Development and validation of Parental Self-Efficacy Scale for Dietary
Management of Children with Food Allergies
Abstract
Background: It is necessary to evaluate the parental ability to
achieve nutritional adequacy while avoiding allergens for children with
food allergies (FA), yet this area is currently understudies. Our study
aimed to develop and validate the Parental Self-Efficacy Scale for
Dietary Management of Children with Food Allergies (PSED-FA).
Methods: PSED-FA was developed through a literature review and
semi-structured interviews, refined by a panel of five allergists and
five dietitians, and validated using responses from caregivers of
children with FA. The construction of the tool involved exploratory
factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis for model fit, and
evaluation of internal consistency using Cronbach’s alpha. Convergent
and divergent validity were assessed using the average variance
extracted (AVE), maximum shared variance (MSV), and average shared
variance (ASV). Results: Participants included nine focus
interview groups, with 114 individuals in the validation group. Egg
whites (55.2 %), tree nuts (35.2%), and peanuts (22.8%) were
the most common allergens. The EFA identified three factors: preparing
allergen-free meals, knowledge of nutrition management, and management
of food restrictions. The goodness of fit of our model met all the
criteria. The tool showed high internal consistency (overall Cronbach’s
alpha: 0.902) and met the criteria for both convergent (AVE
>0.5) and divergent validity (AVE >MSV and
ASV). Conclusion: This study validated a reliable and effective
tool for assessing parental self-efficacy in managing the dietary needs
of children with FA. This tool can aid health professionals in
evaluating parental confidence and identifying areas for improving
dietary management in children with FA.