Validation of the Child Abuse Potential Inventory in Italy

Abstract

The aim of this study was to provide preliminary findings on the reliability and the validity of the Italian Child Abuse Potential (CAP) Inventory, a screening tool that measures parents’ potential for child physical abuse. The CAP Inventory and measures on parenting stress (Parenting Stress Index–Short Form [PSI-SF]) and parents’ perceptions of child adjustment (Child Behavior Checklist [CBCL]) were administered in a nonclinical sample of Italian parents ( N = 551) with a 2- to 6-year-old child. The Abuse scale showed adequate internal consistency (α = .87), with significantly negative correlations between socioeconomic status and educational level of the parents. Also, the Abuse scale scores were significantly predicted by high levels of parenting stress and by parental negative perceptions of the child’s behavior. Finally, using a cut score for the English version of the Abuse scale (where 95% of parents would be expected to be classified), 93.8% of Italian parents were classified as nonabusive by the Abuse scale. These results supported the cross-cultural generalizability of the Abuse scale. However, complementary studies with abusive samples are needed to verify the ability of the instrument to discriminate between abusive and nonabusive parents also in the Italian population.