The Development of the Co-Parenting Behaviors Questionnaire

The purpose of this study was to develop a questionnaire that assesses family's post-divorce family processes from the children's perspective. Subjects were 214 undergraduate psychology students between the ages of 18 and 36 who experienced their parents' divorce before the age of 18. Initial items for the questionnaire were developed through a literature review and focus groups. The questionnaire was then administered to the subjects. Data were analyzed in five steps: (1) internal consistency (2) an initial principle components analysis (3) reassessing the internal consistency of the modified scales (4) confirmatory principle components analysis and (5) a second order exploratory principle components analysis. Eleven scales with high internal consistencies resulted. These scales fell into three broad categories: Hostility scales, Co-Parenting scales, and General Parenting scales. Implications of this study, directions for future scale development, and instrument limitations are discussed.