Family Resilience Assessment Scale (FRAS)

Abstract

The Family Resilience Assessment Scale (FRAS) is a comprehensive psychological scale developed to identify and measure the constructs of Family Resilience. Developed initially as part of a doctoral dissertation, the FRAS is designed to assess the capacity of families to adapt, cope, and thrive when faced with significant stress, adversity, or crisis. It focuses on identifying specific behavioral, communicative, and relational strengths that contribute to a family unit’s overall resilience profile across multiple dimensions, including communication, resource utilization, spirituality, and meaning-making. The instrument aids researchers and practitioners in quantifying family strengths rather than focusing solely on pathology.

Keywords

Family Resilience, Family Strengths, Coping Mechanisms, Adversity, Psychological Assessment, Social Support, Family Communication, Sixbey.

Authors

Sixbey, M. T.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the Family Resilience Assessment Scale (FRAS) is to provide a robust, multidimensional measure for assessing the protective factors and internal strengths that enable a family system to successfully navigate and recover from stressful life events or chronic difficulties. It moves beyond traditional deficit models by empirically identifying specific resilience constructs, offering a quantitative tool to evaluate family functioning in the context of crisis or trauma. This scale is crucial for intervention planning and program evaluation in family therapy and social work settings.

Construct

The FRAS measures the overarching construct of Family Resilience, defined as the ability of a family unit to withstand and rebound from disruptive life challenges. This construct is operationalized through several distinct, yet interrelated, dimensions identified through factor analysis. These dimensions represent the core mechanisms through which families mobilize resources and maintain functional integrity during times of stress. The scale recognizes that resilience is not a fixed trait but a dynamic process involving interaction, belief systems, and resource management.

Validity

The validity of the FRAS was established during its development phase through rigorous psychometric procedures, including expert review and statistical validation techniques used in the initial dissertation research. The scale demonstrates strong construct validity, as evidenced by its clear factor structure which aligns theoretically with established models of family functioning and stress management. The comprehensive nature of the instrument, covering internal dynamics (communication, connectedness) and external factors (social and economic resources), further supports its ability to accurately capture the complexity of the Family Resilience construct.

Reliability

The FRAS demonstrates high internal consistency across its major subscales, indicating that the items within each factor reliably measure the same underlying dimension. The reliability was measured using Cronbach’s alpha coefficients, which were strong for the identified factors:

• Family communication and problem-solving: 0.96
• Utilizing social and economic resources: 0.85
• Maintaining a positive outlook: 0.86
• Family connectedness: 0.70
• Family spirituality: 0.88
• Ability to make meaning of adversity: 0.74

These high coefficients suggest that the FRAS is a dependable and consistent measure of family strengths, providing reliable data for clinical and research applications.

Factor Analysis

The development of the FRAS utilized Factor Analysis to delineate the key dimensions contributing to family resilience. The analysis resulted in the identification of several primary factors (or subscales) that collectively define the construct. The dimensions identified include:

• Family Communication and Problem-Solving: This dimension includes items focusing on clarity, open emotional expression, consultation, compromise, and resolution strategies (e.g., Items 11, 25, 33, 35, 36, 58, 64).
• Utilizing Social and Economic Resources: Measures the family’s ability to draw upon external support networks and community resources (e.g., friends, neighbors, community safety) (e.g., Items 5, 27, 40, 49).
• Maintaining a Positive Outlook: Reflects the family’s collective sense of efficacy, hope, and optimism regarding their ability to overcome challenges (e.g., Items 21, 29, 43, 63).
• Family Connectedness: Assesses the emotional bonds, mutual understanding, and sense of belonging within the family unit (e.g., Items 8, 17, 39, 59).
• Family Spirituality: Captures the role of faith, religious practices, and belief in a higher purpose in navigating adversity (e.g., Items 19, 46, 54, 56).
• Ability to Make Meaning of Adversity: Measures the family’s capacity to find purpose, learn from mistakes, and accept stressful events as part of life (e.g., Items 9, 10, 12, 51).
• Flexibility: Reflects the family structure’s adaptability and willingness to change rules or roles when facing unexpected demands (e.g., Items 3, 6, 7, 13, 16).

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report Psychological Scale

Format: The full version of the FRAS contains 67 items, though a commonly used shorter version contains 54 items (excluding those marked with an asterisk in the original source). Responses are measured on a 4-point Likert Scale ranging from Strongly Agree, Agree, Disagree, and Strongly Disagree. Several items are reverse-scored (-).

Language Available: English (Primary developmental language).

Population Group: General Family Units / Clinical Populations experiencing stress.

Age Group: Typically administered to adult family members or adolescents capable of understanding the items, reflecting the functioning of the entire family system.

Population Details: Originally developed and tested on a general population sample for psychometric validation.

Test Methodology: Respondents indicate their level of agreement with statements describing their family’s functioning, beliefs, and interactions, particularly in response to challenges.

Keywords

Family communication, Problem-solving, Positive outlook, Family connectedness, Spirituality, Flexibility, Resilience measurement, Sixbey 2005.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided in source.

Affiliation Email addresses: Not provided in source.

Correspondence Address: Not provided in source. (Original research conducted at the University of Florida).

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Test Year: 2005 (Year of initial development and publication as a doctoral dissertation).

Permissions & Fee: Specific permissions and fees must be sought from the author (M. T. Sixbey) or the institution where the doctoral dissertation was completed (University of Florida). The original PDF of the dissertation, which contains the instrument, is publicly available online.

The original PDF can be downloaded here: http://etd.fcla.edu/UF/UFE0012882/sixbey_m.pdf

Reference’s

• Sixbey, M. T. (2005). Development of the family resilience assessment scale to identify family resilience constructs. University of Florida, Doctoral dissertation.
• Plumb, Jennifer C. (2011). THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL SUPPORT AND FAMILY RESILIENCE ON PARENTAL STRESS IN FAMILIES WITH A CHILD DIAGNOSED WITH AN AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER. Doctorate in Social Work (DSW) Dissertations. 14. http://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations_sp2/14

Items of the Family Resilience Assessment Scale (FRAS)

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

1. Every family has problems *
2. Everything we go through as a family happens for a reason *
3. Our family structure is flexible to deal with the unexpected
4. Our friends are a part of everyday activities *
5. Our friends value us and who we are
6. The rules in our family are not set in stone *
7. The rules in our family change according to family needs *
8. The things we do for each other make us feel a part of the family
9. We accept stressful events as a part of life
10. We accept that problems occur unexpectedly
11. We all have input into major family decisions
12. We are able to work through pain and come to an understanding
13. We are adaptable to demands placed on us as a family
14. We are careful how much we do for friends *
15. We are careful what we say to each other *
16. We are open to new ways of doing things in our family
17. We are understood by other family members
18. We ask neighbors for help and assistance
19. We attend church/synagogue/mosque services
20. We believe friends can take advantage of us *
21. We believe we can handle our problems
22. We can ask for clarification if we do not understand each other
23. We can be honest and direct with each other in our family
24. We can blow off steam at home without upsetting someone
25. We can compromise when problems come up
26. We can deal with family differences in accepting a loss
27. We can depend upon people in this community
28. We can question the meaning behind messages in our family
29. We can solve major problems
30. We can survive if another problem comes up
31. We can talk about the way we communicate in our family
32. We can work through difficulties as a family
33. We consult with each other about decisions
34. We define problems positively to solve them
35. We discuss problems and feel good about the solutions
36. We discuss things until we reach a resolution
37. We do volunteer work in the community *
38. We feel free to express our opinions
39. We feel good giving time and energy to our family
40. We feel people in this community are willing to help in an emergency
41. We feel secure living in this community
42. We feel taken for granted by family members (-)
43. We feel we are strong in facing big problems
44. We get upset if someone complains in our family *
45. We have close friends we really care for*
46. We have faith in a supreme being
47. We have the strength to solve our problems
48. We keep our feelings to ourselves (-)
49. We know there is community help if there is trouble
50. We know we are important to our friends
51. We learn from each other’s mistakes
52. We mean what we say to each other in our family
53. We participate in activities specifically for our situation*
54. We participate in church activities
55. We receive gifts and favors from neighbors
56. We seek advice from religious advisors
57. We seldom listen to family members concerns or problems (-)
58. We share responsibility in the family
59. We show love and affection for family members
60. We tell each other how much we care for one
61. We think this is a good community to raise children
62. We think we should not get too involved with people in this community (-)
63. We trust things will work out even in difficult times
64. We try new ways of working with problems
65. We understand communication from other family members
66. We work to make sure family members are not emotionally or physically hurt
67. Is there something else which helped your family through this adverse event that has not been described or discussed?