Measures of Clear Roles Many researchers identify clear role definition as an important characteristic of family functioning, and as essential for a family's ability to adapt to changing situations. With a clear, yet flexible structure in place, family members are aware of their responsibilities in and to the family. Consequently, in the face of crisis and problems, members know their roles. The McMaster Family Assessment Device (Epstein, et al, 1983), a self-report instrument, has a subscale that measures roles in the family. The authors note the nature of this aspect of family functioning: "[1] focuses on whether the family has established patterns of behavior for handling a set of family functions ... In addition, assessment of the roles dimension includes consideration of whether tasks are clearly and equitably assigned to family members and whether tasks are carried out responsibly by family members" (Epstein, et al, 1983). An eight-item subscale provides a measure of this construct.