The Parenting Scale: A measure of dysfunctional parenting in discipline situations.

David Scott Arnold, Susan G. O'Ĺeary, Lisa S. Wolff, Maureen M. Acker·1993·Psychological Assessment
DOI 10.1037//1040-3590.5.2.137

Abstract

A rating scale was designed to measure dysfunctional discipline practices in parents of young children. Three stable factors of dysfunctional discipline style were identified: (a) Laxness, (b) Overreactivity, and (c) Verbosity. The Parenting Scale exhibited adequate internal consistency and test–retest reliability. Mothers of clinic children reported more dysfunctional parenting than did mothers of nonclinic children. Parenting Scale scores were related to maternal ratings of child behavior and marital discord. Most important, Parenting Scale scores correlated significantly with observational measures of dysfunctional discipline and child misbehavior.

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Cite CoChat for the checks on this page, and the paper for its own findings.

This page
CoChat. (2026). Citation check: The Parenting Scale: A measure of dysfunctional parenting in discipline situations. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.1037//1040-3590.5.2.137
The paper
Arnold, D. S., O'Ĺeary, S. G., Wolff, L. S., & Acker, M. M. (1993). The Parenting Scale: A measure of dysfunctional parenting in discipline situations. Psychological Assessment. https://doi.org/10.1037//1040-3590.5.2.137

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