Psychometric Properties of the Parenting Sense of Competence Scale for a Sample of French-speaking Mothers

This study validates the French version of the Parenting Sense of Competence (PSOC) scale, one of the most used self-report measures of parental sense of competence. Given its impact on parenting and child outcome, assessing and strengthening the parental sense of competence is a central dimension of improving parental competence. While the PSOC is widely used in French-speaking research, it has not yet been validated. In addition, the number of factors in the PSOC has been contested and the internal structure of the PSOC has been only partially confirmed in cross-cultural studies. The present study assesses the reliability and the factor structure of a French version of the PSOC using confirmatory factor analysis. Participants were French-speaking mothers from two independent samples (N = 1671, N = 681). They completed three online questionnaires: a sociodemographic questionnaire, the PSOC, and the Connor and Davidson Resilience Scale. Findings supported a three-factor solution, with the exclusion of three items that lacked specificity. Our results also demonstrate the discriminant properties of the PSOC and the construct validity of the PSOC. In conclusion, our findings support the validation of the French version of the PSOC with the removal of three items and the rewording of items for which the vocabulary was no longer up to date.