Development of the Parent-to-Infant Bonding Scale: Validation in Swedish Mothers and Fathers in Community and Clinical Contexts

Sara Lindeberg; Eva Tedgård; Birgitta Kerstis; Ulf Tedgård; Alyx Taylor; Peter Jönsson

doi:10.1007/s10578-024-01699-x

Development of the Parent-to-Infant Bonding Scale: Validation in Swedish Mothers and Fathers in Community and Clinical Contexts

Child Psychiatry Hum Dev. 2024 May 17. doi: 10.1007/s10578-024-01699-x. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Sara Lindeberg^{1

2}, Eva Tedgård^{3

4}, Birgitta Kerstis⁵, Ulf Tedgård^{6

7}, Alyx Taylor^{8

9}, Peter Jönsson¹⁰

Affiliations

¹ Department of Health Sciences, Child and Family Health, Faculty of Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden. sara.lindeberg@med.lu.se.
² Scania Regional Council, Department for Regional Development, Malmö, Sweden. sara.lindeberg@med.lu.se.
³ Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
⁴ Skåne University Hospital, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Infant and Toddler Unit, Malmö, Sweden.
⁵ Division of Caring Sciences, School of Health, Care and Social Welfare, Mälardalen University, Västerås, Sweden.
⁶ Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Paediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
⁷ Department of Paediatrics, Skåne University Hospital, Lund, Sweden.
⁸ Department of Health Sciences, Child and Family Health, Faculty of Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
⁹ School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, AECC University College, Bournemouth, UK.
¹⁰ Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Kristianstad University, Kristianstad, Sweden.

PMID: 38758484
DOI: 10.1007/s10578-024-01699-x

Abstract

Valid measurement instruments are needed to investigate the impact of parental bonding on child health development. The aim was to develop and validate a self-report questionnaire, the Parent-to-Infant Bonding Scale (PIBS) to measure bonding in both mothers and fathers. Internal consistency and construct validity were analysed using data from Swedish parents from both clinical (N = 182), and community (N = 122) population samples. Overall, good or acceptable internal consistency of the PIBS appeared. Convergent validity (against the Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire, analysed in the clinical sample) and discriminant validity (against the mental health constructs of depressive symptoms and anxiety) were demonstrated. The results support the PIBS as a measure of maternal and paternal bonding in community and clinical populations. Assessments of criterion validity in these populations are desirable. The similarities in PIBS measurement properties between the parent groups suggest its usefulness for comparisons between mothers and fathers, and for future investigations of unique and interactive impacts of maternal and paternal bonding on child outcomes using community and clinical cohorts.

Keywords: Father-infant bonding; Mother-infant bonding; Mother-to-Infant Bonding Scale (MIBS); Parent-to-Infant Bonding Scale (PIBS); Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire (PBQ).

Grants and funding

2013-2101/Forskningsrådet om Hälsa, Arbetsliv och Välfärd