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Encyclopedia of Couple and Family Therapy pp 1030–1034Cite as

Family Assessment Device

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Name and Type of Measure

The Family Assessment Device (FAD) is a 60-item self-report measure of perceived family functioning.

Developers

The FAD was developed in 1983 by Nathan Epstein and his family therapy research team (Epstein et al. 1983).

Description of the Measure

The FAD is based on the McMaster Model of Family Functioning (MMFF) and is part of the McMaster Approach to evaluating and treating families. The McMaster Model of Family Functioning (MMFF) was developed in Canada in the 1960s and 1970s and was designed to name and describe areas of family functioning that all families must manage. The FAD has been translated into over 20 different languages. The founders of the model identified six dimensions of family functioning along which all families function:

  • Problem Solving. Problem solving refers to a family’s ability to resolve both instrumental and affective problems in a way that maintains effective family functioning.

  • Communication. Communication refers to the verbal...

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References

  • Epstein, N. B., Baldwin, L. M., & Bishop, D. S. (1982). The McMaster clinical rating scale. Providence: Brown University Family Research Program.

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  • Epstein, N. B., Baldwin, L. M., & Bishop, D. S. (1983). The McMaster family assessment device. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 9(2), 171–180.

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  • Mansfield, A. K., Keitner, G. I., & Dealy, J. (2015). The family assessment device: An update. Family Process, 54(1), 82–93. Retrieved from http://10.0.4.87/famp.12080.

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  • Miller, I. W., Epstein, N. B., Bishop, D. S., & Keitner, G. I. (1985). The McMaster family assessment device: Reliability and validity. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 11(4), 345–356.

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  • Ryan, C. E., Epstein, N., Keitner, G. I., Miller, I., & Bishop, D. S. (2005). Evaluating and treating families: The McMaster approach. New York: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group.

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  • Staccini, L., Tomba, E., Grandi, S., & Keitner, G. I. (2015). The evaluation of family functioning by the family assessment device: A systematic review of studies in adult clinical populations. Family Process, 54(1), 94–115.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, USA

    Abigail Mansfield & G.K. Keitner

  2. Rhode Island Hospital; Brown University, Providence, RI, USA

    Abigail Mansfield

  3. Rhode Island Hospital, Department of Psychiatry, Providence, RI, USA

    Richard Archambault

Authors
  1. Abigail Mansfield
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  2. G.K. Keitner
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  3. Richard Archambault
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Abigail Mansfield .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. The Family Institute at Northwestern University, Center for Applied Psychological and Family Studies, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA

    Jay L. Lebow

  2. The Family Institute at Northwestern University, Center for Applied Psychological and Family Studies, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA

    Anthony L. Chambers

  3. The Family Institute at Northwestern University, Center for Applied Psychological and Family Studies, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA

    Douglas C. Breunlin

Section Editor information

  1. Council for Relationships, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Heather Pederson

  2. Midwestern University, Downers Grove, IL, USA

    Diana Semmelhack

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Cite this entry

Mansfield, A., Keitner, G., Archambault, R. (2019). Family Assessment Device. In: Lebow, J.L., Chambers, A.L., Breunlin, D.C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Couple and Family Therapy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-49425-8_395

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