.

  • Subscribe to this title

    Get unlimited online access to this article and all other articles in this title 24/7 for one year.

  • Claim access now

    For current subscribers with Society Membership or Account Number.

  • Visit SciVerse ScienceDirect to see if you have access via your institution.
 

☆ The review of this paper was entirely handled by an Associate Editor, Vincenzo Bonifati.

PII: S1353-8020(09)00273-9

doi:10.1016/j.parkreldis.2009.11.001

Parkinsonism & Related Disorders
Volume 16, Issue 3 , Pages 181-185, March 2010

Article Tools