Family Inventory of Resources for Management (FIRM)

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Abstract

The Family Inventory of Resources for Management (FIRM) is a standardized self-report instrument designed to assess the resources available to a family unit that are crucial for coping and adaptation during times of stress. Developed by McCubbin and colleagues, the FIRM operates within the framework of the Family Stress Theory, aiming to quantify specific internal and external family strengths. These strengths cover multiple domains, including communication effectiveness, health management, social support networks, and financial stability, thus providing a comprehensive profile of a family’s capacity for resilience when facing normative or non-normative demands.

Keywords

Family assessment, Family resources, Coping, Adaptation, Family strengths, Financial well-being, Social support, Esteem, Communication, Stress management.

Authors

Hamilton McCubbin, Joan Comeau, Jeffrey Harkins

Purpose

The primary purpose of the FIRM is to systematically measure the tangible and intangible resources available to a family unit. By quantifying these resources, the scale assists clinicians and researchers in understanding a family’s internal capacity to manage stressors, demands, and crises effectively. It serves as a diagnostic tool for identifying areas of strength that can be leveraged, as well as areas of deficit that may require intervention or support, particularly in clinical practice and family research settings.

Construct

The FIRM measures the construct of Family Strengths and Resources, which are defined as the assets and capabilities a family possesses to meet demands and promote successful adaptation. The instrument is multidimensional, assessing four major resource domains that contribute to the overall well-being and adaptive capacity of the family system. These domains are integral components of how families utilize their available resources to maintain equilibrium under pressure.

Validity

The validity of the FIRM has been established through extensive research, demonstrating strong construct validity across various studies. The instrument’s factor structure aligns theoretically with established models of family stress and coping. For example, studies examining the psychometric properties of the FIRM in diverse populations, such as Iranian family caregivers of cancer patients (Mirsoleymani et al., 2016), have confirmed its theoretical structure and applicability, supporting its cross-cultural utility in measuring resources critical for family functioning under duress.

Reliability

The FIRM demonstrates generally high internal consistency across its primary subscales, indicating acceptable reliability. The original instrument reported strong Cronbach’s Alpha coefficients for three of the four factors:

  • Esteem and Communication: .85
  • Mastery and Health: .85
  • Financial Well-Being: .85

The Extended Family Social Support subscale reported a lower, though acceptable, coefficient of .62. These figures suggest that the items within the major resource domains consistently measure their intended constructs, providing stable and dependable scores for research and clinical assessment.

Factor Analysis

Factor analysis of the FIRM typically yields four distinct factors, representing the core resources utilized by families. These factors, or subscales, categorize the 69 items into specific resource areas:

  • Family Strengths I: Esteem and Communication: This factor (15 items) focuses on internal emotional support, positive regard, effective decision-making, and open expression within the family.
  • Family Strengths II: Mastery and Health: This factor (20 items) assesses the family’s sense of control over life events, proactive coping strategies, and physical/emotional health status.
  • Family Strengths III: Extended Family Social Support: This factor (4 items) measures the degree of reciprocal support and assistance received from extended family members and relatives.
  • Family Strengths IV: Financial Well-Being: This factor (16 items) evaluates the family’s perceived and actual financial well-being, including liquid assets, investments, insurance coverage, and overall economic security.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report inventory; Family resource assessment

Format: 69 items administered using a 4-point Likert scale.

Language Available: English (Original), with adaptations confirmed in languages such as Persian/Farsi (Iranian sample).

Population Group: Family members (typically adults) reporting on the family unit.

Age Group: Adolescents and Adults.

Population Details: Widely used in research concerning family stress, chronic illness, military families, and general family functioning in clinical and community settings.

Test Methodology: Respondents rate the degree to which each statement describes their family situation using the following response options:

  • 0 = not at all – this statement does not describe our family situation
  • 1 = minimally – this statement describes our family situation only slightly.
  • 2 = moderately – this statement describes our family situation fairly well
  • 3 = very well – this statement describes our family very accurately

Note that numerous items (indicated by an asterisk) are reverse-scored, meaning that agreement with these items reflects a deficit or problem rather than a strength.

Keywords

Family stress, Coping resources, Resilience, Psychometrics, McCubbin, Esteem, Family communication, Health resources, Economic security, Adaptation.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: N/A (Information not provided in source content)

Affiliation Email addresses: N/A (Information not provided in source content)

Correspondence Address: N/A (Information not provided in source content)

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The Family Inventory of Resources for Management (FIRM) was initially developed in 1981 by McCubbin, Comeau, and Harkins. Information regarding current usage permissions and associated fees is often managed through the authors’ affiliated research organizations, such as the resilience center linked in the source material: http://www.mccubbinresilience.org/measures.html.

Reference’s

McCubbin H, Comeau J, Harkins J. Family Inventory of Resources for Management (FIRM). In: McCubbin HI, Thompson AI, A. MM, editors. Family Assessment: resiliency, coping and adaption. Madison: University of Wisconsin; 1996.

McCubbin H, McCubbin M. (1991). Family stress theory and assessment. In: McCubbin HI, Thomson AI, editors. Family assessment inventories for research and practice. Madison: University of Wisconsin; 294-312.

McCubbin, H., Comeau, J., and Harkins, J. (1981). Family Inventory of Resources for Management (FIRM). In Fischer, Joel., Corcoran, Kevin J. (2007 ). Measures for Clinical Practice and research: A sourcebook. (4th ed.). NY. Oxford University Pr. Vol. 1, Page (s): 299-305.

Mirsoleymani, Seyed Reza., Rohani, Camelia., Matbouei, M., Nasiri, M., and Vasli, Parvaneh. (2016). Psychometric Properties of the Family Inventory of Resources for Management in a Sample of Iranian Family Caregivers of Cancer Patients. Nursing Research and Practice Volume 2016, Article ID 1401645, 5 pages.

Fischer, Joel., Corcoran, Kevin J. (2007). Measures for Clinical Practice and research: A sourcebook. (4th ed.). NY. Oxford University Pr. Vol. 1, Page (s): 299-305.

Items of the Family Inventory of Resources for Management (FIRM)

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

Family Statements:
1. We have money coming in from our investments (such as rental property, stocks, bonds, etc.)
2. Being physically tired much of the time is a problem in our family*
3. We have to nag each other to get things done.*
4. We do not have to plan too far ahead because many things turn out to be a matter of good or bad luck anyway.*
5. Our family is as well adjusted as any family in this world can be.
6. having only one person in the family earning money is (or would be) a problem in our family.*
7. It seems that members of our family take each other for granted. *
8. Sometimes we don’t have enough control over the direction our lives are taking. *
9. Certain members of our family do all the giving, while others do all the taking. *
10.We depend almost entirely upon financial support from welfare or other public assistance programs. *
11.We seem to put off making decisions. *
12.Family members understand each other completely.
13.Our family is under a lot of emotional stress.*
14.Many things seem to interfere with family members being able to share concerns. *
15.Most of the money decisions are made by only one person in the family. *
16.There are times when family members do things that make other members unhappy. *
17.It seems we have more illness (colds, flu, etc.) in our family than most people do. *
18.In our family some members have many Responsibilities while others do not have enough.*
19.No one could be happier than our family when we are together.
20.It is upsetting to our family when things don’t out as planned.*
21.We depend almost entirely on income from alimony and/or child support. *
22.Being sad or “down” is a problem in our family. *
23.It is hard to get family members to cooperate with each other. *
24.If our family has any faults, we are not aware of them.*
25.We depend almost entirely on social security retirement [Disability] income. *
26.Many times we feel we have little influence over things that happen to us.*
27.We have the same problems over and over- we don’t seem to learn from past mistakes. *
28.One or more working members of our family are presently unemployed. *
29.There are things at home we need to do that we don’t seem to get done. *
30.We feel our family is a perfect success.
31.We own land or property besides our place of residence.
32.We seem to be so involved with work and/or school activities that we don’t spend enough time together as a family.*
33.We own (are buying) a home (single family, condominium, town home, etc).
34.There are times we do not feel a great deal of love and affection for each other. *
35.If a close relative were having financial problems we feel we could afford to help them out.
36.Friends seem to enjoy coming to our house for visits.
37.We feel we have a good retirement income program.
38.When we make plans we are almost certain we can make them work.
39.In our family we understand what help we expect from each other.
40.We seem to have little or no trouble paying bills on time.
41.Our relatives seem to take from us, but give little in return. *
42.We would have no problem getting a loan at a bank if we wanted one.
43.We feel we have enough money on have to cover small unexpected expenses (under $100).
44.When we face a problem, we look at the good and bad of each possible solution.
45.The member(s) who earn our family income have good employee benefits (such as paid insurance, stocks, car, education, etc.)
46.No matter what happens to us, we try to look at the bright side of things.
47.We feel we are able to get out to eat occasionally without hurting our budget.
48.We try to keep in touch with our relatives as much as possible.
49.It seems that we need more life insurance than we have. *
50.In our family, it is ‘okay’ for members to show positive feelings about each other.
51.We feel we are able to make financial contributions to a good cause (needy people, church, etc.)
52.We seem to be happier with our lives than many families we know.
53.It is ‘okay’ for family members to express sadness, by crying, even in front of others.
54.When we need something that can’t be postponed, we have money in savings to cover it.
55.We discuss our decisions with other family members before carrying them out.
56.Our relative(s) are willing to listen to your problems.
57.We worry about how we would cover a large unexpected bill (for home, auto repairs, for about $100)
58.We get great satisfaction when we can help one another in our family.
59.In our family we feel it is important to save for the future.
60.The working members of our family seem to be respected by their co-workers.
61.We have written checks knowing there was not enough money in the account to cover it. *
62.The members of our family respect one another.
63.We save our extra spending money for special things.
64.We feel confident that if our main bread winner lost his/her job (s)he could find another one.
65.Members of our family are encouraged to have their own interests and abilities.
66.Our relatives do and say things that make us feel appreciated.
67.The members of our family are known to be good citizens and neighbors. [The members of our family are encouraged to have their own interests and abilities.]
68.We make an effort to help our relatives when we can.
69.We feel we are financially better off now than we were 5 years ago.

* Reverse-score

Cite this article

Mohammed looti (2025). Family Inventory of Resources for Management (FIRM). Psychological Scales & Instruments Database. Retrieved from https://db.arabpsychology.com/scales/family-inventory-of-resources-for-management-firm/

Mohammed looti. "Family Inventory of Resources for Management (FIRM)." Psychological Scales & Instruments Database, 12 Oct. 2025, https://db.arabpsychology.com/scales/family-inventory-of-resources-for-management-firm/.

Mohammed looti. "Family Inventory of Resources for Management (FIRM)." Psychological Scales & Instruments Database, 2025. https://db.arabpsychology.com/scales/family-inventory-of-resources-for-management-firm/.

Mohammed looti (2025) 'Family Inventory of Resources for Management (FIRM)', Psychological Scales & Instruments Database. Available at: https://db.arabpsychology.com/scales/family-inventory-of-resources-for-management-firm/.

[1] Mohammed looti, "Family Inventory of Resources for Management (FIRM)," Psychological Scales & Instruments Database, vol. X, no. Y, ص Z-Z, October, 2025.

Mohammed looti. Family Inventory of Resources for Management (FIRM). Psychological Scales & Instruments Database. 2025;vol(issue):pages.

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