The Pregnant Smoker Stigma Scale - Public Stigma (P3S-PS): development and validation in general French population

While pregnancy smoking stigma is widely acknowledged, no psychometrically sound tool to measure it exists. This study was designed to build the Pregnant Smoker Stigma Scale - Public Stigma (P3S-PS) for assessing the stigma of pregnancy smoking in the general French population. A total of 342 adults were recruited online to take the P3S-PS and some items (condemnation/rejection, and support for punitive actions) from other scales. Exploratory factor analysis was performed. Measurement invariance was tested according to gender and smoking status. Temporal reliability was checked after two weeks (n = 72). The P3S-PS has 26 items and four dimensions: "derogatory cognitions," "negative emotions and behaviors," "personal distress," and "information provision." All dimensions were correlated (r = .36 to .75) and have good internal consistency (alpha.>.70), temporal reliability (ICC>.75), and measurement invariance. Validity is exhibited through the P3S-PS's association with condemnation and rejection (r = .32 to .53), support for punitive actions (r = .35 to .65), and presence of pregnant smokers in the close circle (r = -.23 to -.40). The P3S-PS is a promising tool that exhibits good psychometric qualities. This scale will be useful to trigger research regarding the stigma of smoking while pregnant.