Abstract
Contextual therapy posits that a truly comprehensive grasp of human existence is composed of individual and relational realities. The Relational Ethics Scale (RES) is the only validated instrument to measure relational ethics, one of the relational realities’ four dimensions, which was theorized by Boszormenyi-Nagy. The RES measures people’s perception about constructs of loyalty, entitlement, trust and justice in their family of origin and in their current and significant relationships. Relational ethics has been shown to have implications for mature development, psychological health and family functioning. The aim of this research was to adapt the RES for use with Spaniards residing in Spain (N = 1181). Psychometric properties were analyzed, and construct validity was assessed using the Spanish-Differentiation Self Inventory. Results obtained indicate the Spanish Relational Ethics Scale (S-RES) is a valid and reliable tool for relational ethics assessment in Spanish populations. Couple and family counselors in Spain may consider the clinical assessment of relational ethics using the S-RES in order to explore issues of fairness, trust, roles, and re-balance when working to support complex family systems. Future research directions using the newly validated S-RES are discussed.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adams, J. F., & Maynard, P. E. (2004). Applying the family ledger to couple therapy. Journal of Couple & Relationship Therapy, 3, 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1300/J398v03n01_01.
Adkins, K. S. (2010). A contextual family therapy theory explanation for intimate partner violence (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Columbus, OH : The Ohio State University.
Belous, C. K. (2015). Couple therapy with lesbian partners using an affirmative contextual approach. The American Journal of Family Therapy, 43, 269–281. https://doi.org/10.1080/01926187.2015.1012234.
Benjamin, L. R., & Benjamin, R. (1994). Application of contextual therapy to the treatment of multiple personality disorder. Dissociation Progress in the Dissociative Disorders, 7(1), 12–22.
Bentler, P., & Kano, Y. (1990). On the equivalence of factors and components. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 25, 67–74. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327906mbr2501_8.
Bernal, G., Rodriguez, C., & Diamond, G. (1990). Contextual therapy: Brief treatment of an addict and spouse. Family Process, 29, 59–71. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1545-5300.1990.00059.x.
Boszormenyi-Nagy, I. (1987). Foundations of contextual therapy: Collected papers of Ivan Boszormenyi-Nagy, M.D.. New York: Brunner-Mazel.
Boszormenyi-Nagy, I., & Krasner, B. R. (1986). Between give and take: A clinical guide to contextual therapy. New York: Brunner-Mazel.
Boszormenyi-Nagy, I., & Spark, G. (1984). Invisible loyalties. New York: Brunner-Mazel.
Boszormenyi-Nagy, I., Grunebaum, J., & Ulrich, D. (1991). Contextual Therapy. In A. S. Gurman & D. P. Kniskern (Eds.), Handbook of Family Therapy (Vol. II pp. 200–238). New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Bray, J. H., Williamson, D. S., & Malone, P. E. (1984). Personal authority in the family system: Development of a questionnaire to measure personal authority in intergenerational family processes. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 10, 167–178. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-0606.1984.tb00007.x.
Byrne, B. M. (2010). Structural equation modeling with AMOS: Basic concepts, applications, and programming. New York, NY: Routledge.
Comrey, A., & Lee, H. (1992). A first course in factor analysis. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Costello, A. B., & Osborne, J. W. (2005). Exploratory factor analysis: Four recommendations for getting the most from your analysis. Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation, 10(7), 1–9.
Cotroneo, M. (2007). In remembrance of Ivan Boszormenyi-Nagy M.D. Family Process, 46, 269–270. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1545-5300.2007.00209.x.
Dankoski, M. E., & Deacon, S. A. (2000). Using a feminist lens in contextual therapy. Family Process, 39, 51–66. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1545-5300.2000.39107.x.
Doosterlinck, F., Keppens, S., Spriet, E., & Broekaert, E. (2011). Life space crisis intervention and the contextual theory: Common grounds in history. Renewed reflections about treatment of children with emotional and behavioural disorders in their family. International Journal of Therapeutic Communities, 31(1), 3–17. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11126-007-9057-8.
Ducommun-Nagy, C. (2002). Contextual therapy. In F. W. Kaslow, R. F. Massey, & S. D. Massey (Eds.), Comprehensive handbook of psychotherapy (Vol. 3, pp. 463–488). Hoboken: Wiley.
Dutta, D. (2014). “Paribar Ka Palan” (“Watching Over Our Family”): The Application of Contextual Therapy for Indian Immigrant Families. Journal of Systemic Therapies, 33(4), 47–61. https://doi.org/10.1521/jsyt.2014.33.4.47.
Fabrigar, L. R., & Wegener, D. T. (2012). Exploratory factor analysis. New York: Oxford University Press.
Floyd, F. J., & Widaman, K. F. (1995). Factor analysis in the development and refinement of clinical assessment instruments. Psychological Assessment, 7(3), 286–299. https://doi.org/10.1037/1040-3590.7.3.286.
Ford, J. K., MacCallum, R. C., & Tait, M. (1986). The application of exploratory factor analysis in applied psychology: A critical review and analysis. Personnel Psychology, 39, 291–314. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.1986.tb00583.x.
Gabriel, L., & Casemore, R. (2009). Relational ethics in practice. Narratives from counselling and psychotherapy. London: Routledge.
Gangamma, R. (2008). Relational ethics among couples in therapy (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Columbus: The Ohio State University.
Gangamma, R., Bartle-Haring, S., & Glebova, T. (2012). A study of contextual therapy theory’s relational ethics in couples in therapy. Family Relations, 61, 825–835. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3729.2012.00732.x.
Gangamma, R., Bartle-Haring, S., Holowacz, E., Hartwell, E., & Glebova, T. (2015). Relational ethics, depressive symptoms, and relationship satisfaction in couples in therapy. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 41, 354–366. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmft.12070.
Gold, S. N. (2008). Benefits of a contextual approach to understanding and treating complex trauma. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 9(2), 269–292. https://doi.org/10.1080/15299730802048819.
Grames, H. A., Miller, R. B., Robinson, W. D., Higgins, D. J., & Hinton, W. J. (2008). A test of contextual theory: The relationship among relational ethics, marital satisfaction, health problems, and depression. Contemporary Family Therapy, 30, 183–198. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10591-008-9073-3.
Griffin, W. (2013). Family therapy: Fundamentals of theory and practice. New York: Routledge.
Grunebaum, J. (1987). Multidirected partiality and the “parental imperative”. Psychotherapy, 24, 646–656. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0085763.
Gurman, A. S., & Kniskern, D. P. (2014). Family therapy outcome research: Knowns and unknowns. In A. S. Gurman & D. P. Kniskern (Eds.), Handbook of family therapy (Vol. 2). New York: Routledge.
Hair, J. F., Black, W. C., Babin, B. J., & Anderson, R. E. (2010). Multivariate data analysis (7th ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Hargrave, T. D., & Bomba, A. K. (1993). Further validation of the relational ethics scale. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 19, 293–299. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.17542-0606.1993.tb00990.x.
Hargrave, T. D., Jennings, G., & Anderson, W. (1991). The development of a relational ethics scale. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 17, 145–158. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-0606.1991.tb00877.x.
Hargrave, T. D., & Pfitzer, F. (2003). The new contextual therapy: Guiding the power of give and take. New York: Brunner-Routledge.
Hargrave, T. D., & Sells, J. N. (1997). The development of a forgiveness scale. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 23, 41–63. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-0606.1997.tb00230.x.
Haxhe, S. (2016). Parentification and Related Processes: Distinction and implications for clinical practice. Journal of Family Psychotherapy, 27, 185–199. https://doi.org/10.1080/08975353.2016.1199768.
Heiden-Rootes, K. M. H. (2013). Wanted fathers: Understanding gay father families through contextual family therapy. Journal of GLBT Family Studies, 9, 43–64. https://doi.org/10.1080/1550428X.2013.746055.
Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 6, 1–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118.
International Test Commission. (2017). The ITC guidelines for translating and adapting tests (2nd ed.). Retrieved from: https://www.intestcom.org/files/guideline_test_adaptation_2ed.pdf.
Kawar, C., Coppola, J., & Gangamma, R. (2019). A contextual perspective on associations between reported parental infidelity and relational ethics of the adult children. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmft.12331.
Kim, L., Knudson-Martin, C., & Tuttle, A. (2014). Toward relationship-directed parenting: an example of North American born second-generation Korean-American mothers and their partners. Family Process, 53(1), 55–66. https://doi.org/10.1111/famp.12052.
Knudson-Martin, C. (2013). Why power matters: Creating a foundation of mutual support in couple relationships. Family Process, 52(1), 5–18. https://doi.org/10.1111/famp.12011.
Leibig, A. L., & Green, K. (1999). The development of family loyalty and relational ethics in children. Contemporary Family Therapy, 21, 89–112. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021966705566.
Lewis, M. P., Gary, F. S., & Charles, D. F. (Eds.). (2014). Ethnologue: Languages of the world (17th ed.). Dallas, TX: SIL International.
Luttrell, T. B., Distelberg, B., Wilson, C., Knudson-Martin, C., & Moline, M. (2018). Exploring the relationship balance assessment. Contemporary Family Therapy, 40(1), 10–27. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10591-017-9421-2.
MacCallum, R. C., Widaman, K. F., Zhang, S., & Hong, S. (1999). Sample size in factor analysis. Psychological Methods, 4, 84–99. https://doi.org/10.1037/1082-989X.4.1.84.
Matsunaga, M. (2010). How to factor-analyze your data right: Do’s, don’t’s, and how-to’s. International Journal of Psychological Research, 3(1), 97–110. https://doi.org/10.21500/20112084.854.
Mertler, C. A., & Vannatta, R. A. (2010). Advanced and multivariate statistical methods (4th ed.). Glendale, CA: Pyrczak Publishing.
Muñiz, J., Elosua, P., & Hambleton, R. (2013). Directrices para la traducción y adaptación de los tests: Segunda edición. Psicothema, 25, 151–157. https://doi.org/10.7334/psicothema2013.24.
Pollard, M. W., Anderson, R. A., Anderson, W. T., & Jennings, G. (1998). The development of a family forgiveness scale. Journal of Family Therapy, 20, 95–109. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6427.00070.
Rodríguez-González, M., Skowron, E. A., & Jódar Anchía, R. (2015). Spanish adaptation of the Differentiation of Self Inventory-Revised (DSI-R). Terapia Psicológica, 33, 47–58. https://doi.org/10.4067/S0718-48082015000100005.
Ruscio, J., & Roche, B. (2012). Determining the number of factors to retain in an exploratory factor analysis using comparison data of known factorial structure. Psychological Assessment, 24(2), 282–292. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025697.
Ruzgyte, E. (2011). Contextual family therapy. Marriage and Family Therapy: A practice-Oriented Approach (pp. 65–90). New York: Springer Publishing Company.
Schmidt, A. E., Green, M. S., & Prouty, A. M. (2016). Effects of parental infidelity and interparental conflict on relational ethics between adult children and parents: A contextual perspective. Journal of Family Therapy, 38(3), 386–408. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6427.12091.
Shannon, S. T. (2017). Relational ethics and relationship cycling (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH
Sharon, A. B. (2016). The role of relational ethics and forgiveness in adult sibling relationships (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Ohio, United States: The University of Akron.
Sibley, D. S., Schmidt, A. E., & Kimmes, J. G. (2015). Applying a contextual therapy framework to treat panic disorder: A case study. Journal of Family Psychotherapy, 26, 299–317. https://doi.org/10.1080/08975353.2015.1097285.
Skowron, E. A., & Schmitt, T. A. (2003). Assessing interpersonal fusion: Reliability and validity of a new dsi fusion with others subscale. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy 29(2), 209–222. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-0606.2003.tb01201.x
Soyez, V., Tatrai, H., Broekaert, E., & Bracke, R. (2004). The implementation of contextual therapy in the therapeutic community for substance abusers: a case study. Journal of Family Therapy, 26, 286–305. https://doi.org/10.1111/J.1467-6427.2004.00284.
Spanier, G. B. (1976). Measuring dyadic adjustment: New scales for assessing the quality of marriage and similar dyads. Journal of Marriage and Family, 38(1), 15–28. https://doi.org/10.2307/350547.
Vallejo-Medina, P., Gómez-Lugo, M., Marchal-Bertrand, L., Saavedra-Roa, A., Soler, F., & Morales, A. (2017). Developing guidelines for adapting questionnaires into the same language in another culture. Terapia Psicológica, 35(2), 159–172. https://doi.org/10.4067/s0718-48082017000200159.
van der Meiden, J. (2019). Where hope resides. A Qualitative Study of the Contextual Theory and Therapy of Ivan Boszormenyi-Nagy and its Applicability for Therapy and Social Work. (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). University of Humanistic Studies.
van der Meiden, J., Noordegraaf, M., & van Ewijk, H. (2018a). Applying the paradigm of relational ethics into contextual therapy. Analyzing the practice of Ivan Boszormenyi-Nagy. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 44, 499–511. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmft.12262.
van der Meiden, J., Noordegraaf, M., & van Ewijk, H. (2018b). Relational ethics as enrichment of social justice: Applying elements of contextual therapy to social work. Qualitative Social Work. https://doi.org/10.1177/1473325018800383.
van der Meiden, J., Noordegraaf, M., & van Ewijk, H. (2019a). How is contextual therapy applied today? An analysis of the practice of current contextual therapists. Contemporary Family Therapy, 41, 12–23. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10591-018-9467-9.
van der Meiden, J., Verduijn, K., Noordegraaf, M., & van Ewijk, H. (2019b). Strengthening connectedness in close relationships: A model for applying contextual therapy. Family Process. https://doi.org/10.1111/famp.12425.
van Heusden, A., & van den Eerenbeemt, E. (1986). Balance in motion: Ivan Boszormenyi-Nagy and his vision of individual and family therapy. New York: Brunner-Mazel.
Williamson, D. S. (1981). Personal authority via termination of the intergenerational hierarchical boundary: A “new” stage in the family life cycle. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 7, 441–452. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-0606.1981.tb01398.x.
Wilson, K. L., Glebova, T., Davis, S., & Seshadri, G. (2017). Adolescent mothers in foster care: Relational ethics, depressive symptoms and health problems through a contextual therapy lens. Contemporary Family Therapy, 39, 150–161. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10591-017-9417-y.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
We attest that this manuscript is original and has been neither submitted nor accepted for publication elsewhere. All authors have contributed to the study and approved submission to Contemporary Family Therapy. We confirm we have read and abided by the statement of ethical principles regarding research with human participants and that we had the approval from a University IRB (institutional review board) and by the Clinical Research Ethics Committee of three hospitals in order to conduct the study. According to Contemporary Family Therapy Ethical Standards, we confirm there are not any potential conflicts of interest, and the research has the ethical consent of the institutions involved in the study.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Electronic supplementary material
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Rived-Ocaña, M., Schweer-Collins, M.L., Rodríguez-González, M. et al. Spanish Adaptation of the Relational Ethics Scale. Contemp Fam Ther 42, 346–359 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10591-020-09540-y
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10591-020-09540-y