Development and psychometric examination of the Sibling Alliance Scale for Children of Alcoholic Parents (SAS-CAP)

The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the newly developed Sibling Alliance Scale for Children of Alcoholic Parents (SAS-CAP). First, an item pool was created through a comprehensive review of the literature on sibling dynamics in dysfunctional family environments where fathers have an alcohol use problem. Then, the items were organized around four main themes: protection, problem solving, emotional support, and empowerment. semi-structured interviews were conducted with five individuals whose fathers have an alcohol use problem and who have siblings. The scale was finalized based on feedback received from experts in the field. In the second phase of the study, data were collected from 141 young adults whose fathers have an alcohol use problem and who have siblings via social media. The data collection tools were; Demographic Information Form, Children of Alcoholics Screening Test (CAST-6), Child Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), Family Harmony Scale - Short Form (FHS-SF), Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale - Brief Form (DERS), Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale - Short Form (CDRS), Symptom Checklist-90-R (SCL-90), and Lifetime Sibling Relationship Scale (LSRS). Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) results indicated that the final version of the SAS-CAP contained 18 items and had a 2-factor structure. The internal validity of the entire scale and its subfactors was found to be very good. Correlation analyses revealed that the SAS-CAP was positively correlated with the LSRS and FHS-SF and negatively correlated with the CTQ. However, no significant relationship was found for the DERS, CDRS, and SCL-90 in relation to the SAS-CAP. The findings are discussed within the context of the literature. Keywords: Sibling Alliance, Alcoholic Fathers, Family Systems Theory, Exploratory Factor Analysis