Psychometric Properties of the Child-to-Parent Aggression Questionnaire in a Clinical Sample of Adolescents Who Abuse Their Parents: Prevalence and Gender Differences

Abstract

The main objective of this study was to validate the child-to-parent aggression questionnaire (CPAQ) in a clinical sample of adolescents who aggress against their parents. The second aim was to analyze the child-to-parent violence (CPV) prevalence and gender and age differences among these adolescents. The third aim was to analyze the frequency of CPV against mothers and fathers. The CPAQ was completed by 169 adolescents (49 girls) with a mean age of 16.26 years (SD = 1.56) who had committed CPV. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated a good model fit for four related factors (physical-aggression against mother, physical-aggression against father, psychological-aggression against mother, psychological-aggression against father). Hierarchical models indicated that these factors could be accounted for by broader dimensions of psychological versus physical aggression, and aggression against mother versus father.