FEATURES OF EXPERIENCE AND COPING BEHAVIOR OF PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH CANCER

  • Tamara Krotova
Keywords: Parents, emotional state, coping strategies, children with cancer

Abstract

The results of the study presented in the article aimed at finding out and empirically investigating the psychological factors of the experiences and coping behavior of parents of children with cancer. The sample includes parents of children with cancer who were treated at the National Cancer Institute of the Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine and the Dacha Rehabilitation Center (Kyiv). Number of respondents - 61 person, 58 women (95.1%) and 3 men (4.9%), average age - 38.21 years; used tools: method "SAN" (modification of V. Doskin), method "Self-assessment of emotional states" (A. Wessman, D. Ricks), author's questionnaire to identify objective components of the situation associated with cancer in children; test "Strategies of overcoming behavior" (R. Lazarus, adapted by L. Wasserman and E. Trifonova); G. Eisenko's personal questionnaire (edited by A. Shmelev and V. Pokhilko) and the Test of Meaningful Life Orientations (adapted by D. Leontiev). SPSS 17.0 Statistics for Windows software package was used for statistical processing of the obtained results.

It was found that the current emotional state of the subjects is relatively safe, but unstable; the situation is assessed by them as moderately positive. Aggravating factors in assessing the causes of the disease are fatalism and admission of guilt. The structure of coping behavior revealed the average level of representation of almost all types of coping and its weak differentiation, which indicates the lack of a clear coping model. It is concluded that the experiences and coping behavior of adults in an uncertain situation are closely related and due to a number of objective factors of the situation, correlate with the subjective characteristics and personal characteristics of its participants. Some objective characteristics of the situation and social-economic characteristics of its participants have some influence on the current emotional state and are partly related to the interpretation of the causes of the disease and the attitude to the disease as fate; aggravating factors of experience in assessing the causes of the disease are fatalism and admission of guilt, along with objective reasons; the greatest influence of the studied objective factors on the perception and assessment of the situation and/or the choice of coping strategies has an existence of hobby. Those relatives who use the coping strategy "Escape ‒ avoidance" need the most psychological help - its actualization correlates with a negative emotional state.

References

Akimenko, A. (2016). Relationship between coping strategies and social-psychological characteristics of the individual. Developmental Psychology, 2, 152.
Afonina, I. (2013). Coping resources of the individual as a component of integrated behavior in the process of adaptation to difficult life circumstances. Theoretical and Applied Problems of Psychology, 1 (30), 30–38.
Belinskaya, E., Sangova, S. (2015). Illness as a difficult life situation: features of coping strategies for relatives of the seriously ill. Psychological research. 8 (42), p.8. Retrieved from http://psystudy.ru
Bulakh, I. (2015). Psychology of life crises of the individual. Vinnytsia: Nilan Ltd.
Vasilyuk, F. (1984). Psychology of experience (analysis of overcoming critical situations). Moscow: Published by Moscow university.
Vetrova, I. (2008). Relationship of mastering behavior with behavior control and psychological protection in the system of self-regulation. Moscow: Institute of Psychology, Russian Academy of Sciences.
Grabovska, S., Yesip, M. (2010). The problem of coping in modern psychological research. Social-humanitarian problems of a person. Retrieved from: http://dspace.nbuv.gov.ua/bitstream/handle/123456789/27423/19-Hrabowska.pdf?sequence=1
Igumnova, O. (2020). Research of coping strategies of people in difficult life circumstances. Theory and practice of modern psychology. 1 (2), 28-33.
Isaeva, E. (2009). Coping behavior and psychological protection of the individual in conditions of health and disease. St. Petersburg: Published by The first St. Petersburg State Medical University I.P. Pavlova.
Kovalenko, A., Rodina N. (2011). Coping Behavior Research: Trends and Prospects. Science and Education, 9, 110-113.
Kudryashov, A. (2016). Psychological support of families with a cancer patient in the terminal stage of the disease. Young Scientist, 15 (1), 108–111.
Kubler-Ross, E. (2001). About death and dying. Kiev: Sofia.
Leontiev, D. (2000). Test of meaningful life orientation. Moscow: Meaning.
Mazurova, N. (2014). Model of psychological and pedagogical assistance to parents of children with severe and chronic diseases. (Dissertation of Dr. Psychic Sciences). Institute of Psychological and Pedagogical Problems of Childhood of the Russian Academy of Education, Moscow.
Makarenko, S. (1983). Individual-typological features of probabilistic forecasting in adolescents. Questions of Psychology, 1, 134-138.
Nebylitsyn, V. (1976). Psychophysiological studies of individual differences. Moscow: Science.
Personality as a subject of crisis management: psychological theory and practice. (2017). Book 2. Kyiv-Sumy: Sumy State Pedagogical University A.S. Makarenko.
Fedorova, A., Chernenko, O. (2012). Features of psychological adaptation and family relations of parents in a child's cancer. Collection of abstracts of the IV All-Russian Congress of Oncopsychologists. Moscow: ANO "Project Assistance".
Chepik, Y. (2014). Individual strategies of coping behavior of parents of seriously ill children. Spring Grave. state. Kuleshov University, 2, 63–68.
Shumakova, I. (2009). Success in overcoming life's difficulties. Bulletin of St. Petersburg State University. Series 12. Sociology, 1–2, 42–49.
Fink, G. (2016). Stress: Concepts, Cognition, Emotion, and Behavior. Cambridge: Academic Press.
Karabulutlu, E. (2014). Coping with stress of family caregivers of cancer patients in Turkey. Asia-Pacific Journal of Oncology Nursing, 1(1), 55–60.
Hilgeman, M., Allen, R., DeCoster, J., Burgio, L. (2007). Positive aspects of caregiving as a moderator of treatment outcome over 12 months. Psychology and Aging, 22(2), 361–371.
Published
2022-07-30