Children's Coping Research Articles

Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial of Adapt 2 Asthma (A2A), a culturally relevant coping skills and asthma management intervention for Latinx Families

BackgroundLatinx children in the United States experience disparities in asthma control and asthma-related functional outcomes compared to non-Latinx White children, including more school absences, emergency department visits, and hospitalizations for asthma. Stress appears to play a role in asthma control, but interventions designed to address the role of stress in asthma control for Latinx children are limited.MethodThe current randomized controlled trial tests the effects of Adapt 2 Asthma (A2A), a family-based coping skills and asthma management intervention tailored to the stressors, strengths, and cultural beliefs of Latinx families, compared to an asthma self-management control arm (the Asthma Plan for Kids; APK). Latinx families of children ages 8 to 14 years old with asthma (target N = 280) are identified and enrolled from primary care clinics and randomly assigned to either A2A or APK. The intervention is delivered by lay health workers trained and receiving ongoing consultation from the study team. The primary outcome is child- and parent-reported asthma control, while secondary outcomes are child’s quality of life, lung function, school absences, and emergency department visits, and child and parent coping and family asthma management behaviors. Participants will be assessed at baseline, post-intervention, and at 6- and 12-month follow-up timepoints.DiscussionThis study has the potential to provide new evidence regarding the effects of culturally relevant coping and asthma management intervention strategies for Latinx children with asthma.Trial RegistrationClinicaltrials.gov NCT05118282. Registered on 11 November 2021.

The Experiences and Needs of Parents of Children with Diabetes in Coping with a Child`s Disease

Nursing care should support the coping of children and their caregivers, improving the lives of children and their relatives. The central focus for health care providers should be developing strategies for emotional support, reinforcement, and caregiver education.

Intergenerational coping: Examining how caregiver and child coping relate to resilience in bereaved children

The death of a loved one can have harmful effects on children’s mental health, yet some bereaved children exhibit resilience. Various caregiver and child coping strategies, including active and avoidant coping, may affect the psychosocial functioning of bereaved children. The current study recruited 78 bereaved children aged 8–17 and one of their caregivers to explore: 1) how caregivers’ coping strategies affect their child’s coping strategies and resilience, and 2) associations between children’s coping and their resilience. Results from the active coping mediation model revealed that children’s active coping was significantly associated with their resilience, and caregivers’ active coping was indirectly associated with children’s resilience through children’s active coping. The avoidant coping model was not significant. These preliminary findings highlight the importance of promoting active coping strategies among bereaved children and caregivers.

Psychosocial Experiences of Spanish-Speaking Parents of Children With Craniofacial Microsomia.

Craniofacial microsomia (CFM) and microtia psychosocial research in the US is primarily with English-speaking participants. Given that 19% of the US is Latino, and there is a higher prevalence of CFM in Latino populations, this study aims to describe psychosocial experiences related to CFM among Spanish-speaking Latino caregivers to better inform health care. Narrative interviews (mean 73±17min) were completed in Spanish with parents of children with CFM aged 3 to 17 (mean age 10.8±4.8years). Transcripts were analyzed using quantitative linguistic analyses and reflexive thematic analysis. Participants (N=12) were mostly mothers (83%) who had immigrated to the US and had low socioeconomic status. Based upon analysis of grouped word counts, participants spent approximately half of their narratives discussing the first two years of their child's life. Themes selected based on US Latino sociodemographics and cultural values included the Impact of Language, Healthcare Challenges, Supportive Healthcare Experiences, Caregiver Coping with CFM, Family Roles, and Addressing Social Implications of CFM. Results highlighted that the first years of care are of critical importance to parents and suggest this is an optimal time to focus on education and support services for families. Additional treatment suggestions include providing interpretation and informational materials in Spanish, addressing care barriers, supporting familial and child coping, accounting for the role of extended family, and helping address social concerns. Ongoing research with Latino families can further assist in guiding culturally sensitive CFM health care.

An adaptation of the KidCOPE: the KidCOPE-parent (KidCOPE-P) – a parent-report measure of child coping strategies

ABSTRACT Objective Understanding how children cope is an important factor in investigating the impact of adversity on child development. With children increasingly experiencing adverse situations – such as the COVID-19 pandemic – having methods of assessing coping strategies is an essential step in supporting self-regulation development. Parent report is a common method of measuring child outcomes, as parents observe children across a range of settings. Thus, the goal of this study was to investigate the reliability and validity of the KidCOPE-Parent form – an adaptation of the original KidCOPE self-report. Methods A sample of 253 children, aged 6–7 years old, across 19 government and catholic schools in Melbourne, Victoria. Results Findings indicate that a two-factor model best fits the data, with the KidCOPE-P demonstrating moderately acceptable reliability and validity. There were some differences in mean scores reported between males and females for items relating to problem-solving, social support, and resignation coping strategies. Conclusion Overall, the KidCOPE-P is moderately suitable for assessing children’s coping strategies, as observed by a parent. Future research is needed to replicate these findings and continue to explore the KidCOPE-P’s reliability as a parent-report measure of child coping strategies.

When a parent dies: A scoping review of protective and risk processes for childhood bereavement

The death of a parent can have profound effects on child development. Yet, little is known about the individual and environmental processes that contribute to heterogeneity in child bereavement outcomes. A scoping review was conducted in samples of parentally bereaved children to identify key processes, synthesize results, and determine research gaps. This scoping review identified 23 studies (mainly from the United States), published between 1990 and 2023, that reported child (ages 3–22 years) individual and/or environmental protective and/or risk processes that contributed to bereavement outcomes. Individual processes (i.e., how children manage stressors and think about themselves/their environment) included child coping and perception of themselves and/or their environment. Environmental processes (i.e., contextual resources) included family, mentorship, and stress exposure. Findings can be used to apprise clinicians, families, and policymakers of the unique nature of childhood bereavement and to identify malleable processes to target in interventions designed to prevent problematic outcomes in bereaved children.

Peer Mentorship Enhances Coping in Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults with Pectus Excavatum and Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis

Purpose: Children and adolescents and young adults (AYA) with pectus excavatum (PE) and adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) experience similar journeys regarding pain, body image, and self- and peer acceptance. Peer mentoring may address some of the challenges faced regarding diagnosis and treatment of PE and AIS. Before implementing a mentor program, our hospital noted an increased length of stay (LOS) and difficulty coping in those undergoing surgery for PE and AIS, emphasizing the need for additional support. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of a peer mentor program for children/AYAs with PE or AIS and their parents on coping, pain, and LOS. Design and Methods: This non-randomized controlled trial included a prospective intervention group that received peer mentorship and a retrospective control group that received standard care. Self-reported surveys assessed the effect of the mentor program on coping. Qualitative data on coping were analyzed descriptively. Postoperative pain and LOS were obtained from the health record. Bivariate inferential statistics were used to compare the distribution of pain scores and LOS between intervention and control groups. Results: Children/AYAs, parents, and mentors reported enhanced coping and found peer mentorship beneficial, though it did not have a statistically significant impact on pain or LOS. Conclusions: Peer mentorship facilitates coping in children/AYAs with PE or AIS undergoing corrective surgery. Parents and mentors also perceived benefits. Practice Implications: Pediatric nurses and child life specialists can help children/AYAs, and their families prepare for surgery by connecting them with peer mentors and social support.

Coping Mechanisms and Posttraumatic Stress Exhibited by Children in Areas of Yemen's Armed Conflict in Southern Saudi Arabia.

This study is an attempt to explore war-related trauma, its stressful effects, and the coping strategies of Saudi schoolchildren. The authors hypothesized that children exposed to war-related trauma will show higher levels of PTSD, and that those with higher levels of PTSD symptoms use more maladaptive coping strategies. The study describes the correlation between traumatic events and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as well as coping strategies. Five hundred twenty-seven intermediate and high school students, 12 to 18 years old, living in the conflict zone in southern Saudi Arabia completed three standardized self-reported scales: the War Zone Traumatic Events Checklist, the Child PTSD Symptom Scale, and the Children's Coping Strategies Checklist. Each participating student was randomly chosen. Analysis was based on two groups: the high-PTSD symptoms group (182 children) and the low-PTSD symptoms group (345 children). The study was conducted between September 2020 and April 2022 while the war was ongoing as part of an ongoing larger study. Children exposed to war-related traumatic events exhibited greater prevalence rates for PTSD. The children reported high levels of PTSD symptoms and applied a variety of coping strategies to manage related stress. Participants rarely reported that psychological or educational interventions had been used to manage the war-related traumatic experiences and PTSD or to improve related coping styles. The results are discussed in the context of mental health services needed for children in the conflict zone. To bridge the gap between health care services and the needs of children with PTSD, and for better understanding and interventions, health professionals are invited to develop a biopsychosocial model that identifies the risks of PTSD related to exposure to war-related traumatic events in school-aged children and, hence, provide a multidisciplinary intervention program that educates, encourages, and supports teachers and parents in following medical recommendations and goals.

Irony Understanding in Children With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A Comparative Analysis.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by persistent patterns of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that can significantly impact a child's daily life and academic performance. Some studies have noted challenges in social cognition among children with ADHD, specifically in aspects like emotion perception and processing, empathy, Theory of Mind, and pragmatics. One of the lesser-explored aspects of ADHD is its potential impact on higher-level language skills, such as irony understanding. Our goal in this study was to compare irony comprehension in two groups: schoolchildren with normal development and schoolchildren with ADHD. We performed a comparative cross-sectional study on a total of 35 children aged between 6 and 12 years: 17 with ADHD and 18 not neurodevelopmentally impaired. Irony comprehension was evaluated using an assessment method validated for the Portuguese population: Turtle on the Island - Battery of Assessment of Executive Functions in Children (TI-BAFEC). We also applied the EACE (Emotional Awareness and Coping in Children) scale. It is the Portuguese adaptation of the Assessment of Children's Emotion Skills and assesses children's emotional knowledge. We obtained two comparable groups concerning sociodemographic data. The analysis of the data, using the Mann-Whitney U Test, showed that in all parameters, the control group consistently exhibited superior performance compared to the ADHD group. However, only TI-BAFEC (p = 0.005) and emotional behavior (p = 0.007) showed a significant statistical variance between the two groups. This article shows that children with ADHD encounter challenges in grasping irony. However, the underlying cognitive processes contributing to these difficulties warrant further investigation.

Examining Coping Strategies and Their Relation with Anxiety: Implications for Children Diagnosed with Cancer or Type 1 Diabetes and Their Caregivers.

The onset of chronic diseases in childhood represents a stressful event for both young patients and their caregivers. In this context, coping strategies play a fundamental role in dealing with illness-related challenges. Although numerous studies have explored coping strategies employed by parents of children with chronic diseases, there remains a gap in the understanding of children's coping strategies and their correlation with their and their parents' anxiety. This study aims to investigate coping strategies and their interaction with anxiety in groups of young patients with cancer, type 1 diabetes (T1D), and their respective caregivers, in comparison to healthy children and caregivers. We recruited a total of 61 control children, 33 with cancer, and 56 with T1D, 7 to 15 years old, along with their mothers. Each participant completed a customized survey and standardized questionnaires. No significant differences emerged in coping strategies used by children among the different groups. However, when examining the association between coping strategy and anxiety, we found specific patterns of interaction between children's use of coping strategies and their and their mothers' anxiety levels. This study underscores the importance of an illness-specific approach to gain deeper insights into this topic and develop targeted interventions aimed at enhancing the psychological well-being of these vulnerable populations.

Assessing service usage and protective factors in a pediatric psychiatry clinic during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Youth with developmental and pre-existing mental health conditions have been particularly vulnerable to declines in psychological functioning during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to first, analyze service usage within an outpatient child and adolescent psychiatry clinic in the months preceding and during the COVID-19 pandemic, and second, to examine associations with potential protective factors against mental health concerns in a treatment-engaged sample. Service usage was examined using clinic billing data, and reports on protective factors were gathered via parent survey of 81 children ages 6-17 years who received mental health treatment in an outpatient psychiatry clinic during the pandemic. Protective factors were assessed at the individual, family, and community levels, and included children's use of coping strategies, parental resilience, and parents' perceived social supports. Study outcomes, including mental health concerns, mental health emergencies, pandemic-related distress, and social impact of the pandemic, were analyzed via Pearson correlations and simultaneous multiple linear regressions. Findings suggest increased service usage and child coping, parental resilience, and social connectedness as factors associated with fewer mental health concerns in youth with psychiatric concerns during the pandemic. This study lends support for expanding psychiatric services with continued use of telemedicine platforms. Further, findings suggest a mental health benefit to optimizing individual, parental, and community-based resources to enhance children's psychological functioning, particularly for youth with pre-existing mental health conditions.

Covid 19 and Child and Adolescent Mental Health

Psychological coping of children and adolescent’s convalescent from Covid-19 is the title of the biomedical research carried out by Drs. Isaac Iran Cabrera Ruiz, head of the Department of Psychology at the «Martha Abreu» Central University of Las Villas, Miguel Ángel Toledo Méndez, professor of Psychology at the University of Medical Sciences of Villa Clara, and Addys Pérez Fernández, head of the Provincial Group of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry in the central region of the country.

ANXIETY AND COPING IN SCHOOL-AGED CHILDREN DURING CHEMOTHERAPY TREATMENT

Cancer was a chronic disease that increased child mortality. Treatment processes and drug side effects, fear of relapse, frequent re-entry, and death, functional impairment, changes in body image, decreased self-esteem, and challenges in transitioning back to life caused considerable stress and anxiety for pediatric cancer patients. Almost all pediatric cancer patients were faced with at least one psychosocial problem, of which anxiety and depression often coexisted and were most frequently reported. Anxiety and coping affected the quality of life of children with cancer. This research aimed to identify anxiety and coping in school-age children during chemotherapy treatment. This research used a quantitative descriptive method. Forty-five children participated in this research. The research instrument used for data collection was anxiety and coping questionnaires. Data were analyzed using descriptive analysis. The result of this research showed that the majority of school-age children's anxiety during chemotherapy programs was in the moderate anxiety category, while the majority of children's coping was in the maladaptive coping category. Anxiety and coping were factors that affected the quality of life of children with cancer. Further research is expected to examine interventions that can improve adaptive coping in children undergoing chemotherapy.Keywords: anxiety, coping, chemotherapy, school-age children

Factors Related to Caregiver Burden of Children with Chronic Respiratory Failure with Tracheostomy at Home

Introduction Chronic respiratory failure in children is a significant health problem leading to tracheostomy at home following hospital discharge. Providing long-term care for children at home becomes challenging when they require complex medical treatments, placing a burden on caregivers. Objectives 1) To describe caregiver burden of children with chronic respiratory failure with tracheostomy at home, and 2) To examine the relationships between caregiving self-efficacy, social support, coping, and caregiver burden of children with chronic respiratory failure with tracheostomy at home. Design A descriptive correlational design employing Chou’s caregiver burden as the conceptual framework Methodology Through purposive sampling with inclusion criteria, the sample included 85 caregivers of children aged three months to 15 years old with tracheostomy at home, who were receiving care at a super tertiary hospital in Bangkok metropolitan area and a tertiary hospital in a northern province of Thailand from May 2022 to January 2023. The instruments used for data collection comprised the following: the personal information of caregiver and children questionnaire, the caregiver burden questionnaire, the caregiving self-efficacy questionnaire, the social support questionnaire, and the coping questionnaire. These instruments revealed content validity indices of .86, .97, .92 and .97, respectively and internal consistency reliability, with Cronbach’s alpha coefficients of .90, .95, .95 and .92, respectively. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Pearson’s product-moment correlation. Results The overall caregiver burden score averaged at a moderate level (M = 2.57, SD = 0.10). Furthermore, caregivers perceived a moderate level of burden across all subscales, including physical, emotional, social, and financial burdens (M = 2.51, 2.42, 3.00 and 3.00, with SD = 0.98, 1.01, 1.15 and 1.15, respectively). Social support was at a high level (M =2.83, SD = 0.07) and revealed a significant negative correlation with caregiver burden (r = -.292, p = .007). Caregiving self-efficacy was high, while coping was at a moderate level; however, there was no significant correlation between these factors and caregiver burden (r = -.182, p = .097, and r = -.139, p = .203, respectively). Recommendation The results from this study highlighted the burden experienced by caregivers of children with chronic respiratory failure requiring tracheostomy care at home, as well as the factor related to this burden. It is necessary for healthcare providers to provide targeted training programs aimed at enhancing caregivers’ knowledge and skills in home-based child care. Additionally, offering informational and emotional support, along with providing necessary medical equipment, should be considered to alleviate caregiver burden.

Anxiety and coping strategies among dyslexics in Ethiopia.

Individuals with dyslexia have been shown to have an increased risk for developing internalizing problems. Various studies have revealed the powerful role that culture plays in determining the type of anxiety and coping strategies adopted by various groups of individuals. However, compared to the vast number of studies conducted in individualistic cultures, knowledge on collectivistic cultures with respect to this issue is still limited. This study examined anxiety and coping strategies of children with and without dyslexia in Ethiopia, where the majority of its cultural dimensions could be regarded as collectivistic. A total of 126 children with (n = 63) and without (n = 63) dyslexia, aged 8-11 (41 boys and 22 girls, in each group; and age: M = 9.43 years; SD = 1.14 and M = 9.46; SD =1.11), participated. Dyslexia was assessed using an Amharic dyslexia assessment battery, while anxiety level and coping strategy were respectively measured using the Spence Children's Anxiety Scales (SCAS) and the Children's Coping Questionnaire (CCQ), both translated into Amharic. Results indicated that dyslexia was associated with higher levels of anxiety (especially generalized anxiety) and lower levels of support-seeking coping strategies. We discuss these results in the light of the cultural and institutional context in Ethiopia.

The role of school-based creative expression interventions in the aftermath of migration: A qualitative exploration of parents' and teachers' perspectives

This study explored supportive relational processes for immigrant children's well-being between peers, teachers, and parents in the development of school-based creative interventions in European multi-ethnic societies. Within the present study, we integrated the perspectives of teachers and parents to broaden the dominant focus on the assessment of individual symptomatology within the existing body of studies of school-based interventions studies. As a part of a larger multi-method study on the implementation of a creative expression program for immigrant children ages 8–12 years in three schools in Belgium, we conducted focus group discussions to learn parents' and teachers' perspectives on the role of school-based creative interventions in children's coping with histories of migration and life in exile. Parents and teachers identified the need for the intervention to foster emotional expression impacting children's self-esteem and social connectedness with peers and to foster emotional connections between parents, teachers, and children. Parents also stressed the importance of the intervention within society as a forum to engage with social conditions, promote cultural belonging, and social integration. Results identified the importance of school-based interventions in terms of individual benefits as well as connectedness and coherence in entire communities, thereby strengthening the development of transcultural research evidence for school-based interventions in multi-ethnic societies.

Coping strategies in postpartum women: exploring the influence of demographic and maternity factors

BackgroundPostpartum depression is a frequent mental health issue that affects many women due to this stressful phase. The aim of the study is to gain insight into the coping strategies employed by postpartum women and to explore how these strategies are influenced by various demographic and maternity factors.MethodsThe study adopted a quantitative, cross-sectional design. Data were collected from 239 postpartum women receiving care at a Gynecology and Obstetrics Clinic using self-reported tools, which include the Brief COPE survey and the socio-demographics and obstetric/maternal history form from October 2022 to April 2023.ResultsThe study findings indicate that individuals aged over 40 tend to use more emotional-focused coping compared to those aged 21–30 (p = 0.002) and 31–40. Additionally, both genders of children were associated with more emotional-focused coping (p = 0.007) compared to only having boys. Cesarean section delivery (p = 0.001) was associated with more avoidant-focused coping than normal vaginal delivery. Avoidant-focused coping was significantly predicted by problem-focused coping (p < 0.001), emotional-focused coping (p = 0.034), age (p = 0.003), and gender of children (only boys, p < 0.001; both boys and girls, p = 0.019). Furthermore, problem-focused coping was significantly predicted by age (p = 0.004), gender of children (male child, p = 0.002; both boy and girl: p = 0.014), and avoidant-focused coping (p < 0.001).ConclusionsThe study examined how postpartum women cope with the challenges of motherhood and how this relates to their demographic and maternity factors. The results suggest that healthcare professionals should promote effective coping strategies and discourage avoidance-oriented approaches in postpartum interventions.

Preventing mental health problems in children after high conflict parental separation/divorce study: An optimization randomized controlled trial protocol

Parental divorce is a childhood stressor that affects approximately 1.1 million children in the U.S. annually. The children at greatest risk for deleterious mental health consequences are those exposed to high interparental conflict (IPC) following the separation/divorce. Research shows that children's emotional security and coping efficacy mediate the impact of IPC on their mental health. Interventions targeting their adaptive coping in response to IPC events may bolster their emotional security and coping efficacy. However, existing coping interventions have not been tested with children exposed to high post-separation/divorce IPC, nor has any study assessed the effects of individual intervention components on children's coping with IPC and their mental health. This intensive longitudinal intervention study examines the mechanisms through which coping intervention components impact children's responses to interactions in interparental relationships. A 23 factorial experiment will assess whether, and to what extent, three candidate intervention components demonstrate main and interactive effects on children's coping and mental health. Children aged 9–12 (target N = 144) will be randomly assigned to one of eight combinations of three components with two levels each: (1) reappraisal (present vs. absent), (2) distraction (present vs. absent), (3) relaxation (present vs. absent). The primary outcomes are child-report emotional security and coping efficacy at one-month post-intervention. Secondary outcomes include internalizing and externalizing problems at the three-month follow-up. Based on data from this optimization phase RCT, intervention components will be selected to comprise a multi-component intervention and assessed for effectiveness in a subsequent evaluation phase RCT.

Efek Biblioterapi Dalam Menurunkan Kecemasan Pada Anak Usia Sekolah (7 – 12 tahun) Saat Perawatan Di Rumah Sakit

Background: The child has difficulty in understanding why they are sick, hospitalization can cause separation anxiety in children, which includes protest, despair, discharge, loss of control so it needs bibliotherapy. Bibliotherapy is the use of the book as a medium of therapy to minimize stressors, prevent the loss, reduce anxiety, and support children coping. Aims: The purpose of this study was to determine the effect Biblio therapy against anxiety levels in school-age children (7-12 years) in the Children's Room of Blambangan Banyuwangi Hospital. Methods: Pre-experimental research design using the technique of one group pre-post test design. A sample of 20 children with accidental sampling technique. Data obtained from observations before and after giving bibliotherapy, and then do the scoring, tabulating, and statistical tests using Wilcoxon match pair test. Results: Manually obtained calculation number 199&gt; 52 = Ho is rejected and Ha is accepted, meaning that there are differences in anxiety levels before and after biblio therapy which means there is a significant effect of bibliotherapy on anxiety levels in school-aged children (7–12 years) in the Children's Room of Blambangan Hospital Banyuwangi. Conclusions: Billion therapy can be applied as one of the nursing interventions in the hospital to decrease the problem of children to keep children happy and cooperative during hospitalization.

Indirect effect of ADHD on parenting stress through increased child anxiety and decreased emotional regulatory coping.

Parents of children with ADHD experience significantly more parenting stress in comparison to parents of typically developing children due to the emotional and behavioral difficulties related to ADHD. Additionally, approximately 30% of children with ADHD experience co-occurring anxiety. Parents of children with co-occurring anxiety and ADHD report increased stress due to role restriction and isolation compared to parents of children with ADHD alone. Poor emotional regulatory coping in children with ADHD has been linked to elevated negative affect and irritability, which also contributes to increased stress among parents. The present study examined the direct and indirect associations of child anxiety symptoms and emotional regulatory coping on elevated ADHD symptoms and parenting stress. Participants were 203 children aged 7-12-years-old and their parents. Parents completed a self-report measure of parenting stress and measures of their child's ADHD symptoms, anxiety, and emotional regulatory coping. Additionally, children completed self-report measures of emotional regulatory coping. Model testing indicated that the overall model demonstrated excellent fit to the data. Parameter testing supported an indirect effect of child ADHD symptoms on parenting stress through child anxiety symptoms and an indirect effect of child ADHD symptoms on parenting stress through child emotional regulatory coping. These results suggest that child anxiety and emotion dysregulation in children with ADHD have a negative impact on parental stress. The current study adds to the understanding of the important roles emotional regulatory coping and anxiety play in children with ADHD to contribute to increased parenting stress.