https://doi.org/10.1177/1044389421992289
Families in Society: The Journal of
Contemporary Social Services
2021, Vol. 102(4) 548–555
© The Author(s) 2021
Article reuse guidelines:
sagepub.com/journals-permissions
DOI: 10.1177/1044389421992289
journals.sagepub.com/home/fis
Research Note
The sibling relationship has been accepted as
one of the most significant family subsystems.
Siblings are a crucial source of familial support
during the lifespan by serving as friends and
confidants in early years (McHale et al., 2012)
and emotional supporters for each other during
parental conflict and at different life stages
(Waite et al., 2011). Siblings who have positive
relationships with one another in adulthood are
less likely to feel lonely and highly likely to
report greater life satisfaction (Milevsky,
2005). Research in the 1980s, focused mostly
on sibling relationships in the early years of life
(e.g., C. Stocker et al., 1989). Research on
adult sibling relationships became of interest
after Cicirelli’s (1995) seminal paper high-
lighted the significant changes in sibling rela-
tionships across the life span, and particularly
during emerging adulthood. These adult
changes included individual roles in life reori-
entation, marriage, parenthood, additional edu-
cation, and occupation that influenced family
and sibling dynamics (Conger & Little, 2010).
992289FIS XX X 10.1177/1044389421992289Families in SocietyGungordu et al.
research-article 2021
1
MA, MS, graduate research assistant, University of
Alabama, Tuscaloosa, USA
2
PhD, professor & director of Pediatric Development
Research Lab, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, USA
3
PhD, assistant professor, Ewha Womans University,
Seoul, Republic of Korea
4
PhD, associate professor & director of Center for the
Study of Ethical Development, University of Alabama,
Tuscaloosa, USA
Corresponding Author:
Ms. Nahide Gungordu, University of Alabama, 1619
Capital Hall, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0166, USA.
Email: ntosyalioglu@crimson.ua.edu
The Reliability and Validity of the
Lifespan Sibling Relationship Scale
(LSRS) With an English-Speaking
Young Adult Sample
Nahide Gungordu
1
, Maria Hernandez-Reif
2
,
Youn-Jeng Choi
3
, and David-Ian Walker
4
Abstract
The Lifespan Sibling Relationship Scale (LSRS) is the most comprehensive self-report
questionnaire available to evaluate the quality of sibling relationships based on feelings, behaviors,
and opinions across child and adult periods of development. To the best of our knowledge, the
psychometric properties of the LSRS have not been assessed or reported in an English-speaking
population since this assessment tool was introduced 20 years ago. The current study examined
the internal reliability and construct validity of the LSRS with a sample of 370 young adults
living in the United States. Results indicated that the original six-factor model of the LSRS is
plausible with minor modifications to measure the sibling relationship quality and with its close
correlation between factors and scales.
Keywords
lifespan sibling relationship scale, psychometrics, reliability, siblings, validity, young adults
Manuscript received: November 3, 2020; Revised: December 2, 2020; Accepted: January 5, 2021
Disposition editor: David C. Kondrat