THE SCHOOL EXPERIENCE OF FAMILIES WITH CHRONICALLY ILL CHILDREN: CONCEPTUALIZATION AND CORRELATES (DIABETES).
Contributors: University Of Illinois At Chicago, Health Sciences Center.
Published: 1996
Number of pages: 159
Subjects: Health Sciences, Public Health.; Health Sciences, Nursing.; Sociology, Individual and Family Studies.
Description: The aim of this research was to conceptualize family-school relationships among families who had children with a chronic illness. The conceptual framework for this study was based on an adaptation of selected principles from vonBertallanfy's (1968) general systems theory and Bronfenbrenner's (1977) social ecological model. The adapted model served as a guide to conceptualizing the family-school relationship as a component of the sociocultural context within which families define and manage their life situations (Knafl & Deatrick, 1990).

A naturalistic, longitudinal study design was used to study a sample of 31 families who had a school-aged diabetic child. Using secondary data analysis, the experiences that the families encountered in their interactions with the schools were described and a conceptualization of family-school relationship styles was developed. Triangulation of the qualitative findings with other measures of family and child functioning was conducted to provide further insights and a more comprehensive understanding of the phenomena.

Three types of family-school relationships (FSRS's) were identified including: Satisfactory, Guarded and Unsatisfactory. The FSRS's were characterized by unique configurations of five themes that emerged from the interview data. These themes were: (1) the parental strategy adopted when dealing with the school; (2) parental ability to negotiate for their child's health care needs; (3) the school's participation in facilitating the child's health care needs; (4) confidence in the school's ability to manage the child's health care needs; and (5) the child's adjustment to the student roles. While the majority of families described a Satisfactory FSRS (70% and 60% at Times 1 and 2, respectively), there were 30-40% of the families who described a Guarded or Unsatisfactory FSRS.

When the qualitative findings were triangulated with other measures of family functioning, the data suggested that families who exhibited a Satisfactory FSRS were more likely to have higher levels of Family Management Styles and to be more satisfied with their family functioning (FFFS). There were statistically significant differences with respect to the family relationship with social units outside the family for mothers among the FSRS groups. A general trend toward less satisfaction with family functioning in the Unsatisfactory FSRS for both mothers and fathers noted.

Relevant measures of child functioning were also triangulated with the qualitative results. Glycosolated hemoglobin levels were not significantly different among the FSRS groups. Using the CBCL to measure child pscychological adjustment, the analysis suggested that children in the Unsatisfactory FSRS group were more likely to have behavioral adjustment problems. There was a higher prevalence of behavior problems and inadequate social competence in this sample when compared to normative populations.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 57-11, Section: B, page: 6880.

Thesis (PH.D.)--UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT CHICAGO, HEALTH SCIENCES CENTER, 1996.

School code: 0806.