FACTORIAL VALIDATION OF THE CHINESE GENERAL FUNCTIONING SUBSCALE (GF-12) OF THE FAMILY ASSESSMENT DEVICE IN MALAYSIA

ABSTRACT

@#The objective of this study wasto determine the factorial validity of the Chinese version of the General Family Functioning subscale (GF-12) and to assess parents’ perceived family functioning of children with or without chronic respiratory disease in Malaysia. Thirty two parents of children with chronic respiratory disease and 30 parents of healthy children were recruited. The GF-12 was administered at baseline and 2 weeks later. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that our instrument was a 1-factor model assessing general family functioning. Cronbach’s α value was 0.950. Test-retest reliability coefficient ranged from 0.490-0.790. The overall mean (standard deviation) score was not significantly different between parent’s perceived family functioning of children with or without respiratory disease [1.83(0.63) versus 1.65(0.46), p=0.385]. The Chinese version of the GF-12 was found to be a valid and reliable instrument to assess family functioning in Malaysia. Parents in the present study showed healthy perceived family functioning (total score >2.00)