The child - parent attachment and the psychological health of children and families with a chronic physically ill parent with multiple sclerosis

Doctoral Dissertation uoadl:1725665 646 Read counter

Unit:
Department of Psychology
Library of the School of Philosophy
Deposit date:
2017-09-05
Year:
2017
Author:
Anassontzi Sofia
Dissertation committee:
Χριστοπούλου Άννα, (επόπτρια) Αναπληρώτρια Καθηγήτρια, Τμήμα Ψυχολογίας, Φιλοσοφική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Καλαντζή-Αζίζι Αναστασία, Ομότιμη Καθηγήτρια, Τμήμα Ψυχολογίας, Φιλοσοφική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Κανελλοπούλου Βασιλική, Αναπληρώτρια Καθηγήτρια, Τμήμα Ψυχολογίας, Φιλοσοφική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Χατζηχρήστου Χρυσή, Καθηγήτρια, Τμήμα Ψυχολογίας, Φιλοσοφική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Γκαρή Αικατερίνη, Καθηγήτρια, Τμήμα Ψυχολογίας, Φιλοσοφική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Τάνταρος Σπύρος, Καθηγητής, Τμήμα Ψυχολογίας, Φιλοσοφική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Λουμάκου Μαρία, Καθηγήτρια, Τμήμα Ψυχολογίας, Φιλοσοφική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Original Title:
Ο ΔΕΣΜΟΣ ΠΑΙΔΙΟΥ - ΓΟΝΕΩΝ ΚΑΙ Η ΨΥΧΙΚΗ ΥΓΕΙΑ ΤΩΝ ΠΑΙΔΙΩΝ ΚΑΙ ΤΩΝ ΟΙΚΟΓΕΝΕΙΩΝ ΜΕ ΧΡΟΝΙΑ ΣΩΜΑΤΙΚΑ ΑΣΘΕΝΗ ΓΟΝΕΑ ΑΠΟ ΣΚΛΗΡΥΝΣΗ ΚΑΤΑ ΠΛΑΚΑΣ
Languages:
Greek
Translated title:
The child - parent attachment and the psychological health of children and families with a chronic physically ill parent with multiple sclerosis
Summary:
In the case of chronic illness the patient’s functionality, emotional condition and whole life is affected and changed for him and the member of his family, particularly when the chronic patient is a parent. Usually these families suffer from more conflicts, less cohesion and a limited socialization. It is also noted that the condition of the patient parent may act like a disturbing factor in the formation and development of the attachment between the parent and the child. Especially in the case of Multiple Sclerosis, the family’s children usually experience psychological difficulties, behavior problems and poor interpersonal relations.
In the present survey, the interest is concentrated on the families’ children that have a patient parent with Multiple Sclerosis and examines their psychological condition and behavior, the family’s function, the patient’s parent depression and the attachment that is formed between the child and his parents and friends.
The sample was 56 families, whose one parent was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and the questionnaires were filled by him, the healthy parent and randomly one family’s child. The questionnaires that were selected, had as a purpose to investigate these children’s mental health problems according to their parent’s opinion with the scale Achenbach Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), their own opinion with the scale Achenbach Youth Self Report(YSR), the general family’s function with the scale Family Assessment Device (FAD), the patient’s parent depression with the scale Beck Depression Inventory (BECK) and the attachment between the child and the parents and between the child and their peers with the scale Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA) and the relations between them. For the questionnaires CBCL, YSR and Beck the standardized version in Greek population was used (Roussos, Francis, Zoubou, Kiprianos, Prokopiou & Richardson, 2001; Roussos, Karantanos, Richardson, Hartman, Karajiannis, Kyprianos, Zoubou, 1999; Τζέμος, 1984). For the IPPA questionnaire there was a control group with families of healthy parents and children with the same age and gender as the research sample. For FAD the American edition was used and the purpose was to compare the beliefs of the family’s members.
According to the findings of the present survey the children with a patient parent with Multiple Sclerosis, report the most consequences in their mental health, their behavior and their family’s function, much more than their parents report. At the same time, it seems that children aim more at preserving the former situation with the parents. We observe that in the group of children with a chronic patient parent the attachment with the parents is described as a bond with safe attachment such as the children with healthy parents report. But we observe that the children with a chronic patient parent describe an unsafe attachment with their peers in contrast to the children with healthy parents. Significant correlations were found between the types of the bonds that the children of the patient parent have (IPPA) and their psychological health and behavior (CBCL-YSR) and their family functioning (FAD). Also most patient parent report depressive symptoms and again significant correlations were found between the parent’s depression and the bonds that the child formed.
The development of a network of psychological and medical services aiming a holistic approach for the families that are in a crisis and at the same time a mental health’s prevention approach of their children, within the frame of a complete preventive policy that concerns the chronic physically patient parents, it would signal the nascence of a more sufficient care for these patients and their families.
Main subject category:
Philosophy - Psychology
Keywords:
chronic physical illness, multiple sclerosis, patient parent, mental health, family’s function, the attachment theory
Index:
Yes
Number of index pages:
2
Contains images:
Yes
Number of references:
125
Number of pages:
140
Anassontzi-dissertation.pdf (15 MB) Open in new window