BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, 950 West 28th Avenue, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4H4, Canada.
Department of Pediatrics, University of British Columbia, 4480 Oak Street, Vancouver, BC, V6H 3V4, Canada.
Health Qual Life Outcomes. 2019 Mar 12;17(1):45. doi: 10.1186/s12955-019-1117-x.
The family system represents a critical context within which children develop. Although raising a child with a disability may represent a challenge to this dynamic system, research demonstrates that families have the capacity to demonstrate both maladaptation and resilience in the face of related stressors. In the current study, we examined the psychometric properties of the Family Resilience Assessment Scale (FRAS) among families of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This tool is the only measure of family resilience that seeks to identify within-family protective factors, including the extent to which they rely on adaptive belief systems, organizational patterns, and communication processes. Identifying protective processes utilized by those who show resilience is critical within both clinical practice and research, as it aligns with a strength-based perspective that builds on what families are doing well.
Participants included 174 caregivers of individuals with ASD (84% mothers). Caregivers completed the FRAS, as well as the Beach Center Family Quality of Life Scale. The 54-item FRAS was submitted to an exploratory factor analysis, using the iterated principal factor method with a promax rotation.
Fifty-one items across 3 factors (Family Communication and Problem Solving, Utilizing Social and Economic Resources, Family Spirituality) were retained, explaining 52% of the total variance. The final scale demonstrated convergent validity with the Family Quality of Life assessment tool.
It is our hope that identifying the optimal scale structure will encourage other researchers to utilize this measure with families of children with ASD, thus continuing to advance the study of family resilience within this unique context.
家庭系统是儿童发展的关键环境。尽管养育残疾儿童可能对这个动态系统构成挑战，但研究表明，家庭有能力在面对相关压力源时表现出适应不良和适应力。在当前的研究中，我们考察了自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）儿童家庭的家庭适应力评估量表（FRAS）的心理测量特性。该工具是唯一一种衡量家庭适应力的方法，旨在确定家庭内的保护因素，包括他们在多大程度上依赖适应性信仰体系、组织模式和沟通过程。确定那些表现出适应力的人所使用的保护过程在临床实践和研究中都至关重要，因为它与一种基于优势的观点一致，这种观点建立在家庭做得好的基础上。
参与者包括 174 名 ASD 个体的照顾者（84%为母亲）。照顾者完成了 FRAS 以及海滩中心家庭生活质量量表。54 项 FRAS 采用迭代主因子法和 promax 旋转进行探索性因子分析。
保留了 3 个因素（家庭沟通和解决问题、利用社会和经济资源、家庭精神）的 51 个项目，解释了总方差的 52%。最终量表与家庭生活质量评估工具表现出收敛效度。
我们希望确定最佳的量表结构将鼓励其他研究人员在 ASD 儿童家庭中使用该量表，从而继续推进这一独特背景下的家庭适应力研究。
