Assessment of Interpersonal Influences on Adolescents: The Parent and Peer Influence Scale

Peer influence is a common topic of interest for parents, clinicians, and researchers, but results from research on the relative importance of parents’ versus peers’ influence on adolescents and young adults has been contradictory. For example, some research suggests that peer attitudes about school influences future academic aspirations, other research suggests that parents and peers differ on their level of influence based on topic (e.g., parents’ are the primary source of influence about moral issues), and other research suggests that peer-oriented children are a product of parental disregard. A reliable and valid measure of the relative strength of parent versus peer influence could enhance research in this area. As a result, the Parent and Peer Inventory Scale (PPI) was developed, which demonstrates strong reliability as well as face and concurrent validity. The PPI can be used both by researchers to address contradictions in the literature, as well as clinicians seeking to evaluate level of peer influence in a family.