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Psychometric Evaluation of the Lexington Attachment to Pets Scale (Laps)

Timothy P. Johnson, Thomas F. Garrity, Lorann Stallones

Open publisher page 517 citations

Abstract

This paper reports on the development and psychometric evaluation of a scale for assessing emotional attachment of individuals to their pets. Previous attachment scales have suffered variously from low internal consistency and reliance on small or nonrepresentative samples for their development. Telephone interviews of a random, representative sample of 412 pet owners in Fayette County, Kentucky, were completed in September 1990; a 69.5 percent response rate was achieved. From a preliminary set of 42 questions, a final 23-question instrument, the Lexington Attachment to Pets Scale (LAPS), was developed, having excellent psychometric properties. The scale is suitable for use with dog and cat owners. Data on internal consistency, factor structure, and item response theory (IRT) modeling are presented, along with correlations between the LAPS and several domains of variables known to relate to pet attachment.

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What this paper is about

This paper reports on the development and psychometric evaluation of a scale for assessing emotional attachment of individuals to their pets. Previous attachment scales have suffered variously from low internal consistency and reliance on small or nonrepresentative samples for their development. Telephone interviews of a random, representative sample of 412 pet owners in Fayette County, Kentucky, were completed in September 1990; a 69.5 percent response rate was achieved. From a preliminary set of 42 questions, a final 23-question instrument, the Lexington Attachment to Pets Scale (LAPS), was developed, having excellent psychometric properties. The scale is suitable for use with dog and cat owners. Data on internal consistency, factor structure, and item response theory (IRT) modeling are presented, along with correlations between the LAPS and several domains of variables known to relate to pet attachment.

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OpenAlex reports 517 citations for this work. Citation counts describe recorded attention and do not establish research quality.

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Available abstract

This paper reports on the development and psychometric evaluation of a scale for assessing emotional attachment of individuals to their pets. Previous attachment scales have suffered variously from low internal consistency and reliance on small or nonrepresentative samples for their development. Telephone interviews of a random, representative sample of 412 pet owners in Fayette County, Kentucky, were completed in September 1990; a 69.5 percent response rate was achieved. From a preliminary set of 42 questions, a final 23-question instrument, the Lexington Attachment to Pets Scale (LAPS), was developed, having excellent psychometric properties. The scale is suitable for use with dog and cat owners. Data on internal consistency, factor structure, and item response theory (IRT) modeling are presented, along with correlations between the LAPS and several domains of variables known to relate to pet attachment.

Key concepts: Internal consistency, Scale (ratio), Psychology, Item response theory, Clinical psychology, Psychometrics, Animal-assisted therapy, Applied psychology

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