Coping in hospitalized children: an analysis of published case studies

This study examined the range of coping behaviors identified by the authors of 39 published case studies of hospitalized children age 20 months to 10 years and the pattern of coping revealed when the behaviors described in the published studies were analyzed according to the category system based on the Lazarus stress and coping paradigm. The behaviors reported in the case studies were subjected to a content analysis of the various labels attributed by the authors to the behaviors and then to a detailed content analysis according to the Type of Coping Behavior Category System. The range of labels of coping behavior used in the case studies showed that there had been no systematic and consistent approach to analysis of the children's coping strategies. The results of the analysis using the category system indicated that the coping strategies could be categorized in a systematic way. The pattern of coping revealed indicates that the system is sensitive to the influence of level of development.