The reliability and validity of the 12-item General Functioning (GF) subscale of the McMaster Family Assessment Device (FAD) is reported here. Psychometric properties of the FAD have been previously determined, but no independent assessment has been made of the GF subscale, which was used to measure family functioning in the Ontario Child Health Study (OCHS). Reliability was measured by Chronbach's alpha and split-half correlation. Validity was assessed by hypothesizing the relationships expected between the GF scores and other family variables included in the OCHS data set. The results indicate good reliability, and all hypotheses of validity were supported. The brevity and ease of administering the GF subscale recommend it for further use in survey research in which a global assessment of family functioning is required.
Purpose: This paper proposes both a model and a measure of human service integration through strategic alliances with autonomous services as one way to achieve comprehensive health and social services for target populations.Theory: Diverse theories of integrated service delivery and collaboration were combined reflecting integration along a continuum of care within a service sector, across service sectors and between public, not-for-profit and private sectors of financing services.Methods: A measure of human service integration is proposed and tested. The measure identifies the scope and depth of integration for each sector and service that make up a total service network. It captures in quantitative terms both intra and inter sectoral service integration.
Results:Results are provided using the Human Service Measure in two networks of services involved in promoting Healthy Babies and Healthy Children known to have more and less integration.
Conclusions:The instrument demonstrated discriminate validity with scores correctly distinguishing the two networks. The instrument does not correlate (rs0.13) with Weiss (2001) measure of partnership synergy confirming that it measures a distinct component of integration.
Discussion:We recommend the combined use of the proposed measure and the Weiss (2001) measure to more completely capture the scope and depth of integration efforts as well as the nature of the functioning of a service program or network.
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