GROWING UP WITH A MENTALLY ILL PARENT: A PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY OF CHINESE CHILDREN IN TAIWAN.
Contributors: University of Texas at Austin.
Published: 1995
Number of pages: 282
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.; Psychology, Developmental.
Description: A growing body of evidence reveals that children of mentally ill parents are at increased risk for the development of psychopathology and for a full range of adjustment problems. Nevertheless, some children of mentally ill parents still function well. These findings suggest that children's problems are influenced by multiple factors. Relatively little work has been directed towards understanding the processes through which children are at risk or protected against negative effects associated with growing up with a mentally ill parent.

The purpose of this study was to understand and describe the meanings inherent in the lived experiences of Taiwanese children who have mentally ill parents from the perspectives of the children. Fifteen children aged 9 to 18 years old were recruited from a large metropolitan general teaching hospital in Taiwan where their parents received mental health services. Data collection involved in-depth, audiotaped, face to face interviews with each child. A combination of the methods of Colaizzi, Giorgi, and van Manen was used to conduct a phenomenological analysis of data.

Three essential themes emerged from the data as characteristic of the lived experiences of children growing up with a mentally ill parent: disruption of the family, experiencing the consequences, and coping with parental mental illness. These themes are discussed as they related to the context of Chinese cultural values. Children's differences in response to the influence of parental mental illness reflected the extent to which different children were involved in the burden of taking care of the mentally ill parent and the family. However, children did actively constitute an essential part in altering and shaping their environments.

This study has important implications for nurses and other health care professionals. It is proposed that as understanding children's lived experience in a process level within a developmental framework, health care professionals can more effectively help children get into an adaptive life trajectory. Implications for nursing practice, education, and research are identified.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 56-10, Section: B, page: 5424.

Thesis (PH.D.)--THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN, 1995.

School code: 0227.