Testing the Validity and Reliability of Self-Efficacy in Parents of Children with Special Needs in Home-Based Informal Education

Parental self-efficacy refers to parents' beliefs in their ability to perform parenting roles and support the development and education of children with special needs. This study aimed to conduct a preliminary psychometric evaluation of the Parental Self-Efficacy Scale for parents involved in home-based informal education in Medan, Indonesia. A quantitative psychometric design was employed with 32 parents selected using saturated sampling. The instrument was adapted from the Self-Efficacy for Parental Tasks Index (SEPTI) and consisted of 15 items representing five dimensions: health, discipline, education, play, and emotion. Item validity was assessed using corrected item-total correlation, while internal consistency was evaluated using Cronbach's Alpha. The results showed that four items (26.7%), namely Items 4, 7, 8, and 9, met the validity criterion of 0.349, whereas 11 items (73.3%) did not. Item 10 showed a negative item-total correlation (r = −0.087), indicating the need to verify its scoring direction and possible reverse scoring. The overall Cronbach's Alpha was 0.638, below the predetermined criterion of 0.70. Although deleting Item 10 increased Alpha to 0.686, the coefficient remained below the criterion. Therefore, the instrument requires further revision and comprehensive psychometric testing before being used as a finalized measurement tool. Future studies should employ larger samples and examine content and construct validity.