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Researchers, professionals, and families have shown increasing concern about the quality of life of people with intellectual disabilities (ID) and their families. Due to the growing interest in family quality of life (FQoL) as a key issue for social policy in the ID field, the aim of this research was to explore FQoL in Catalonia (Spain). The Spanish Family Quality of Life Scales (CdVF-E) were completed by 144 families using the version for households with children up to 18 years of age and by 122 families using the version for households with adult children over 18 years of age. The results show that FQoL is higher in families with adult children over 18 years of age than in families with children up to 18 years of age, and there are differences among domains in both groups. Likewise, there are relations between the scores in the scales and some demographic characteristics such as marital status, level of education, employment status, and family income, particularly in households with children under 18 years of age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Researchers, professionals, and families have shown increasing concern with the family quality of life (FQoL) of people with intellectual disability (ID) and their families. The goals of this research were (a) to explore how Spanish families understand FQoL by developing 2 different measurement tools for families with a member with ID under and over 18 years old, and (b) to provide 2 diagnostic instruments that will be useful for designing action plans. Method The study comprised 4 stages: (a) focus groups, (b) expert assessment, (c) pilot study, and (d) normalisation and standardisation. The data were collected in 5 regions in Spain, and 1,205 families with a member with ID took part in the normalisation and standardisation of the scales. Results Both FQoL scales were consistent and have valid psychometric characteristics. Conclusions The scales have a diagnostic purpose for use in designing action plans aimed at producing significant changes in families' lives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]