DEVELOPMENT OF THE FAMILY RESILIENCE ASSESSMENT SCALE TO IDENTIFY FAMILY RESILIENCE CONSTRUCTS By MEGGEN TUCKER SIXBEY A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 2005 Copyright 2005 by Meggen Tucker Sixbey ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First, I would like to thank all of the individuals who took the time to participate in this research study. Without their willingness, this study would not have been possible. I had the honor of working with several amazing individuals on my journey towards this degree. First, I thank Dr. Peter Sherrard, my chairperson. Throughout the course of my graduate studies, he has been able to challenge me to become a better therapist, researcher, and person while always being patient with me when I did not understand things. I have also had the fortune of working with Dr. Ellen Amatea. Her wisdom and excitement kept me motivated and inspired when things seemed overwhelming. I am thankful for the charismatic personality and supportive nature of Dr. Marshall Knudson who always checked in on my progress whenever I saw him. I am grateful to Dr. Wayne Griffin for his willingness to listen and support my professional development while I was in graduate school. Finally, I am grateful to have had the opportunity to work with Dr. Linda Shaw who was always able to provide helpful feedback and a fresh perspective. I also wish to thank my family and friends, especially my best friend and husband, John Sixbey. I am not sure if he anticipated the length or nature of this journey when we met 7 years ago. Nonetheless, he continued to support and encourage me at times when the light at the end of the tunnel seemed faint. Additionally, I would like to iii thank my 6-month old daughter, Alex, whose smile kept me smiling and remembering what is truly important in life. I am eternally grateful to my parents, Chuck and Laurie Tucker, who taught me the value of balance in life. Without their love and support, I would not be where I am today. My siblings, Mary and Seth Tucker, were able to detect when times were becoming overwhelming and provided many mental health retreats to locations around Florida. Life is the connections we make. For that reason, it would be impossible to thank everyone individually for their never ending support. Therefore, I would like to thank my in-laws, Betsy Pearman, Crisis Center friends, Counselor Education friends, Meridian friends, Department of Housing friends, and other life-long friends. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................ iii LIST OF TABLES..................................................... vii ABSTRACT........................................................... ix CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ....................................................1 Theoretical Framework ................................................3 Need for the Study....................................................4 Purpose of the Study ..................................................4 Research Questions ...................................................5 Definition of Terms...................................................5 Overview of the Remainder of the Study ..................................7 2 REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE.......................................8 Reviewing Resilience .................................................8 Resilience Research ..................................................13 Theories of Resilience ................................................22 Measurement Difficulties .............................................42 Summary ..........................................................48 3 METHODOLOGY ..................................................49 Statement of Purpose.................................................49 Subjects and Sampling................................................50 Research Design ....................................................53 Instrumentation .....................................................53 Data Collection Procedures............................................70 Research Hypotheses .................................................71 Methodological Limitations ............................................73 4 RESULTS .........................................................75 Pilot Discussion.....................................................75 Sample Demographics................................................76 v Research Questions and Hypotheses Analysis .............................79 Responses to Open-Ended Question .....................................93 Summary of Results..................................................95 5 DISCUSSION ......................................................97 Limitations.........................................................97 Research Questions and Hypotheses ....................................100 Implications.......................................................105 Recommendations for Further Study....................................108 Summary .........................................................110 APPENDIX A INFORMED CONSENT LETTER .....................................112 B DEMOGRAPHIC QUESTIONNAIRE ..................................116 C FAMILY RESILIENCE ASSESSMENT SCALE .........................118 D PERSONAL MEANING INDEX ......................................125 E SORTING PROTOCOL .............................................128 F SORTING PROCESS RESULTS......................................130 G CREATED ITEMS AND ITEM RANKINGS FOR SUB-CONSTRUCTS: MAKING MEANING OF ADVERSITY, FLEXIBILITY, AND CLARITY ....134 H SUMMARY OF PILOT STUDY FINDINGS .............................136 I THEORETICAL CONSTRUCTION OF ITEMS ON THE FRAS.............144 J SIX FACTOR SUBSCALE: ITEMS, FACTOR LOADING, SCORING, AND ITME-SUBSCALE CORRELATION...................................147 K RESPONSES TO OPEN ENDED QUESTION ON FRAS ..................151 L MEANS AND STANDARD DEVIATIONS OF SUBSCALE SCORES AND ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE SUMMARY TABLES ......................157 REFERENCES .......................................................164 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.............................................171 vi LIST OF TABLES Table page 4-1 Respondents’ age groups ............................................77 4-2 Respondents’ gender ................................................77 4-3 Respondents’ ethnic backgrounds .....................................78 4-4 Respondents’ educational backgrounds .................................78 4-5 Respondents’ income levels ..........................................78 4-6 Adverse event intensity level .........................................79 4-7 Family connection .................................................79 4-8 Reliability FRAS nine factor solution ..................................82 4-9 Variance accounted by six factors .....................................83 4-10Shortened FRAS total and subscale psychometric properties ................84 4-11FRAS interfactor correlation .........................................84 4-12Subscale scores by age..............................................90 4-13Analysis of variance summary table of subscale scores, by age ..............90 4-14Family Assessment Device 1 (FAD1) factor correlation....................93 4-15Family Assessment Device 2 (FAD2) factor correlation....................93 4-16 Personal Meaning Index (PMI) factor correlation .........................93 H-1 Pilot study respondents’ background characteristics ......................136 H-2 Pilot study item responses, means, and standard deviations .................138 vii H-3 Pilot Study respondents’ response to “Could you please provide any feedback regarding this survey that you feel is of importance. ......................142 L-1 Subscale scores by gender ..........................................157 L-2 Analysis of variance summary table of subscale scores, by gender...........157 L-3 Subscale scores by ethnic identity–Collapsed categories...................158 L-4 Analysis of variance summary table of subscale scores, by collapsed ethnic identity categories .................................................158 L-5 Subscale Scores by educational level..................................159 L-6 Analysis of variance summary table of subscale scores, by educational level . 160 L-7 Subscale scores by income..........................................161 L-8 Analysis of variance summary table of subscale scores, by income ..........162 L-9 Subscale scores by intensity level.....................................162 L-10 Analysis of variance summary table of subscale scores, by event intensity level............................................................162 L-11Subscale scores by family connection .................................163 L-12 Analysis of variance summary table of subscale scores, by family connection . 163 viii ABSTRACT Abstract of Dissertation Presented to the Graduate School of the University of Florida in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy DEVELOPMENT OF THE FAMILY RESILIENCE ASSESSMENT SCALE TO IDENTIFY FAMILY RESILIENCE CONSTRUCTS By Meggen Tucker Sixbey December 2005 Chair: Peter A. D. Sherrard Major Department: Counselor Education All too often conceptual models are promoted and described in the literature with little or no empirical evidence to support the beliefs. As there are multiple conceptual models, there is also a plethora of