Psychological outcomes, coping and illness perceptions among parents of children with neurological disorders

To assess the Common Sense Model among parents of children with neurological disorders, by determining the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety and depression, and how illness perceptions relate to symptoms of anxiety and depression both directly, and indirectly via coping.

205 parents of children with neurological disorders in Hyderabad, India completed questionnaires.

Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire and Coping Health Inventory for Parents. We used multiple regressions and PROCESS for SPSS to assess direct and indirect relationships.

Mild to severe symptoms of anxiety (41.0%) and depression (39.5%) were common. Symptoms of anxiety and/or depression were related to perceived treatment control over the illness, perceived understanding of the illness, perceived personal control over the illness (anxiety only), and perceived timeline of the illness (depression only). The coping strategy 'maintaining social support' mediated the relationship between symptoms of depression and four illness perceptions: perceived consequences (95%CI=.03,-.21), timeline (95%CI=.01,-.25), perceived personal control (95%CI=.02-.24), and treatment control (95%CI=.01-.34).

Our findings have implications for education interventions to improve community attitudes of child neurological disorders. Such interventions may allow families' social networks to provide more support to parents, which could aid parents' coping strategies.