A Review of Family Resilience: Understanding the Concept and Operationalization Challenges to Inform Research and Practice

Family resilience is a concept that has wide and deep roots, ranging from the development of the concept of individual resilience to the postulates of general systems theory, including family systems theory and related therapeutic models as well as studies on family stress and coping. Integration of these roots into a comprehensive theory remains incomplete. Consequently, numerous ambiguities in the conceptualization and operationalization of the concept of family resilience remain. This has important implications for both research and the application of the concept to practice. This article aims to contribute to the clarification and understanding of this evolving concept by reviewing the foundations upon which the concept of family resilience has emerged and has been developing. Our work connects family resilience to the concepts of individual resilience, as well as, community resilience, presenting key challenges but also possible solutions in operationalizing indicators of risk, protective factors, and good outcomes. This article discusses the influence of context and dominant social discourses in defining both risk exposure and family adaptation, highlighting community engagement as a core resilience resource. The article concludes by presenting the challenges that remain in the field of family resilience research, especially in light of the relevance of this concept to interventions and practice pertaining to child and youth care practice.