The French version of the Family Assessment Device.
OBJECTIVE
To validate a French version of the Family Assessment Device (FAD), a well-known self-report questionnaire assessing family functioning in clinical and research settings.


METHODS
A French adaptation of the FAD was administered to 3 groups of subjects: a nonclinical group (n = 115), relatives of psychiatric patients (n = 102), and medical patients and their relatives (n = 106). Temporal stability was assessed by test-retest intraclass correlations. Internal consistency was measured by Cronbach alpha reliability coefficients. Discriminant validity was explored, comparing the scores of the 3 groups, using a covariance analysis (ANCOVA). The dimensional structure of the instrument was explored using a principal component analysis, with promax oblique rotation, on the entire sample.


RESULTS
The French FAD showed good temporal stability and good discriminant validity across groups. Internal consistency was satisfactory only for the General Functioning (GF) subscale. Factor analysis yielded a 3-factor model. The GF subscale was highly correlated with all of the other subscales.


CONCLUSIONS
The French version of the FAD provides a valuable tool for assessing family functioning. However, our study failed to identify the theoretical structure of the FAD and suggests that the GF subscale could be used as a better overall indicator of family functioning.
Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, Centre Hospitalier de Versailles, Service de Pédopsychiatrie, Le Chesnay, France. msperanza@ch-versailles.fr
Mario
M
Speranza
Fabian
F
Guénolé
Anne
A
Revah-Levy
Pierre-Jean
PJ
Egler
Fethi
F
Negadi
Bruno
B
Falissard
Jean Marc
JM
Baleyte
D000328:Adult; D056348:Emotional Intelligence; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D005602:France; D006802:Human Activities / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D012015:Reference Standards; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012917:Social Adjustment; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires / Q000592:standards*; D014175:Translating