The Parenting Alliance Measure: the first contribute to the validation of the measure in Italian mothers and fathers.

Aim of this study is to validate the Italian version of the Parenting Alliance Measure (PAM). Participants were 350 mothers and 350 fathers of children (49.3% girls) aged 1-15 years. Confirmatory factor analyses were performed to individuate the dimensionality of Italian PAM. The scale’s internal consistency and invariance over mothers and fathers were examined. The scale’s concurrent validity was explored by investigating the associations of PAM dimensions with parenting stress and children’s internalizing and externalizing behaviors. In a subsample of 175 couples of parents we also explored the associations among PAM dimensions with marital adjustment. A 2-factor structure model was the most effective PAM structure for both mothers and fathers. This solution obtained the partial scalar invariance over mothers and fathers and internal validity of the scale was confirmed. The dimension Communication and Team Work was the most associated with all the other variables in the expected directions, for both parents.