To develop a valid and reliable measure to assess parents' perceived ability to control, or manage, aspects of their children's juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA).
Construction of the Parent's Arthritis Self-Efficacy Scale (PASE) was based on existing knowledge and the results of focus groups with parents of children with JIA, children with JIA, and health professionals. Data for validation of the PASE were collected by self-administered questionnaires completed by 178 parents and 89 children with JIA.
Analyses revealed a 2-factor structure for both mothers and fathers. These factors related to parents' self-efficacy for managing children's arthritis-related symptoms and psychosocial health. Taken together, the two factors explained 75.5% and 65.8% of the total variance (mothers' and fathers,' respectively). The PASE demonstrated high internal consistency, concurrent validity, and construct validity, particularly among mothers.
Preliminary findings suggest that the PASE is worthy of further psychometric testing and may have the potential to help delineate variations in adjustment among parents of children with JIA.