Parental distress in response to childhood medical trauma: A mediation model. (September 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Currie, Roseanne; Anderson, Vicki A; McCarthy, Maria C; Burke, Kylie; Hearps, Stephen JC; Muscara, Frank
• Is Part Of: Journal of health psychology. Volume 25:Number 10/11(2020)
• Page Start: 1681
• Page End: 1691
• Publication Date: 2020-09
• Subjects: acute illness -- children -- family -- illness -- psychological distress -- risk factors -- trauma; Clinical health psychology -- Periodicals; 613.019
• DOI: 10.1177/1359105318770728
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1359-1053

Abstract

This study explored the relationship between individual and family-level risk in predicting longer-term parental distress following their child's unexpected diagnosis of serious illness. A mediation model was tested, whereby parents' pre-existing psychosocial risk predicts longer-term posttraumatic stress symptoms, indirectly through parents' acute stress response. One hundred and thirty-two parents of 104 children participated. Acute stress response partially mediated the relationship between psychosocial risk and posttraumatic stress symptoms, with a moderate indirect effect ( r 2 = .20, PM = .56, p < .001). Findings demonstrated that cumulative psychosocial risk factors predispose parents to acute stress and longer-term posttraumatic stress symptoms, highlighting the need for psychosocial screening in this population.