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Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales III (FACES III)3

Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales III (FACES III) Test

Understand family closeness and flexibility under stress in about 8 minutes. Compare how things are now versus desired, to pinpoint strengths, gaps, and clear targets for therapy.

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Questions: 408 minutes

08:30

October 2, 2025

October 2, 2025
Material has been updated

October 2, 2025
Material has been published

31,499 views

3,566 completions

2,968 likes

Verified by Daniel Hall

Psychologist with 25 years of experience

Scale Explorer

How the Scales are Structured

example score

2/10

Emotional Bonding Discrepancy (Ideal vs. Actual) (EBDvA)

Measures the gap between desired and current emotional closeness in the family, indicating how satisfied a person is with family cohesion.

Low gap

Moderate gap

High gap

0 – 3: Low gap | 4 – 6: Moderate gap | 7 – 10: High gap

A score of 2 indicates a low ideal–reality gap, suggesting the current emotional connection is close to what is desired.

example score

6/10

Rules (Ideal–Actual Discrepancy) (RAD)

Measures the size of the gap between how structured and stable family rules are in reality versus how they are ideally desired to be.

Low gap

Moderate gap

High gap

0 – 3: Low gap | 4 – 6: Moderate gap | 7 – 10: High gap

A score of 6 indicates a moderate discrepancy between desired and actual family rules, suggesting some dissatisfaction with how formalized or stable the norms feel.

example score

5/10

Roles (Ideal–Actual Discrepancy) (RAD)

Measures the gap between the family’s desired and actual distribution of roles and responsibilities.

Low mismatch

Moderate mismatch

High mismatch

0 – 3: Low mismatch | 4 – 6: Moderate mismatch | 7 – 10: High mismatch

A score of 5 indicates a moderate mismatch between preferred and current family roles, suggesting some dissatisfaction with how responsibilities are allocated.

example score

3/10

Discipline (Ideal-Actual Discrepancy) (DAD)

Measures the gap between how much discipline the family wants and how much discipline it experiences in everyday life.

Low gap

Moderate gap

High gap

0 – 3: Low gap | 4 – 6: Moderate gap | 7 – 10: High gap

A score of 3 indicates a low discrepancy between desired and actual family discipline, suggesting generally acceptable order and consistency with only minor unmet expectations.

example score

7/10

Control (Ideal-Real Discrepancy) (CRD)

Measures the gap between the family’s desired and current level of control and regulation in daily life.

Low gap

Moderate gap

High gap

0 – 3: Low gap | 4 – 6: Moderate gap | 7 – 10: High gap

A score of 7 indicates a high mismatch between desired and current family control, suggesting notable dissatisfaction with how regulated family life feels.

example score

7/10

Leadership (Ideal-Actual Discrepancy) (LAD)

Measures the size of the gap between desired and actual leadership (guidance and responsibility distribution) within the family.

Small gap

Moderate gap

Large gap

0 – 3: Small gap | 4 – 6: Moderate gap | 7 – 10: Large gap

A score of 7 indicates a large ideal-versus-reality gap in family leadership, suggesting notable dissatisfaction with how guidance or responsibilities are currently organized compared with what is desired.

example score

7/40

Family Adaptability Discrepancy (Ideal vs. Actual) (FADvA)

Measures the discrepancy between perceived current and desired family adaptability, indicating satisfaction with the family’s flexibility under stress.

Reality exceeds ideal

No gap

Ideal exceeds reality

-40 – -1: Reality exceeds ideal | 0: No gap | 1 – 40: Ideal exceeds reality

A score of 7 indicates a small-to-moderate gap where the desired level of family adaptability is higher than the current perception, suggesting some dissatisfaction with flexibility.

example score

3/10

Interests and Recreation (Ideal–Actual Discrepancy) (IaRAD)

Measures the size of the gap between desired and actual shared interests and leisure time in the family.

Low gap

Moderate gap

High gap

0 – 3: Low gap | 4 – 6: Moderate gap | 7 – 10: High gap

A score of 3 indicates a low gap, suggesting the family's current shared interests and leisure time are fairly close to what is desired.

example score

3/10

Friends (Ideal-Actual Discrepancy) (FAD)

Measures the gap between desired and actual family involvement in friendships, indicating how aligned social connectedness feels to the respondent.

Low discrepancy

Moderate discrepancy

High discrepancy

0 – 3: Low discrepancy | 4 – 6: Moderate discrepancy | 7 – 10: High discrepancy

A score of 3 suggests a low discrepancy between the desired and actual level of friendship involvement in the family, indicating generally aligned expectations.

example score

6/10

Time (Ideal-Actual Discrepancy) (TAD)

Measures the size of the gap between actual and desired time spent together as a family.

Small gap

Moderate gap

Large gap

0 – 3: Small gap | 4 – 6: Moderate gap | 7 – 10: Large gap

A score of 6 indicates a moderate discrepancy between current and preferred family time together, suggesting some dissatisfaction with this aspect of family life.

example score

5/10

Decision-Making (Ideal-Actual Discrepancy) (DMAD)

Measures how large the gap is between desired and actual involvement in family decision-making.

Low gap

Moderate gap

High gap

0 – 3: Low gap | 4 – 6: Moderate gap | 7 – 10: High gap

A score of 5 falls in the Moderate gap range, suggesting a noticeable mismatch between preferred and current participation in family decisions.

example score

8/10

Family Boundaries (Ideal-Actual Discrepancy) (FBAD)

Measures how large the gap is between desired and actual family boundaries and personal space.

Small gap

Moderate gap

Large gap

0 – 3: Small gap | 4 – 6: Moderate gap | 7 – 10: Large gap

A score of 8 indicates a large gap between ideal and current family boundaries, suggesting notable dissatisfaction with personal space or boundary clarity.

example score

18/40

Family Cohesion Discrepancy (Ideal vs. Actual) (FCDvA)

Measures the gap between ideal and current family cohesion, indicating how closely expectations about emotional closeness match perceived reality.

Reality > ideal cohesion

Aligned expectations

Ideal > reality cohesion

-40 – -1: Reality > ideal cohesion | 0: Aligned expectations | 1 – 40: Ideal > reality cohesion

A score of 18 indicates that the desired level of emotional closeness is notably higher than what is currently perceived, suggesting dissatisfaction with present family cohesion.

example score

9/10

Rules (R)

Rules measure how formalized, stable, and binding behavioral norms are within the family system.

Flexible

Balanced

Strict

0 – 3: Flexible | 4 – 7: Balanced | 8 – 10: Strict

A score of 9 suggests very strict, strongly enforced family rules that emphasize order and consistency but may limit flexibility under stress.

example score

6/10

Roles (R)

Roles measure how clearly and consistently responsibilities and family functions are distributed among members.

Unclear roles

Mostly defined roles

Well-defined roles

0 – 3: Unclear roles | 4 – 7: Mostly defined roles | 8 – 10: Well-defined roles

A score of 6 suggests that roles are generally allocated and understood, though some situations may still require clarification or renegotiation.

example score

3/10

Discipline (D)

Discipline measures how consistent, structured, and predictable family behavior and rules are in everyday life.

Low structure

Moderate structure

High structure

0 – 3: Low structure | 4 – 7: Moderate structure | 8 – 10: High structure

A score of 3 suggests low structure, with family routines and rules tending to be less consistent and predictable.

example score

4/10

Control (C)

Control reflects how strongly family members’ behavior is regulated by rules and expectations versus allowed to be spontaneous and free.

Low control

Moderate control

High control

0 – 3: Low control | 4 – 6: Moderate control | 7 – 10: High control

A score of 4 indicates moderate control, suggesting a balance between clear rules and room for flexibility and spontaneity in family interactions.

example score

4/10

Leadership (L)

Leadership measures how clearly guidance and responsibility are organized within the family system.

Low leadership

Moderate leadership

High leadership

0 – 3: Low leadership | 4 – 6: Moderate leadership | 7 – 10: High leadership

A score of 4 indicates moderate leadership, suggesting some guidance is present but roles and responsibility may not be consistently defined.

example score

18/50

Family Adaptability Level (FAL)

Assesses how flexibly a family system can adjust roles and rules to cope with change and stress.

Rigid

Balanced

Chaotic

10 – 21: Rigid | 22 – 30: Balanced | 31 – 50: Chaotic

A score of 18 falls in the Rigid range, suggesting the family tends to respond to stress with limited flexibility and slower changes to established rules or roles.

example score

6/10

Interests and Recreation (IaR)

Measures the extent to which family members share common interests and spend leisure time together.

Disconnected leisure

Some shared interests

Strong shared leisure

0 – 3: Disconnected leisure | 4 – 7: Some shared interests | 8 – 10: Strong shared leisure

A score of 6 suggests the family has a moderate level of shared interests and leisure time, with connection present but not consistently maintained.

example score

3/10

Friends (F)

Measures how much the family is socially connected through friendships outside the family, from isolation to many shared friends.

Low involvement

Moderate involvement

High involvement

0 – 3: Low involvement | 4 – 7: Moderate involvement | 8 – 10: High involvement

A score of 3 suggests low family involvement in friendships outside the family, indicating relatively limited shared social connections.

example score

4/10

Time (T)

Assesses how much time family members spend together as an indicator of connectedness versus disconnection.

Low shared time

Moderate shared time

High shared time

0 – 3: Low shared time | 4 – 7: Moderate shared time | 8 – 10: High shared time

A score of 4 suggests a moderate level of shared family time, indicating some togetherness alongside noticeable periods of separation.

example score

7/10

Decision Making (DM)

Measures how much family members participate in shared discussion and collective decision-making.

Low shared decision-making

Moderate shared decision-making

High shared decision-making

0 – 3: Low shared decision-making | 4 – 7: Moderate shared decision-making | 8 – 10: High shared decision-making

A score of 7 suggests decisions are typically discussed together, though some choices may still be made independently by individual family members.

example score

2/10

Family Boundaries (FB)

Measures how clearly personal space and autonomy are separated among family members, reflecting the clarity of family boundaries.

Blurred boundaries

Moderately clear boundaries

Clear boundaries

0 – 3: Blurred boundaries | 4 – 7: Moderately clear boundaries | 8 – 10: Clear boundaries

A score of 2 falls in the “Blurred boundaries” range, suggesting relatively limited separation of personal space and autonomy among family members.

example score

6/10

Emotional Bonding (EB)

Emotional connection measures the degree of emotional closeness, mutual support, and attachment among family members.

Low connection

Moderate connection

High connection

0 – 3: Low connection | 4 – 7: Moderate connection | 8 – 10: High connection

A score of 6 indicates a moderate level of emotional closeness and support, suggesting connection is present while still allowing some interpersonal distance.

example score

34/50

Family Cohesion Level (FCL)

Measures the degree of emotional closeness and bonding among family members.

Lower cohesion

Connected

Very high cohesion

10 – 36: Lower cohesion | 37 – 42: Connected | 43 – 50: Very high cohesion

A score of 34 falls in the Lower cohesion range, suggesting comparatively more emotional distance and autonomy among family members at present.

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DATA-BASED USER COHORTS

Who Usually Takes This Test?

Couples in relationship strain

41%OF USERS

Partners take it to understand emotional closeness, conflict patterns, and how flexibly their family system responds to stress.

Parents navigating transitions

34%OF USERS

Parents use it during major changes (new baby, divorce, relocation, adolescence) to see what needs to shift in roles and connection.

Family therapy and counseling clients

25%OF USERS

Families in counseling complete it to compare how things are versus how they want them to be and set clear therapy goals.

BASED ON AGGREGATED, ANONYMIZED DATA FROM TENS OF THOUSANDS OF FREUDLY USERS.

Benchmarking

See How You Compare

Once you complete the test, your results are compared with real-world data from people in your country.
Below is a preview of how scores are typically distributed across each scale.

Emotional Connection (the Ideal-Reality Gap) (EC(IG)

Average

3.2

Normal range

1.7 — 4.7

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Rules (Ideal vs. Reality Gap) (R(vRG)

Average

4.5

Normal range

2.9 — 6.2

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Roles (difference between ideal and reality) (R(biar)

Average

Normal range

3.5 — 6.4

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Discipline (gap between ideal and reality) (D(biar)

Average

6.9

Normal range

5.4 — 8.5

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Control (difference between ideal and reality) (C(biar)

Average

6.1

Normal range

4.6 — 7.5

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Leadership (Ideal vs. Reality Gap) (L(vRG)

Average

5.5

Normal range

4 — 6.9

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Family Adaptation (Ideal-Reality Gap) (FA(G)

Average

-10.8

Normal range

-21.6 — 0

min.

-40

max.

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Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Interests and Leisure (Ideal vs. Reality Gap) (IaL(vRG)

Average

3.5

Normal range

1.8 — 5.2

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Friends (the gap between ideal and reality) (F(gbiar)

Average

7.4

Normal range

5.8 — 9

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Time (difference between ideal and reality) (T(biar)

Average

5.2

Normal range

3.7 — 6.7

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Decision Making (The Gap Between Ideal and Reality) (DM(GBIaR)

Average

5.1

Normal range

3.7 — 6.6

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Family Boundaries (The Gap Between Ideal and Reality) (FB(GBIaR)

Average

7.3

Normal range

5.9 — 8.7

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Family cohesion (gap between ideal and reality) (Fc(biar)

Average

3.4

Normal range

-6.5 — 13.3

min.

-40

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Rules (R)

Average

6.4

Normal range

4.9 — 7.9

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Roles (R)

Average

5.3

Normal range

3.9 — 6.6

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Discipline (D)

Average

7.2

Normal range

5.9 — 8.4

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Control (C)

Average

2.8

Normal range

1.5 — 4.1

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Leadership (L)

Average

3.8

Normal range

2.1 — 5.5

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Level of Family Adaptation (LoFA)

Average

27.8

Normal range

22 — 33.6

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Interests and Leisure (IaL)

Average

7.1

Normal range

5.5 — 8.8

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Friends (F)

Average

Normal range

4.1 — 7.9

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Time (T)

Average

5.3

Normal range

3.7 — 7

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Decision Making (DM)

Average

4.7

Normal range

3.3 — 6.1

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Family Boundaries (FB)

Average

3.9

Normal range

2.3 — 5.5

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Emotional connection (Ec)

Average

6.9

Normal range

5.4 — 8.4

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Level of Family Cohesion (LoFC)

Average

28.1

Normal range

22.3 — 33.9

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

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SAMPLE QUESTIONS

Example Questions From the Test

The questionnaire consists of two parts. First 20 items: Please describe your actual family (spouses, children). Read each statement and rate it using the scale provided. Next 20 items: Now, please describe the ideal family—the one you would wish for. Read each statement and rate it using the scale provided.

- Almost never
- Rarely
- From time to time
- Often
- Almost always
- Almost never
- Rarely
- From time to time
- Often
- Almost always
- Almost never
- Rarely
- From time to time
- Often
- Almost always

These are 3 of the 40 real questions — the rest appear in the test. No sign-up needed to start.

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WHAT THE TEST MEASURES

About This Assessment

Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scale, FACES III Test

Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales III (FACES III) Test - Symptoms and Signs

family adaptation

family

This measure is designed to support a brief assessment of family functioning, with emphasis on emotional bonding among family members and flexibility in response to stress. The Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales III (FACES III) provides a structured self-report format for describing the family system as currently perceived and as ideally desired.

The instrument includes 40 items and typically takes about 8 minutes to complete. It yields indices related to family cohesion and adaptability that can be used to inform clinical case conceptualization, treatment planning, and monitoring of change over time. The scale was developed by Yoav Lavee and Joyce Portner.

In clinical and research contexts, the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales III (FACES III) is commonly used to characterize perceived strengths and areas of strain within family relationships, while recognizing that results should be interpreted alongside collateral information and the broader clinical presentation.

Author: David H. Olson, Joyce Portner, Yoav Lavee

Literature: Olson, D. H. Circumplex model of marital and family systems. Journal of Family Therapy. 2000.; Nichols, M. P. Family therapy: Concepts and methods. Pearson. 2009.