Skip to main content
Log in

The Parental Bonding Instrument: confirmatory evidence for a three-factor model in a psychiatric clinical sample and in the National Comorbidity Survey

  • ORIGINAL PAPER
  • Published:
Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Background: Study of the contribution of retrospective perceptions of dysfunctional parenting in relation to adult psychopathology has been greatly facilitated by the development of the 25-item Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI; Parker et al. 1979). Method: The present study employed confirmatory factor analytic techniques to evaluate competing models of the basic dimensions underlying different versions of the PBI, in a psychiatric sample from a mood disorders program and with a new modification of the PBI employed in the US National Comorbidity Survey. Results: The results indicated that a three-factor model originally identified in a 16-item version of the PBI modified for epidemiological research (Kendler 1996) showed the best fit to the data. The three dimensions of care, overprotection, and authoritarianism also explained the underlying structure of the NCS-modified, eight-item PBI that is now part of the NCS public use dataset available to psychopathology researchers. Conclusions: The replicability of findings across gender, age, and clinical versus community samples attests to the robustness of this three-factor structure of parenting styles.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Additional information

Accepted: 27 March 2000

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Cox, B., Enns, M. & Clara, I. The Parental Bonding Instrument: confirmatory evidence for a three-factor model in a psychiatric clinical sample and in the National Comorbidity Survey. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 35, 353–357 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1007/s001270050250

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s001270050250

Keywords

Navigation