Background
Early family research concentrated on problems such as divorce, violence and delinquency. From the 1970s Nick Stinnett surveyed families in the United States and other countries to identify what makes families function well, later summarised with John DeFrain in Secrets of Strong Families (1985).
Six qualities of strong families
- Commitment to the family and each member's well-being
- Appreciation and affection expressed often
- Positive communication, including listening and handling conflict without blame
- Time together in both quantity and quality
- Spiritual well-being: shared values, meaning and hope
- Ability to cope with stress and crisis as a team
Perspective
The approach holds that every family has strengths and that functioning matters more than structure, so single-parent, step and multicultural families can be strong families. It links closely with family resilience research.
Use in Korea
Korean scholars developed family strength scales, and since the 2004 Framework Act on Healthy Families the perspective has informed education and counselling at family centres, although critics say the term 'healthy family' presumes a normative family form.
References
- Stinnett, N., & DeFrain, J. (1985). Secrets of Strong Families. Little, Brown.
- DeFrain, J., & Asay, S. M. (2007). Strong families around the world: An introduction to the family strengths perspective. Marriage & Family Review, 41(1-2), 1-10.
- Olson, D. H., DeFrain, J., & Skogrand, L. (2019). Marriages and Families: Intimacy, Diversity, and Strengths (9th ed.). McGraw-Hill.
- 유영주. (2004). 가족강화를 위한 한국형 가족건강성 척도 개발 연구. 『한국가족관계학회지』, 9(2), 119-151.