Parent as a Teacher Inventory: Factor Analyses for Fathers,Mothers,and Teachers

Abstract

Strom (1974) developed the Parent as a Teacher Inventory (PAAT) to measure parents' feelings and beliefs regarding interaction with their young children. Parents indicate their level of agreement with 50 Likert-type statements. A factor analysis was performed on the responses of 615 parents of preschool children. In addition, items were slightly re-worded and given to 267 early childhood teachers. Results indicated that 33 of the 50 PAAT items are included in 5 separate factors for fathers; 29 items are included in 5 factors for mothers; and 35 items are in 5 factors for teachers. Next, two techniques comparing factor structures were employed to determine if this instrument could be used in a comparative manner among fathers, mothers and/or teachers. These analyses strongly support the idea of factor congruence across the three samples.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Barrett, M. A. , King, L. M. , Howard, J. A. , and Dino, G. A. (1980). Empathy in young children: Relation to parent's empathy, affection, and emphasis on the feelings of others. Developmental Psychology, 16(3), 243-244.

Cattell, R. B. (1978). The scientific use of factor analysis. New York: Plenum Press.

Elmquist, M. (1975). An assessment of Anglo-American parent childbearing feelings and behaviors. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Arizona State University.

Fagot, B. I. (1977). Male and female teachers: Do they treat boys and girls differently? Sex Roles, 7, 263-271.

Gorsuch, R. L. (1983). Factor analysis, 2nd ed. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Griswald, D. (1975). An assessment of the childbearing information needs and attitudes of Anglo, Black and Mexican-American mothers. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Arizona State University.

Hoffman, L. W. (1961). The factor's role in the family and the child's peer-group adjustment. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 7, 97-105.

Johnson, A. (1975). An assessment of Mexican-American parent childbearing feeling and behavior. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Arizona State University.

Lamb, M. E. , Pleck, J. H. , and Levine, J. A. (1986). Effects of paternal involvement on fathers and mothers. In R. A. Lewis & M. B. Sussman (Eds.), Men's changing roles in the family (pp. 67-84). New York: The Haworth Press.

10.

Mulaik, S. A. (1972). The foundations offactor analysis. New York: McGraw-Hill.

11.

Nunnally, J. C. (1978). Psychometric theory (2d ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.

12.

Slaughter, H. (1974). The Parent as a Teacher Inventoryfield study. Mimeographed report. Research Department of the Tucson, Arizona Public Schools.

13.

Strom, R. D. (1983). The Parent as a Teacher Inventory. Chicago: Scholastic Testing Service.

14.

Strom, R. D. and Johnson, A. (1974). The parent as a teacher. Education, 95(1), 40-43.

15.

Strom, R. and Slaughter, H. (1978). Measurement of child rearing expectations using Parent as a Teacher Inventory. Journal of Experimental Education, 46(4), 44-53.

16.

Thornburg, K. R. , Ispa, J. , Gray, M. M. , and Ponder, H. (1983). Parent as a Teacher Inventory: A statistical factor analysis. Journal of Experimental Education, 51, 200-202.