The interplay of concepts, data, and methods in the development of the Family Management Style Framework

This article describes the process of development of the Family Management Style Framework. The FMSF is a conceptual representation of family response to a child's condition that takes into account the views of individual family members to conceptualize overall patterns of family response. The FMSF provides a more complete understanding of family life in the context of a child's chronic condition and directs researchers' and clinicians' efforts to assess family response, especially with regard to how condition management is incorporated into everyday family life. Framework development has included conceptual analyses of the literature, empirical studies of family management of childhood illness, and methodological work directed to treating the family as a unit of study and analysis. This article highlights how the interplay of conceptual, empirical, and methodological work advances knowledge development and presents lessons learned over the course of developing the FMSF.