The reliability and validity of the revised Diabetes Family Conflict Scale questionnaire, in a sample of Swedish children.

Objective: The overall aim of the study was to assess the psychometric properties of the revised Diabetes Family Conflict Scale (DFCS), in a Swedish sample of children, mothers and fathers. A second aim was to analyse maternal and paternal effects separately.

Methods: One hundred and fifty-nine families from two diabetes centres participated in the study. The revised DFCS was administered to children aged 8-18 years and their parents. Internal consistency of the scale was measured with Cronbach's alpha, and its concurrent validity was evaluated using bivariate correlations. Independent t-tests were performed to test for differences between mother- and father reports.

Results: The revised DFCS total scale exceeded the criteria for satisfactory internal consistency for the child-, mother- and father reports, as did the subscale direct management, with α-values ranging from 0.72 to 0.81. Furthermore, a higher level of reported conflict on the total scale was associated with poorer metabolic control, thus confirming concurrent validity of the instrument. This was true for mother-, father- and child reports.

Conclusions: In summary, the study concludes that the revised DFCS can be utilized as a valuable tool both in a research setting and in clinical practice.