The Invalidating Childhood Environment Scale (ICES): psychometric properties and relationship to borderline personality symptomatology

J Pers Disord. 2013 Jun;27(3):402-10. doi: 10.1521/pedi_2012_26_062. Epub 2012 Sep 17.

Abstract

The objective of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Invalidating Childhood Environment Scale (ICES; Mountford, Corstorphine, Tomlinson, & Waller, 2004), a measure designed to retrospectively assess exposure to parental invalidation. The ICES was administered to a sample of female college students along with measures of parental bonding and borderline personality disorder (BPD) symptomatology. In contrast with previous findings, the ICES demonstrated excellent internal consistency within a nonclinical sample. It also correlated in the predicted directions with measures of parental bonding and BPD symptomatology. Taken together, these findings suggest that the ICES is a promising retrospective measure of parental invalidation. They also provide some support for the hypothesized link between parental invalidation and BPD symptomatology and suggest that additional research with clinical samples is needed.

MeSH terms

  • Adaptation, Psychological*
  • Adolescent
  • Borderline Personality Disorder / diagnosis*
  • Borderline Personality Disorder / psychology
  • Child
  • Emotions*
  • Family*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Object Attachment
  • Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
  • Psychometrics
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Social Environment*
  • Students
  • Young Adult