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Sibling empathy and behavioural adjustment of children with chronic illness
1Psychiatry Research, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada.
Insights
Healthy siblings' empathy did not directly impact the psychosocial adjustment of children with congenital heart disease (CHD). Children with CHD perceived empathetic siblings more positively, highlighting the importance of their perspective.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Child Health
Background:
- Children with congenital heart disease (CHD) often exhibit more behavioral problems than healthy peers.
- Understanding the psychosocial impact of CHD on children and their families is crucial.
- Sibling relationships play a significant role in a child's overall adjustment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between healthy siblings' empathy and the psychosocial adjustment of children with CHD.
- To explore the perceived quality of sibling interactions in dyads involving a child with CHD.
- To examine children with CHD's perspectives on their siblings' empathy.
Main Methods:
- Studied 28 sibling dyads with children aged 3.5-11 years, including a child with CHD.
- Assessed sibling empathy using a task unrelated to illness.
- Collected data from mothers and children with CHD regarding behavior problems and sibling interaction quality.
Main Results:
- Children with CHD showed more behavioral problems compared to siblings and normative samples.
- Children with CHD, but not their mothers, viewed highly empathetic siblings more favorably.
- Sibling empathy level did not significantly correlate with the psychosocial adjustment of children with CHD.
Conclusions:
- Sibling empathy may influence children with CHD's perceptions but not directly their adjustment.
- Children with CHD's viewpoints are essential for understanding psychosocial outcomes.
- Future research should consider children's perspectives in pediatric health studies.
Abstract:
This study investigated the relationship of healthy siblings' empathy to the psychosocial adjustment of children with a congenital heart disease (CHD) in 28 sibling dyads aged 3.5-11 years, as well as the perceived quality of sibling interactions, reported by mothers and children with illness. As in previous studies, children with CHD were reported to have more behaviour problems in the clinical range than either siblings or normative populations. On the basis of a task unconnected with illness issues, siblings were assigned to a high or low empathy group. Children with illness, but not their mothers, saw the siblings with high empathy more positively than those with low empathy. However, the adjustment of the children with illness did not differ between high and low empathy groups. Findings suggest the need to seek children's points of view when studying psychosocial effects of paediatric conditions.