Family Functioning, Psychosocial Stress, and Goal Attainment in Brain Injury Rehabilitation

Abstract

The study investigated the impact of family functioning (as measured by the Family Assessment Device) on goal attainment (as measured by a Goal Attainment Scale) and psychosocial distress (as measured by the Brief Symptom Inventory–18) among survivors of acquired brain injury in a community re-entry rehabilitation setting. The bivariate analysis suggests that participants had significantly greater goal attainment scores if they were members of families with stronger general functioning (r = .27, p < .05), stronger defined family roles (r = .28, p < .05), a greater capacity to respond emotionally to each other (r = .29, p < .05), and proactively solved family problems (r = .28, p < .05).

KEYWORDS:

• ABI
• brain injury
• community
• FAD
• family functioning
• goal attainment
• rehabilitation
• support

Notes

Note. FAD = Family Assessment Device; BSI–18 = Brief Symptom Inventory–18.

Note. Gen = gender; Fam = general family functioning; FBeh = family behavior control; FCom = family communication; FRol = family roles; FAI = family affective involvement; FAR = family affective responsiveness; FProb = family problem solving; Goal = goal attainment; LOF = level of functioning; PsyDis = psychosocial distress.

*p < .05, **p < .01.

Note. F = 1.65, R ² = .157.

^a Lower score (1) = male; higher score (2) = female.