Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 Feb;29(2):240-248.
doi: 10.1007/s10995-024-04029-8. Epub 2024 Nov 27.

Psychometric Evaluation of the New Translated and Culturally Adapted Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire in German-Speaking Women

Pia-Cecilia Steinbrueck  1   2 , Gabriele Meyer  3 , Gertrud Ayerle  3
Affiliations

Psychometric Evaluation of the New Translated and Culturally Adapted Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire in German-Speaking Women

Pia-Cecilia Steinbrueck et al. Matern Child Health J. 2025 Feb.

Abstract

Background: This study aimed to evaluate the construct validity and reliability of the newly adapted German version of the Parental Bonding Questionnaire (PBQ) in a group of mothers drawn from the general population, with children aged 12-24 weeks. This assessment followed a thorough linguistic validation, which was conducted through a systematic, multi-step translation process.

Methods: 363 women completed the PBQ online 12-24 weeks after delivery. Cronbach's alpha and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) were used to assess internal consistency reliability and construct validity.

Results: The original 4-factor model could not be confirmed. The new PBQ provides a single factor solution. Ten items were removed from the original 25-item PBQ to produce the abbreviated German PBQ-15, which showed strong internal consistency. The Cronbach's alpha for this version was 0.86.

Conclusion: While further research is needed to establish diagnostic thresholds and strengthen the construct validity of the shortened version, the German-language 15-item version of the PBQ holds promise as an accessible tool for recognizing bonding issues in a general population of German-speaking women 3-6 months postpartum.

Keywords: Bonding; Postpartum bonding questionnaire; Psychometric evaluation; Reliability; Validity.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Consent for Publication: Not applicable. Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests. Ethics Approval: The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Medical Faculty of the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (study number 01KG1715 in March 2021) and has been performed in accordance with the ethical standards laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments. Consent to Participate: Participation in the study was voluntary, and verbal and written informed consent was obtained before enrollment.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Screeplot for factor analyses of the PBQ
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Bicking Kinsey, C., & Hupcey, J. E. (2013). The state of the science of maternal-infant bonding: A principle-based concept analysis. Midwifery, 29, 1314–1320. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bowlby, J. (1979). The making and breaking of affectional bonds. Tavistock. - PubMed
    1. Bowlby, J. (1988). A secure base: Parent-child attachment and healthy human development. Basic Books.
    1. Brockington, I. F. (2011). Maternal rejection of the young child: Present status of the clinical syndrome. Psychopathology, 44, 329–336. - PubMed
    1. Brockington, I. F., Oates, J., George, S., Turner, D., Vostanis, P., et al. (2001). A screening questionnaire for mother-infant bonding disorders. Archives of Women´s Mental Health, 3, 133–140.

LinkOut - more resources