Caregivers and interventionists: Developing a Dual Role Behaviors Scale for parents of children with autism spectrum disorders

The integration of the roles of caregivers and interventionists is important in parenting a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, an instrument to measure dual-role behaviors is unavailable. This study developed and validated the Dual Role Behaviors Scale for parents of autistic children (DRBS-A). Initial items were generated using the interview transcripts of a previous qualitative study. The initial scale was administered to 422 parents. Data were randomly halved to generate Samples 1 and 2. Exploratory factor analysis conducted using Sample 1 (autism spectrum disorder = 216) screened items based on factor loadings and explored the scale's structure. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) conducted with Sample 2 (N = 206) examined structural validity. Among the participants, 121 (Sample 3) derived from the two samples were followed up after 1 month to examine the test-retest reliability. Convergent validity was examined with another sample of 105 parents (Sample 4). The formal version of the DRBS-A comprised 20 items across four dimensions: parental acceptance, parental disengagement, persistence in interventions, and punishment in interventions. The four-factor structure with two higher order factors was supported by the CFA results (chi(2) = 290.90, df = 165, CFI = 0.94, TLI = 0.93, RMSEA = 0.061, SRMR = 0.063). The subscales' test-retest reliabilities ranged from 0.61 to 0.78. The internal consistencies were satisfactory (Cronbach's alpha s: 0.67-0.93). Convergent validity was supported by correlations of the DRBS-A dimensions with parental involvement and positive parenting practice. Other factors related to dual-role behaviors were also explored. The DRBS-A has good validity and reliability and can be used to explore the effects of role integration.