"One time I fell, but I didn't have to cry." A qualitative study on everyday physical complaints in children

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Health
• Child Psychology
• Illness Perception

Background:

• Young children frequently experience physical complaints, such as abdominal pain and minor injuries.
• These early experiences may influence long-term health-related behaviors and illness perception.
• Limited research exists on illness perception in young children, contrasting with adult models.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the experiences of everyday physical complaints in four- and five-year-old children.
• To identify key themes related to how young children perceive and understand their physical complaints.

Main Methods:

• Conducted 30 semi-structured interviews with four- and five-year-old children.
• Utilized qualitative content analysis and double coding with Atlas.ti to identify themes.

Main Results:

• Children could articulate their experiences with physical complaints.
• Three primary themes emerged: causes, appraisal, and implications of complaints.
• Children differentiated between visible and invisible, and real versus pretended complaints during appraisal.

Conclusions:

• Four- and five-year-old children possess the capacity to detail their experiences with physical complaints.
• They form distinct ideas regarding the origins and consequences of their complaints.
• Young children actively appraise their physical complaints, categorizing them based on observable and perceived characteristics.