Dr. Olson’s "Family Wellness Scale"

Published May 16, 1985. A few weeks ago, Dr. David Olson from the University of Minnesota was a guest lecturer at the university. During his lecture Dr. Olson shared with his audience a “Family Wellness Scale” he had recently developed for the Lutheran Church. Dr. Olson stated he thought it might have relevance for families in this area as well.

The Family Wellness Scale is developed around two central concepts. One is family adaptability. How rigid are your family rules? How is the family discipline handled? What kind of leadership is there in the home?

The second concept is family togetherness. It has to do with such things as how close family members feel toward each other and time spent together in family activities. Or how dependent or independent family members feel toward each other.

While describing the Family Wellness Scale, Dr. Olson made a note of some common family extremes. They included too much or too little family adaptability. We can err in having too many or too few family rules. The family life professor from the University of Minnesota also suggested there can be too much or too little family togetherness. While most would recognize that too little time together as a family can be detrimental to family wellbeing, few recognize that too much family togetherness can likewise be harmful.

Just out of curiosity, I took copies of Dr. Olson’s Family Wellness Scale home and one evening asked members of our family to fill one out. It was quite revealing how differently everyone responded. The older children assisted the younger ones, and each person marked how they perceived the family to be. I then asked that they go back and answer how they would like the family to be.

Our teenagers wanted more flexibility. I was the only one in our family who wanted more structure. But that was predictable wasn’t it?

What were some of the questions? Just as a sample try these tonight with your family.

1. What are the rules (written or unwritten) in your family?

a.       Rules very clear and very stable

b.      Rules clear and stable

c.       Rules clear and flexible

d.      Rules seldom clear and change often

      2.    How often does your family spend time playing together?

a.       Seldom

b.      Sometimes

c.       Often

d.      Very often

How do you think members of your family would answer these questions? There are only eight other questions like this on the questionnaire. You can score the responses and decide which of 16 family types you fit into.

If you would like a copy of Dr. Olson’s Family Wellness Scale just send a long self-addressed stamped envelope. Please ask for just one copy. You may photo copy additional copies as needed.