[Validation and reliability study of the parent concerns about surgery questionnaire: What worries parents?]

The study of mediating variables and psychological responses to child surgery involves the evaluation of both the patient and the parents as regards different stressors.

To have a reliable and reproducible valid evaluation tool that assesses the level of paternal involvement in relation to different stressors in the setting of surgery.

A self-report questionnaire study was completed by 123 subjects of both sexes, subdivided into 2populations, due to their relationship with the hospital setting. The items were determined by a group of experts and analysed using the Lawshe validity index to determine a first validity of content. Subsequently, the reliability of the tool was determined by an item-re-item analysis of the 2sub-populations. A factorial analysis was performed to analyse the construct validity with the maximum likelihood and rotation of varimax type factors.

A questionnaire of paternal concern was offered, consisting of 21 items with a Cronbach coefficient of 0.97, giving good precision and stability. The posterior factor analysis gives an adequate validity to the questionnaire, with the determination of 10 common stressors that cover 74.08% of the common and non-common variance of the questionnaire.

The proposed questionnaire is reliable, valid and easy-to-apply and is developed to assess the level of paternal concern about the surgery of a child and to be able to apply measures and programs through the prior assessment of these elements.