Abstract

A cross-sectional, descriptive-correlational design was employed in this study. The main purpose of this study was to identify the relationship between female adolescents' mental health and their perception of family characteristics, such as family adaptability, family cohesion, family type, and family satisfaction, The theoretical rationale for this study is the 3-Dimensionl Circumplex Model that was formulated by Olson, et al. With respect to method, a structured questionnaire was employed to obtain the data. A total of 199 female students(high school second year) were recruited by convenience sampling. Data for this study were collected in October 1994 after a pilot study and pretest of the tools. The research tool used the following four self-report research types : Youth Self-Report (YSR) developed by Achenbach and Edelbrock, Family Adaptability & Cohesion Evaluation Scales (FACES) III, Family Satisfaction(FS) developed by Olson, et al. and a Demographic Data Sheet. The resulting data were processed using an SPSS PC for a Pearson prod uct-moment correlation coefficient, ANOVA. A linear relationship were found between female students' mental health and their perceived family cohesion(r=-.2237, p<.001), and family satisfaction(r=-.3951, p<.001), but no significant correlations was found between female students' mental health and their perceived adaptability. These findings demonstrated that family cohesion, family type, and family satisfaction were more powerful predictors than family adaptability. This study contributes to nursing practice by demonstrating the usefulness of YSR to differentiate deviant behavior in youth and also by providing nursing interventions designed to promote female mental health.