TY - JOUR
T1 - Assessing psychological adjustment in siblings of children with cancer
T2 - Parents' perspectives
AU - Cordaro, Giulia
AU - Veneroni, Laura
AU - Massimino, Maura
AU - Clerici, Carlo Alfredo
PY - 2012/1
Y1 - 2012/1
N2 - Background: The siblings of children with neoplastic disease are at risk of emotional and behavioral problems, but few studies have focused on these risks, and findings across studies are inconsistent. Objective: The objective of this study was to assess psychological adjustment in siblings of children with cancer and analyze the impact of several moderating variables. Methods: Parents of children with cancer completed the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) on their healthy offspring (n = 30, aged 4Y18 years), and a semistructured interview on potential risk factors to their child's adaptation. Child Behavior Checklist scores were compared with those of a control sample of the same age (n = 33). Results: Contrary to expectations, CBCL scores were better for the siblings of children with cancer. Healthy siblings' sex and age, family size, understanding of the situation, and changes in daily routine had no influence on CBCL scores. Parent-reported scores indicated that older siblings of the child with cancer have more observable difficulties than do younger siblings. Conclusions: Future research about healthy siblings will need to clarify whether these results are attributable to healthy siblings' resilience or to parents' difficulties in assessing their psychosocial difficulties. Directly measuring the siblings' perceptions will be of special importance. Distinguishing short- and long-term adjustment will also be important. Implications for Practice: It is essential to design support programs for all family members and to help parents be aware of their healthy children's needs.
AB - Background: The siblings of children with neoplastic disease are at risk of emotional and behavioral problems, but few studies have focused on these risks, and findings across studies are inconsistent. Objective: The objective of this study was to assess psychological adjustment in siblings of children with cancer and analyze the impact of several moderating variables. Methods: Parents of children with cancer completed the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) on their healthy offspring (n = 30, aged 4Y18 years), and a semistructured interview on potential risk factors to their child's adaptation. Child Behavior Checklist scores were compared with those of a control sample of the same age (n = 33). Results: Contrary to expectations, CBCL scores were better for the siblings of children with cancer. Healthy siblings' sex and age, family size, understanding of the situation, and changes in daily routine had no influence on CBCL scores. Parent-reported scores indicated that older siblings of the child with cancer have more observable difficulties than do younger siblings. Conclusions: Future research about healthy siblings will need to clarify whether these results are attributable to healthy siblings' resilience or to parents' difficulties in assessing their psychosocial difficulties. Directly measuring the siblings' perceptions will be of special importance. Distinguishing short- and long-term adjustment will also be important. Implications for Practice: It is essential to design support programs for all family members and to help parents be aware of their healthy children's needs.
KW - Pediatric cancer
KW - Psychological adaptation
KW - Siblings
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U2 - 10.1097/NCC.0b013e3182182869
DO - 10.1097/NCC.0b013e3182182869
M3 - Article
C2 - 21760490
AN - SCOPUS:84857031130
VL - 35
JO - Cancer Nursing
JF - Cancer Nursing
SN - 0162-220X
IS - 1
ER -