A Short Parent-Reported Attachment Relationship Questionnaire: Development and Cultural Validation for a Majority World Context

Secure attachment relationships provide the foundation for lifelong emotional resilience and social flourishing. However, measuring attachment with observational methods is challenging at scale in low-resource settings. Caregiver-report questionnaires offer a feasible alternative but remain underutilized and insufficiently validated for Majority World contexts. This study aimed to address this gap by culturally adapting and validating the Attachment Relationship Inventory-Caregiver Perception 2–5 years Short Form Peru (ARI-SF-Peru) questionnaire for use in an Andean setting. Using a stepwise mixed-methods design, we employed qualitative methods to refine the questionnaire, followed by confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) to test its psychometric properties in a validation sample of N = 1,000 mothers. A simplified two-factor model (secure vs. insecure attachment) demonstrated strong reliability and predictive validity for child outcomes, though a four-factor model with all attachment styles can be used to provide additional theoretical insights. The final 21-item questionnaire provides a practical, culturally adapted, and valid tool for assessing mothers’ perceptions of their attachment relationships with their young children in an understudied population. The study also provides a framework for adapting self-report assessments in similar contexts, recommending simplified language, positive phrasing, and reduced response options to enhance clarity.