Validation of a Measure of Family Functioning in a Clinic-referred Sample of Children with Disruptive Behavior

Parent and family characteristics are important considerations in the etiology and treatment of childhood disruptive behavior problems. The current study investigated the psychometric properties of the General Functioning (GF) scale of the McMaster Family Assessment Device (FAD) in families referred for treatment of childhood disruptive behavior difficulties. Participants included 459 families with a child between the ages of 6 and 12 years who were referred for treatment of disruptive behavior. Prior to treatment, mothers and/or fathers completed questionnaires assessing family functioning, child psychopathology and associated functional impairment, parenting behavior, and parent psychopathology. The factor structure, internal consistency, and concurrent validity of three versions of the FAD GF scale were examined, including a one-factor, 12-item model, a one-factor, 6-item model, and a 3-factor, 12-item model. All three models had adequate fit based on confirmatory factor analysis. Across models, family dysfunction scores had small positive associations with child psychopathology, functional impairment, inconsistent parenting behaviors, and parents’ history of internalizing disorders, and small negative associations with positive parenting behaviors, providing evidence for the concurrent validity of the scale. The FAD GF scale provides a valid and reliable measure of family dysfunction in families experiencing disruptive child behavior. Researchers and clinicians may consider using an abbreviated 6-item version of the scale or a three-domain version of the scale as valid alternatives to the standard 12-item administration and scoring.