DEVELOPMENT OF A TOOL TO MEASURE THE LIFE SITUATION OF PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH CANCER

The aim of this study was to test the validity and reliability of the recently developed Life Situation Scare for Parents (LSS-P) among pare nts of children with cancer, One hundred and ten parents of seventy-fo ur children and adolescents who visited three paediatric wards in Swed en filled out three instruments: The LSS-P, the Quality of life Scale and the Family Support Scale. The reliability co-efficient, Cronbach's alpha, was found to he 0.82 for the LSS-P, A factor analysis with ort hogonal varimax rotation of 37 items of the LSS-P gave twelve factors. A higher order factor analysis reduced the factors to four (Care, Wel l-being, Social life and Preparedness), explaining the underlying dime nsions to 57.9%. The fetal LSS-P correlated significantly with the Qua lity of Life Scale, and the higher order factor Care with the Family S upport Scale. The LSS-P discriminated, in some aspects, between two-pa rent and single parent, families and between parents visiting the ward for treatment or check-up. The conclusion is that this first version of the LSS-P was valid and reliable (internal consistency) to a certai n extent, but that the instrument should be tested on larger samples a cid during different phases of the disease.