Nancy L. Worsham

When Mom or Dad Has Cancer: II. Coping, Cognitive Appraisals, and Psychological Distress in Children of Cancer Patients

Cognitive appraisals and coping were examined in children, adolescents, and young adults (N = 134) faced with the diagnosis of cancer in a parent. All 3 age groups perceived low personal control and high external control over their parents illness and used relatively little problem-focused coping. Adolescents and young adults reported more emotion-focused coping and dual-focused coping (both problem- and emotion-focused in intent) than did preadolescent children. Stage and prognosis of parents cancer were related to appraisals of greater seriousness and stressfulness, and to more avoidance; however, only appraisals of stress were related to symptoms of anxiety-depression. Emotion-focused coping was related to greater avoidance and to higher symptoms of anxiety-depression; coping and control beliefs did not interact in their association with anxiety-depression symptoms.

Children’s Coping with Parental Illness

What happens to children when their mother or father is seriously ill? What is the impact of parental illness on their psychological and behavioral adjustment? Are children faced with certain types of stressors as a result of specific parental illnesses such as diabetes, arthritis, heart disease, or cancer? And how do children cope with the stress of having an ill parent? Are some coping responses associated with better psychological adjustment and others related to poorer adaptation? These questions form the basis for a growing interest in the consequences of parental physical illness for the psychological well-being of children (e.g., Compas et al., 1994; Lewis, Hammond, & Woods, 1993).

Benefits derived from companion animals, and the use of the term “attachment”

Abstract Researchers have discovered that companion animals can physically and psychologically benefit their owners, and some argue that ones attachment to a companion animal influences those benefits. However, those studying the human–companion animal bond have used measures of attachment that may not be congruent with the school of attachment theory as it is applied to human–human relationships. We propose that the term “attachment” applied to human–companion animal relationships in research to date may share aspects of traditional attachment theory, but does not necessarily parallel attachment theory accurately. This paper provides a discussion of the similarities and differences between traditional attachment theory and measurements of human–companion animal attachment, and a review of the literature on physical and psychological benefits derived from companion animals. We conclude with a brief discussion of new research and future directions.

Anna's story: A qualitative analysis of an at-risk mother's experience in an attachment-based foster care program

This study chronicles an at-risk mothers experience in an alternative foster care program. Influenced by attachment theory, the Childrens Ark reunited children with their mothers in a supervised home environment while also providing residential support, intensive therapy, and education. After losing custody of her infant Kindra1, 18-year-old Anna1 participated in the Ark for 2 years, after which she regained custody of Kindra. We assessed Anna and Kindra at multiple times using a variety of instruments, including a semi-structured interview, the Adult Attachment Interview, and the Strange Situation procedure. Anna moved from a profoundly insecure state of mind to a secure one, while Kindra moved from a resistant to a secure attachment. Qualitative analyses of Annas interviews documented growth in her capacity to use the important relationships at the Ark as secure bases and to welcome rather than fear intimacy with Kindra. The qualitative analyses also described growth in Annas capacities for reflective functioning and positive changes in her internal working model. We conclude with an analysis of the process of change from the perspective of attachment theory.

Verbal Learning Errors by Mentally Retarded Adolescents as a Function of Learning Stage

Analysis of patterns of errors in learning word-pairs under verbal presentation by 60 14- to 18-yr.-old mildly mentally retarded adolescents indicated a significant interaction between trials and type of errors and main effects of trials and types of errors. Both omissions and misplaced responses decreased significantly from Trial 1 to 2. Omissions also decreased significantly from Trials 2 to 3. Both stimulus intrusions and extralist intrusions contributed very little to total errors. Results are similar to earlier findings and suggest that psychologists attempting to improve performance of mentally retarded adolescents by decreasing errors in learning word-pairs should focus on early learning stages and primarily on omissions and misplaced responses.