Health-related quality of life of children with Developmental Coordination Disorder

BackgroundAlthough Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) is primarily a motor disorder, it can also impact emotional and psychosocial functioning of children with this condition. Evidence suggests that children with DCD experience lower quality of life than their peers, but few studies have explicitly examined the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of these children.AimsTo: (1) describe HRQOL of children with DCD compared to typically-developing children; (2) compare HRQOL from the perspectives of children with DCD and their parents; and (3) explore predictors of HRQOL for children with DCD.MethodsData from the KidScreen-52 and Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire were collected from 50 children with DCD [Mean(SD) age: 9.8 (1.2) years] and their parents and compared to normative data.ResultsChildren with DCD and their parents report significantly lower HRQOL compared to published norms. Caregivers have a significantly lower perception of their child’s HRQOL than their child’s self-report in many domains. Parents of children with DCD report that their children experience significantly more emotional and behavioral disturbances compared to norms. Poor motor function and attentional difficulties predict HRQOL.Conclusion and implicationsDCD appears to contribute to lower perceived HRQOL. Findings inform therapeutic targets for children with DCD, beyond motor skill intervention.     

Self-assessment of relationships with peers in children with intellectual disability

Interaction with peers is important for the development of children, but children with special needs may feel rejected by their peers. The present study examines self‐assessment of relationships with peers by children with intellectual disability (ID; n = 20) and children from the general population (n = 20). All participants attended a regular primary school and were aged between 7 and 10.5 years; both sexes were represented in the samples. The Behavior Rating Profile was applied. The results of the children with ID on the ‘Student Rating Scale: Peers’ did not show statistically significant differences from the results of children from general population, with both groups responding similarly to the self‐perception scale. However, the sociometric results obtained from their peers clearly show that children with ID are not accepted by their classmates. Peers frequently and more often refuse to study, sit together in class or socialize after classes with children with ID than is the case for children without ID. Despite the high frequency of rejection, it is concluded that children with ID of younger primary school age have average confidence in their own abilities and in the success of their relationships with their peers. Further education among the children who reject them could have a negative impact on their self‐esteem.     

How are parental reactions to children’s emotions linked with Theory of Mind in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder?

BackgroundBased on the model of ‘Parental Socialization of Emotions’ (Eisenberg, Cumberland, & Spinrad, 1998), these studies examined the profiles of parental reactions to their children’s emotions and the relation between these reactions and their ASD children’s ToM abilities. They could help identify protective versus risk factors in their ToM development.MethodThe participants in Study 1 included 29 mothers and 29 fathers of ASD children (26 boys and 3 girls). In Study 2, 39 mothers and 31 fathers and their ASD children participated. In both studies, mothers and fathers independently completed a questionnaire about their reactions to their children’s emotions. In Study 2 only, children’s ToM abilities were assessed by means of direct measures and a questionnaire completed by parents.ResultsThe results indicated that mothers displayed more encouragement and less minimizing responses to their ASD children’s negative emotions than fathers. For both maternal and paternal model analysed by stepwise regressions, the results highlighted specific links between each parent’s reactions and children’s ToM abilities that varied according to mental states. These findings suggested that parental reactions which help the children to understand how they can solve problems are protective factors, while parental reactions which deprive children of an opportunity to explore their feelings are risk factors.ConclusionThese studies provide new information about how parental reactions to children’s emotions could socialise ASD children’s ToM abilities better; this could be useful for adapting parental support programmes.     

Family drawings of Iranian children with autism and their family members

The purpose of this study was to investigate attachment of children with autism through their drawings. Also investigated were the feelings and attitudes of the mothers and siblings of children with autism toward them through their drawings. Kinetic Family Drawing test is a projective instrument that can show attitudes, interactions, and feelings of family members toward each other. Family drawings of 30 children with autism, and drawings of their mothers and siblings were analyzed and compared with those of 30 normal children and their family members using Phi-squares test. The results showed that children with autism performed significantly differently from normal children in only the omission aspect of family drawing test (P > 0.05). Mothers of autistic children were significantly different from mothers of normal children in terms of size, priority of drawing and space of the test (P < 0.05). Also siblings of autistic children performed significantly differently from siblings of normal group in terms of space and the omission aspect (P < 0.05).     

Relative importance of various measures of HIV-related stigma in predicting psychological outcomes among children affected by HIV

To assess the relative importance of four different measures of HIV-related stigma in predicting psychological problems among children affected by HIV in rural China. Cross-sectional data were collected from 755 orphans (i.e., children who lost one or both of their parents to HIV), 466 vulnerable children (children who were living with HIV-infected parents), and 404 comparison children who were from the same community and did not have HIV-related illness or death in their families. Four HIV-related stigma measures include perceived public stigma against people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA), perceived public stigma against children affected by HIV (orphans and vulnerable children), personal stigmatizing attitudes against PLWHA, and enacted stigma among children affected by HIV. Psychological problems included depression and adjustment problems. Various measures of HIV-related stigma independently and differentially contribute to children’s psychological problems. Enacted stigma and children’s perceived public stigma against PLWHA or children affected by HIV are generally stronger predictors of psychological problems than their own feelings or attitudes towards PLWHA. Various aspects of HIV-related stigma are important for us to understand the perception, attitudes, and experience of children affected by HIV, including both children experiencing HIV-related parental illness and death in their own family and children who were living in the communities hardly hit by HIV. Future health promotion and psychological care efforts for children affected by HIV need to consider the effect of various forms of HIV-related stigma on these children’s psychosocial well-being and mobilize the community resources to mitigate the negative effect of HIV-related stigma on PLWHA and their children.     

癫痫儿童及家长的个性特征调查

调查癫痫儿童及其家长的个性特征。方法：应用艾森克个性问卷（ＥＰＯ）儿童版和成人版对７～１４岁癫痫儿童３０例和０－１４岁癫痫患儿的家长５０例进行个性调查,并选同年龄组的正常儿童及其家长作为对照。结果：学龄期癫痫儿童性格内向较对照组更明显（Ｐ＜０．０１）,癫痫儿童家长的神经质程度明显高于对照组（Ｐ＜０．０１）,癫痫儿童及家长的掩饰性均高于对照组（Ｐ＜０．０１）。结论：癫痫发作对儿童及家长的个性均有影响,了解癫痫儿童及家长的个性特征,有助于进行心理治疗。     

Childrearing Style in Families of Anxiety-Disordered Children: Between-Family and Within-Family Differences

This study examined whether (1) parents of anxiety-disordered (AD) children differed from those of non-clinical controls in their childrearing style, and whether (2) the child-rearing style of parents towards AD children is different from that towards their siblings. A clinical sample of 25 AD children, age range 8–13 years, was compared with 25 siblings and a non-clinical control group (n = 25). Childrearing was assessed by means of parental self-report, child report and through an expressed emotion interview measure. AD children perceived more parental rejection than non-clinical control children or the AD children’s siblings. High-expressed emotion was scored significantly more often towards AD children than non-clinical control children, or their siblings. On ‘care’ and ‘control’ parental self-report showed some differences regarding AD children on the one hand and non-clinical control children or siblings of AD children on the other. These results suggest that the rearing of AD children differs significantly both from the rearing of their siblings and that of non-clinical control children. I. E. Lindhout and F. Boer were with the Academic Centre for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Curium, Oegstgeest, and Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands, at the time of the study.     

Contributors to well-being and stress in parents of children with autism spectrum disorder

BackgroundParents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) present more well-being and stress problems than parents of typically developing (TD) children. However not all parents present these problems. These problems can be due to a dynamic interaction between environmental antecedents, person antecedents, and mediating processes. Understanding how these factors separately contribute to explain parents’ well-being and stress can have implications for intervention programs. The aim of this study was to explain parents’ subjective well-being and physiological stress by considering whether they had a child with ASD or not and their child’s negativity (environmental antecedents), their perception of their child’s problems (person antecedents), and their use of reappraisal (mediating processes).MethodThirty-seven parents of children with ASD and 41 parents of TD children reported their subjective well-being and their physiological stress was assessed. Additionally, children’s negativity was observed, parents rated their perception of their child’s problems (autistic traits, emotion regulation ability, and lability/negativity), and parents reported their use of reappraisal.ResultsCompared to parents of TD children, parents of children with ASD reported having lower subjective well-being and had increased physiological stress. Parents’ perceptions of children’s lability/negativity and parents’ use of reappraisal were better predictors of parents’ subjective well-being than ASD and parents’ perceptions of children’s lability/negativity contributed to parents’ physiological stress as much as ASD.ConclusionsPrevention and intervention programs targeting parental well-being and stress will benefit from working with parents at the level of perceptual constructs and reappraisal ability.     

Risk factors of abuse of parents by their ADHD children

It is interesting that there is scant research of abuse of parents by their children and no study was found on the abuse of parents by their attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) children. Seventy-four children and adolescents suffering from ADHD and their parents were interviewed. The diagnoses were made according to DSM-IV diagnostic criteria. A questionnaire was developed to assess the children’s abuse toward parents. More than half of the parents are suffering from at least one of the forms of abuse by their ADHD children. Scores of parental abuse were not related to gender. Different types of abuse correlated with oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), tic, and separation anxiety disorder (SAD). Fathers’ and mothers’ age, the level of education, and type of occupation were not risk factors of the abuse scores. ODD and mother’s major depressive disorder were predictors of the abuse. There was a very disturbing high rate of abuse by children against parents. There is an interrelation of different forms of abuse. This study contributes to increasing awareness on the abuse of parents by their ADHD children.     

Parental perceptions of children who were hospitalized in neonatal intensive care units

This study addresses two questions: (1) Do parents whose children were hospitalized in neonatal intensive care have different perceptions of their children than parents of children in the general population? and (2) How do parents of such children compare their children's health, cognitive, and emotional development to other children of the same age? Thirty-seven mothers and 26 fathers whose children were hospitalized in an intensive care nursery in a major university hospital participated in this study. Parents filled out a Child Behavior Checklist. A subsample of 24 parents was selected for clinical interviews. The findings indicate that parents in the study sample have similar perceptions of their children as parents of children in the general population. Further, parents gave favorable evaluations of their children's health, cognitive and emotional development.     

Children with epilepsy against their healthy peers and those with headaches: Differences–similarities

Introduction

Epilepsy, like most chronic diseases, affects bio-psycho-social functioning of children and adolescents.The aim of this work was to assess functioning of children with epilepsy compared with the group of healthy children and those with headaches carried out by children themselves and their mothers.

Home literacy environments, interest in reading and emergent literacy skills of children with Down syndrome versus typical children

Background The present study examined home literacy environments, children's interest in reading and emergent literacy skills of pre‐school‐aged children with Down syndrome (DS; n = 20), school‐aged children with DS (n = 17) and typically developing children (n = 18) matched on chronological age with the younger DS group and mental age (MA) with the older DS group. Method Parents filled out questionnaires on their home literacy environments and their children's interest in reading. School‐aged children with DS and typical children were assessed on cognitive functioning, receptive vocabulary, alphabet knowledge, familiarity with print conventions and comprehension of meaning. Results School‐aged children with DS and typical children – as opposed to pre‐school‐aged children with DS – were exposed to more literacy‐rich home environments and had greater interest in reading. School‐aged children with DS also outperformed the MA‐matched typical group on letter and sight word knowledge and familiarity with print conventions. Conclusions Parents of children with DS tailor home literacy environments to their children's developmental levels. Confirming earlier studies, children with DS achieved some higher literacy skills than what was expected for their MA, emphasising the importance of early reading interventions for this population.     

Evaluation of a children's temper-taming program.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the effectiveness of a group cognitive-behavioural therapy program in reducing anger and aggressive behaviour in children. METHOD: Study participants were 68 children aged 7 to 13 years and their parents. A total of 12 groups were run at an outpatient children's mental health centre. The children were referred to the groups by their clinician for assistance in reducing their aggressive behaviour. We obtained quantitative information on the effectiveness of the group from the children and their parents, who completed questionnaires before the first session and after the last session. The children completed the Children's Inventory of Anger (CIA), and the parents completed the Children's Hostility Inventory (CHI). We used t tests and analyses of covariance to test for posttreatment differences. RESULTS: Results were available for 56 children. At posttreatment, children reported that the intensity of their anger had decreased (CIA, t41 = 4.39, P < 0.0001), and parents indicated a reduction in the frequency of aggression (CHI-Aggression, t44 = 2.82, P < 0.01) and hostility (CHI-Hostility, t44 = 4.93, P < 0.0001) in their children. CONCLUSIONS: The group program appeared to reduce children's anger and aggression. However, the results are preliminary, and further controlled evaluation is required.     

Evaluation of family drawings of physically and sexually abused children

Objective The aim of this study is to analyse the family drawings of two groups of physically and/or sexually abused children as compared to the drawings of non-abused children of a matched control group. Methods The drawings by 12 physically abused, 12 sexually abused and 12 non-abused children, all aged between 5 years-old and 10 years-old, were assessed and compared. Family drawings were analysed using a specific Screening Inventory (FDI-Family Drawing Inventory). This Inventory takes into consideration such qualitative and quantitative variables as the quality of drawing, the children’s perception of their family members and their own perception of themselves within the family system. Results The results have shown significant differences between the abused minors and the control group. Abused children are more likely to draw distorted bodies, the human figure is usually represented devoid of details, their drawings generally show clear signals of trauma and the majority of the abused children are likely to exclude their primary caregiver from the drawings. Conclusions The “drawings of the family” of physically and/or sexually abused children significantly evidence a greater emotional distress then the drawings of the non-abused children of the matched control group.     

A consideration of abortion survivors

It is hypothesized that children who have siblings terminated by abortion have similar psychological conflicts to those children who survive disasters or siblings who die of accident or illness. There is evidence that children are aware of their mother's pregnancy termination. Having been chosen to survive these children may have considerable conflicts regarding their existence. Since their life depended upon being wanted and they may become obsessively determined to please or they may feel a deep sense of obligation to their parents. If children have already lost a parent the child may look upon his new unborn sibling as a potential attachment. To be deprived by his mother's choice may stir latent hostility within the child the expression of which would be inhibited by the child's determination to stay wanted. Abortion survivors may be over protected by parents attempting to deal with their unresolved guilt. As a substitute child the abortion survivor may have placed upon him impossible expectations. It is contended that since approximately 50 percent of Western children are abortion survivors there is need to analyze their individual and collective responses.     

Fathers of children with autism spectrum disorder: Their perceptions of paternal role a predictor of caregiving satisfaction,self-efficacy and burden

BackgroundThe positive effect of a father’s involvement in children’s upbringing is now recognised. However, research on fathers raising children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are still few. This study examines the relationship between the perception, fathers of children with ASD have of the importance of their role in the development of their children and the feelings (self-efficacy, caregiving burden, satisfaction) they express about their parenting experience.MethodSixty-three Swiss Italian fathers of children with ASD completed The Role of the Father Questionnaire (ROFQ), three sub-scales of the Caregiver Survey, a subtest of the Child Adjustment and Parent Efficacy Scale and a home-made questionnaire measuring Perceived Social Support.ResultsThe results from hierarchical multiple regression analyses show that the importance that fathers attach to the paternal role predicts positively their caregiving satisfaction and their feeling of self-efficacy. The children’s challenging behaviours predict positively the caregiving burden whereas the assessment of social support predicts it negatively.ConclusionsThe perception of the importance of the paternal role needs to be considered in the support offered to families with a child with ASD. A better understanding of the fathers’ feelings could be of value for the programmes.     

The effect of summer vacation on bilingual preschoolers' language development

The purpose of the investigation was to examine the developmental trajectories of bilingual preschoolers' comprehension of Spanish and English and to determine whether a lengthy summer vacation impacted children's development during the preschool years. Participants included 83 bilingual children who were followed over a 2‐year period during which time children attended a federally funded preschool programme for children from low‐income homes living in the US. Children were divided into two groups based on whether their scores on receptive language measures increased or decreased during their first year of Head Start. Results revealed that children whose scores increased experienced positive growth in their language comprehension in Spanish and English over the 2‐year period, whereas children whose scores decreased during the first year continued to experience a negative developmental trajectory in their second year. Additionally, it was found that a lengthy summer vacation had a differential effect on children's development. Summer vacation had a negative effect on the developmental trajectories of children who experienced gains in their comprehension of English and Spanish and a positive impact on children whose scores declined during the school year. Clinical implications suggest that children may require differential support during the school year and summer vacation depending upon their developmental trajectories during the first year in preschool.     

Deaf children's use of clear visual cues in mindreading

Previous studies show that typically developing 4-year old children can understand other people's false beliefs but that deaf children of hearing families have difficulty in understanding false beliefs until the age of approximately 13. Because false beliefs are implicit mental states that are not expressed through clear visual cues in standard false belief tasks, the present study examines the hypothesis that the deaf children's developmental delay in understanding false beliefs may reflect their difficulty in understanding a spectrum of mental states that are not expressed through clear visual cues. Nine- to 13-year-old deaf children of hearing families and 4–6-year-old typically developing children completed false belief tasks and emotion recognition tasks under different cue conditions. The results indicated that after controlling for the effect of the children's language abilities, the deaf children inferred other people's false beliefs as accurately as the typically developing children when other people's false beliefs were clearly expressed through their eye-gaze direction. However, the deaf children performed worse than the typically developing children when asked to infer false beliefs with ambiguous or no eye-gaze cues. Moreover, the deaf children were capable of recognizing other people's emotions that were clearly conveyed by their facial or body expressions. The results suggest that although theory-based or simulation-based mental state understanding is typical of hearing children's theory of mind mechanism, for deaf children of hearing families, clear cue-based mental state understanding may be their specific theory of mind mechanism.     

The role of recollected anxiety in parental adaptation to low birthweight infants

This article examines whether mothers' and fathers' recollections of anxiety surrounding the hospitalization and illness of their preterm/low birthweight infant affect their perceptions of their children several years after discharge. The sample consisted of 37 mothers and 26 fathers whose children were hospitalized in an intensive care nursery in a major university hospital. Parents completed a Nursery Follow-up Questionnaire and a Child Behavior Checklist. The findings indicate that parents' recollections of anxiety during their children's hospitalization have no bearing on their current perceptions of their children. Although mothers recalled having experienced more anxiety than fathers, mothers'. and fathers' perceptions of their children were not significatly different.