What is the Parenting Stress Index?
“The parenting stress index (PSI) is a tool that assists in finding stress in a parent-child relationship.”
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It is frequently used to identify any dysfunctional parenting that may be occurring and with this information predicts what possible parental behavior problems are likely to occur later on. It is most effective for preschool children but has been used with parents who have children of any age under 12.
This stress index is a questionnaire that contains 101 different items. It takes roughly twenty minutes to complete and while it gives a general stress score the index also offers more specific scores that pinpoint specific areas of stress that occur within the family environment.
The more specific areas that the index focuses on include adaptability, acceptability, demandingness, hyperactivity, mood, and reinforcement of parent on the child's characteristics. On the parenting end of the spectrum, the PSI analyzes depression, isolation, role restriction, attachment, spouse, health, and competence. With these combined, it is possible to get an accurate psychological analysis of the parent-child relationship.
If parents are looking for a shorter version of this stress index, a 36 question version is also available which is derived by pulling 36 out of the 101 questions on the full length version but it only yields a total stress score as opposed to one that is able to pinpoint more specific problem areas. This version only takes ten minutes as opposed to the twenty the full version of the parenting stress index usually takes.
The PSI has been proven to be useful in many programs that practice early intervention in order to identify and prevent problems in the family. It's been used in planning treatment, assessing levels of child abuse, and forensics in child custody as well. If you believe that your family could benefit from the use of the parenting stress index, it's worth it to check into it.
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