Family Support Scale – FSS
Measures the helpfulness of various sources of support to families raising young children.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The Family Support Scale – FSS was developed by Carl J. Dunst, Vance Jenkins, & Carol M. Trivette (1984). It is designed to measure Family Social Support. The scale is intended for use with Parents and caregivers of young children.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 18 items organized into 4 factors/subscales: Familial Support, Spousal Support, Social Support, Professional Support.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| Familial Support | 1,2,3,5,8 | 5 |
| Spousal Support | 4 | 1 |
| Social Support | 6,7,9,10,11,12,13 | 7 |
| Professional Support | 14,15,16,17,18 | 5 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 0 = Not Available (NA), 1 = Not helpful at all, 2 = Sometimes helpful, 3 = Generally helpful, 4 = Very helpful, 5 = Extremely helpful.
Scoring
Items are summed to produce a total score.
Total scores range from 0 to 90. Interpretation guidelines:
- Very Low Support: 0 – 18
- Low Support: 19 – 36
- Moderate Support: 37 – 54
- High Support: 55 – 72
- Very High Support: 73 – 90
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 5 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.