Toward Better Conversations: Assessing Caregiver-Child Communication in Pediatric Oncology

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Oncology
• Family Psychology
• Communication Studies

Background:

• Effective parent-child communication is crucial for managing psychosocial challenges in pediatric cancer.
• Limited research exists on how caregivers and children perceive their communication dynamics.
• Understanding these perceptions is vital for supporting family well-being.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate discrepancies between caregiver and child reports of parent-child communication.
• To examine the association between perceived communication quality and family relationship quality.
• To test the hypothesis that children report more open and positive communication than caregivers.

Main Methods:

• Seventy-six caregiver-child dyads (children aged 8-17 with cancer) participated.
• Participants independently completed validated measures of parent-child communication and family relationships.
• Statistical analyses included t-tests, correlations, and Actor-Partner Interdependence Models (APIM).

Main Results:

• Both caregivers and children generally reported high-quality communication.
• Children rated caregivers as more attentive listeners, emotionally open, and willing to discuss problems than caregivers reported children.
• Child-reported communication strongly correlated with child-reported family relationships, and caregiver-reported communication with caregiver-reported relationships.
• Older age in both children and caregivers was associated with lower communication scores.

Conclusions:

• Interdependent perceptions of communication significantly influence family functioning in pediatric cancer.
• Routine assessment of communication is important for identifying potential issues.
• Developmentally tailored interventions are needed to enhance parent-child communication and family support.