Development of the Parental Academic Support Scale: Frequency, Importance, and Modes of Communication

Abstract

Parent-teacher communication represents a primary form of parental support, a phenomenon meriting significant attention given the connections between support and academic achievement (Thompson, 2008b). A series of studies advance the Parental Academic Support Scale (PASS) to assess the frequency, importance, and modes parents use to communicate support with teachers at the elementary, junior high, and secondary school levels. Phase one details scale development procedures, presents the results of exploratory factor analysis, and advances the PASS. Phase two applies confirmatory factor analysis, examines the frequency and importance of specific supportive behaviors, and implements media richness theory to explore the modes commonly used by parents to communicate with teachers. Implications for teachers, scholars, and school administrators are discussed.

Keywords:

• Scale Development
• Parental Academic Support
• Parental Involvement
• Parent-Teacher Communication
• Social Support

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Blair Thompson

Blair Thompson (Ph.D., University of Nebraska—Lincoln, 2007) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication at Western Kentucky University

Joseph P. Mazer

Joseph P. Mazer (Ph.D., Ohio University, 2010) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication Studies at Clemson University