Abstract
Background
Family is the primary context for attachment, nurturing, and socialization, shaping essential communication, social, and survival skills, but it can also be a place for expression of aggression. For social workers and mental health professionals, a brief and valid tool for assessing family functioning can guide safety-focused interventions. The Family Functioning and Cohesion Scale (FFCS), a 14-item self-report questionnaire developed by Greek researchers, has attracted international interest. It captures core dimensions of family life—communication, expression of aggression, and shared values. A current study is assessing FFCS on families of two culturally and geographically distinct European countries—Greece and Iceland.
Methods
In its validation study (N = 481), the FFCS demonstrated high internal consistency and strong test-retest reliability. Each item is rated 0-3, with higher values representing better outcomes (i.e., higher communication and shared values/beliefs within the family, less expression of aggression). The current comparative study between Greece and Iceland includes 60 families per country: 20 with mental health issues, 20 multiproblem, and 20 healthy families.
Results
Subscale item means in the original validation study were 2.18 (Communication), 2.01 (Anger/Resentment/Aggression), and 1.50 (Sharing of Values/Beliefs). While positive correlations were found between Communication and both Anger/Resentment/Aggression (r = .451) and Values/Beliefs (r = .522), the correlation between the two latter subscales was very low (r = .165).
Conclusions
The FFCS contributes to early identification of risk factors related to conflict, neglect, and reduced cohesion—critical elements in ensuring family safety. Our results suggest that overt aggression within the family relates more to problems of communication rather than to non-shared values. The FFCS ongoing cross-national study will further explore its validity in diverse cultural settings.
Key messages
• The FFCS is brief and easy to use across diverse populations. The Greece – Iceland collaboration will further explore its international application.
• The FFCS can provide insight into the expression of aggression in the family and assist the implementation safety-focused interventions.
Topic
Family Cohesion, Risk Assessment in Families, Family Functioning.