Family Quality of Life Questionnaire-Patient with Cancer

Abstract

The Family Quality of Life Questionnaire-Patient with Cancer (FQLQ-PC) is a specialized psychometric instrument developed to assess the perceived level of Quality of Life (QoL) within families managing the challenges associated with a member’s cancer diagnosis and treatment. Developed by Panarut Wisawatapnimit in 2009 as part of a doctoral dissertation, this scale is crucial for capturing the systemic impact of chronic illness on family dynamics.

The instrument is unique in that it consists of two complementary versions: the Patient Version, administered to the individual with cancer, and the Family Member Version, administered to a key caregiver or relative. This dual perspective allows researchers and clinicians to obtain a comprehensive and holistic view of familial adjustment, interactions, shared responsibilities, and support systems under the stress of the disease, providing a richer data set than single-source measures.

Keywords

Family Quality of Life, FQoL, Cancer, Oncology, Caregiver burden, Patient-reported outcomes, Psychosocial adjustment, Family support, Quality of Life.

Authors

Panarut Wisawatapnimit.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the FQLQ-PC is to systematically quantify the satisfaction levels of both the patient and their family members across various domains of family functioning, specifically in the context of a cancer diagnosis. This comprehensive assessment is crucial for identifying areas of family strength and vulnerability related to disease management, coping effectiveness, and overall well-being.

In clinical settings, the instrument provides essential data that helps healthcare providers target interventions aimed at improving family communication, emotional support, and the equitable sharing of responsibilities related to caregiving. By measuring satisfaction with complex elements like financial stability, emotional expression, and adjustment to illness, the scale offers actionable insights into the family system’s psychological and functional response to chronic health challenges.

Construct

The FQLQ-PC measures the construct of Family Quality of Life (FQoL), defined as the degree of satisfaction family members experience concerning their collective well-being, functioning, and interactions while facing the demands of a member’s cancer. The scale operationalizes FQoL across several critical dimensions, differentiating between general family functioning and disease-specific adjustments.

The dimensions assessed typically include: Cohesion and Support (love, affection, encouragement), Communication and Problem Solving (handling problems, discussing the future), Role Functioning (sharing responsibilities, help around the house), Financial Well-being, and Illness Impact (adjusting activities due to illness, discussing treatment side effects). The instrument relies on a satisfaction-based rating system, reflecting the subjective appraisal of life quality within the family unit.

Validity

The development of the FQLQ-PC, rooted in a rigorous academic dissertation, aimed to establish robust psychometric properties. Content validity was established through a careful derivation of items from existing FQoL literature and clinical perspectives relevant to oncology care, ensuring that the items comprehensively cover the relevant challenges faced by families affected by cancer.

Construct validity is typically assessed through statistical methods such as Factor Analysis to confirm that the items group into theoretically meaningful domains (e.g., General Functioning versus Illness-Specific Functioning). Furthermore, criterion validity would involve correlating FQLQ-PC scores with established measures of general Quality of Life, family burden, and psychological distress to demonstrate its predictive or concurrent utility.

Reliability

The reliability of the FQLQ-PC, particularly its internal consistency, is a critical component of its utility. Internal consistency is typically assessed using Cronbach’s Alpha for both the overall scale and its identified subscales. High alpha coefficients (generally exceeding 0.70 in research) confirm that the items within the scale consistently measure the same underlying dimension of family satisfaction and functioning.

Additionally, the stability of the measure is often evaluated through test-retest reliability. This involves administering the scale to the same participants on two separate occasions when their underlying family circumstances are assumed to be stable. High correlations between scores across time points suggest that the instrument provides consistent and dependable measurements of Family Quality of Life.

Factor Analysis

The structure of the FQLQ-PC, as delineated by the distinct item groupings in the original source, suggests a multi-dimensional structure that was likely confirmed through Exploratory and/or Confirmatory Factor Analysis during its development. This analysis would separate the scale into empirically supported subscales relevant to the context of chronic illness.

The anticipated factor structure usually isolates domains related to: 1) General Family Functioning (items covering baseline communication, cohesion, and shared non-illness responsibilities); 2) Illness-Specific Adjustment and Caregiving (items focusing on medical support, adjusting work/activities, and dealing with treatment side effects); and 3) Global Satisfaction and Emotional Support (measuring overall happiness, optimism, and emotional affirmation within the family unit). This factor solution allows researchers to pinpoint specific areas of family strength or strain.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report questionnaire; Satisfaction measure.

Format: Multi-section questionnaire utilizing a 5-point Likert response scale, where 1 indicates “Not at All” satisfied and 5 indicates “Very Much” satisfied.

Language Available: English (Original development language).

Population Group: Patients diagnosed with cancer and their immediate family members/caregivers.

Age Group: Adults (Patients and family members).

Population Details: Developed based on a sample of families affected by cancer, likely recruited through clinical oncology settings in the United States, as part of the author’s doctoral research at Vanderbilt University.

Test Methodology: Respondents are asked to rate their degree of satisfaction with specific aspects of their family life and functioning. The scale is administered concurrently to both the patient and a significant family member to enable comparative analysis of perceived FQoL and potential discrepancies in perspective.

Keywords

FQoL, Family support, Cancer assessment, Psychometrics, Adjustment to chronic illness, Patient experience, Caregiver strain, Communication, Psychological measurement.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided.

Affiliation Email addresses: Unknown (Affiliated with Vanderbilt University at the time of publication).

Correspondence Address: Not provided.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The FQLQ-PC was developed in 2009 by Panarut Wisawatapnimit as part of a doctoral dissertation at Vanderbilt University. Doctoral instruments are often available for non-commercial research use without charge, but formal permissions for clinical or large-scale commercial application should be sought from the author or the university.

The original PDF document detailing the scale and its development can be downloaded here: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.475.7660&rep=rep1&type=pdf

Reference’s

• Wisawatapnimit, Panarut. (2009). Assessment of Family Quality of Life Among Families with a Member who has Cancer. Vanderbilt University. Doctoral Dissertation.

Items of the Family Quality of Life Questionnaire-Patient with Cancer

Family Quality of Life Questionnaire—Patient Version

How satisfied are you with…

1. how willing family members are to help when someone in the family needs extra help?
2. the contact that family members have with each other in person, or on the phone, etc.?
3. the help that family members give each other in their lives?
4. how often family members do things together either at home or going out?
5. your sex life with your partner?

If this is not applicable or you prefer not to answer, please check this box 􀂆

6. how willing family members are to care for someone who gets sick?
7. the help family members give each other around the house?
8. how your family shares responsibilities, such as taking care of children or pets, or shopping for food?
9. your family’s financial situation?
10. how your family handles the problems that come up?
11. how honestly your family discusses the future?
12. how family members show feelings such as sadness, happiness, or disappointment?
13. how optimistic or positive your family is?
14. the love and affection family members show each other?
15. how much family members encourage and support each other?
16. how family members show concern for each other?
17. how family members talk about important things that come up?
18. the time that your family spends with you?

How satisfied are you with…

1. how willing family members are to go with you to the doctor or the hospital?
2. how well family members find the time to take care of their own responsibilities as well as to help take care of you?
3. how well family members are able to adjust their own activities and work in response to your illness?
4. how well your family adjusts to changes in your activity level and abilities because of your cancer?
5. how openly your family talks about cancer, and your treatment and its side effects?
6. how family members share their feelings about your situation with cancer?
7. how often family members ask you how you are doing?
8. The encouragement and support that family members give you to help you cope with cancer?
9. how close your family members have become because of your cancer?

How satisfied are you with…

1. the interactions among family members (how family members relate to each other)?
2. the sharing of responsibilities in your family?
3. communication among members of your family?
4. the emotional support that people in your family give each other?

Overall, how satisfied are you with your family life?

Family Quality of Life Questionnaire—Family Member Version

How satisfied are you with…

1. how willing family members are to help when someone in the family needs extra help?
2. the contact that family members have with each other in person, or on the phone, etc.?
3. the help that family members give each other in their lives?
4. how often family members do things together either at home or going out?
5. your sex life with your partner?

If this is not applicable or you prefer not to answer, please check this box 􀂆

6. how willing family members are to care for someone who gets sick?
7. the help family members give each other around the house?
8. how your family shares responsibilities, such as taking care of children or pets, or shopping for food?
9. your family’s financial situation?
10. how your family handles the problems that come up?
11. how honestly your family discusses the future?
12. how family members show feelings such as sadness, happiness, or disappointment?
13. how optimistic or positive your family is?
14. the love and affection family members show each other?
15. how much family members encourage and support each other?
16. how family members show concern for each other?
17. how family members talk about important things that come up?
18. the time that your family spends with you?

How satisfied are you with…

1. how willing family members are to go the doctor or the hospital with the person who has cancer?
2. how well family members find the time to take care of their own responsibilities as well as to help take care of the family member with cancer?
3. how well family members are able to adjust their own activities and work in response to your family member’s illness?
4. how well your family adjusts to changes in the activity level and abilities of your family member who has cancer?
5. how openly your family talks about your family member’s cancer, treatment and its side effects?
6. how family members share their feelings about your family member’s cancer?
7. how often family members ask you how you are doing?
8. The encouragement and support that family members give each other to cope with the situation?
9. how close your family members have become because of the cancer?

How satisfied are you with…

1. the interactions among family members (how family members relate to each other)?
2. the sharing of responsibilities in your family?
3. communication among members of your family?
4. the emotional support that people in your family give each other?

Overall, how satisfied are you with your family life?

1-Not at All, 2-A Little, 3-Somewhat, 4-Quite a Bit, 5-Very Much