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Mum knows best? Psychological status in an oncology sample
1Fleming Nuffield Unit, Northern Counties School, Tyne House, Tankerville Terrace, Jesmond, UK.
Objective:
To examine the influence of age, gender and diagnosis upon agreement of children's psychological status between children with cancer and their parents.
Methods:
Total 51 families (49 mothers, 45 fathers and 51 children) completed the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Children's ages ranged from 11 to 16 years, with a mean age of 13.4 years. Eleven of the children had central nervous system (CNS) disease.
Results:
Age, gender and diagnosis did not impact upon level of agreement between parents and children. There were no significant differences between father/child and mother/child reports of children's psychological status.
Conclusions:
Both mothers and fathers are perceptive to their child's psychological status, and it is therefore satisfactory to consider their opinions about their children. Children in the age range 11-16 years are able to express their views with as much accuracy as parents irrespective of their gender and diagnosis and so should be included in assessment.
