Parental Involvement in Home-Based Mathematics Learning: Scale Development and Validation in Türkiye

Acknowledging a lack of precise instruments that specifically measure the nature and quality of parental engagement within the home environment, particularly in mathematics, this study aimed to develop and validate the Parental Involvement in Mathematics Scale (PIMS). PIMS is a multidimensional instrument designed to assess the academic support parents provide exclusively in the home setting, deliberately excluding school-based involvement. The methodology involved rigorous psychometric procedures, including content validation and subsequent factor analyses across two independent parent samples residing in the Marmara Region of Türkiye. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was performed on a sample of 171 parents, and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) on an independent sample of 241 parents. The final 16-item scale confirmed a reliable three-factor structure: Directive Involvement, Interactive Involvement, and Situational Involvement. Psychometric analyses confirmed acceptable internal consistency (α=.70) and strong criterion validity, demonstrating a significant positive correlation with the criterion measure (r=.61, p<.01). Despite its robust psychometric foundation, the scale's measurement power is limited by the Situational Involvement factor's low internal consistency and restricted item count. Overall, PIMS provides researchers and practitioners with a reliable and valid tool for precisely assessing home-based parental involvement in mathematics, facilitating the design of effective, targeted interventions.