Child Psychology Commons^™

Visual-Spatial & Visual-Motor Function In Pediatric Heart Transplant Recipients, Stephanine Dianne Griffone

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Heart surgery is commonly used to repair congenital heart defects and to perform heart transplantation. The associated hypoxia before or during the surgery may cause damage in the parasaggital area of the cerebral cortex, with resulting difficulty during tasks requiring visual-spatial and visual-motor skills. This study compares the performance of children who received a heart transplant during infancy to that of nonclinical children with no medical complications on three visual-motor measures, three visual-spatial measures, and two computerized visual-spatial tasks - a Block Design Matching task and a Mental Rotation task. The children who received a heart transplant achieved significantly lower …

The Effects Of Parent's Religious Coping On Children's Functioning After Loss, Beatrice A. Tauber

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

This study explored how parent's religious coping styles influence their child's behavioral reactions following spousal bereavement. Fifteen participants were recruited from churches, bereavement groups, hospices, palliative care programs and from victims of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Individuals who lost a spouse within the past 3 years and who had a child between the ages of 7 and 14 years participated. Parents described the religious coping strategies they employed after the loss of their spouse on Pargament's Brief Religious Coping Scale as well as the symptoms of their child on the Child Behavior Checklist. Pearson correlations demonstrated a significant …

Functional Status In Children Diagnosed With All: Age And Gender Effects, Sean Eugene Evans

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Age and gender have been purported as important variables in predicting the outcome of children diagnosed with leukemia. This study examines the relationship between age and gender as predictors of functional status in children following the completion of the induction phase of their treatment (i.e., approximately 5-weeks following their diagnosis) for acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL). Prior to analyses, it was asserted that boys and girls would indicate unique experiences of perceived pain intensity and would yield significant differences in functional status scores as measured by the children’s parents. A sample of 50 boys (N=33) and girls (N=17) between the ages …

Intensive Care Medical Procedure : Ptsd Symptoms In Children, Ludmila Zaytsev

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Studies indicate that medical procedures may cause post-traumatic stress (PTS) symptoms (fear, avoidance, sleep disturbances, irritability, concentration difficulties. hypervigilance). It has been suggested that administration of midazolam hydrochloride, a sedative/amnesic medication commonly used in the Pediatric Intensive Care Units (PICU), may help decrease if not prevent the development of PTS symptoms. This study examined if PTS symptoms were related to procedural invasiveness (PI) and whether midazolam had a moderating effect on the development and intensity of PTS symptoms in children. English-speaking children ages 8-16 (N=20) who had been in the PICU for at least 3 days were recruited at Loma …

The Psychological Characteristics Of Obese Children, Thomas Taylor Mitchell

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Several studies along with the surgeon general of the United States have identified obesity as a national health issue. Research indicates that adult obesity treatment has relatively poor long-term effects. Consequently increased attention has been given to addressing obesity in children. This focus is particularly vital due to the fact that children are one of the populations showing the most rapid increase in overweight and obesity. The purpose of this study was to identify the some of the unique psychological characteristics of obese children by analyzing the intake data of children and adolescents attending the Loma Linda University Growing Fit …

Psychological Aspects Of Ventilator Dependent Children, Tanya Renee Burley

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Rapid advances in medicine and technology have meant more medically invasive procedures as well as the survival of more individuals who are more immanently faced with death. Ventilator-dependent children (due to sleep apnea, neuromuscular disease, and acute physical injury) make up one such group of individuals. The current study assessed a group of home-based, ventilator-dependent children for symptoms of depression and posttraumatic stress. It was found that there was a negative correlation between the child's level of depression and the amount of time per day that the child was on the ventilator. There was also a negative correlation with the …

The Cardiac Correlates Of Attention In The Denervated Heart: A Study Of Infant Heart Transplant Recipients, Stephanie Dianne Griffone

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

The cardiac correlate of attention is a deceleration in heart rate, controlled by the parasympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system. This has been extensively studied in infants; the findings indicate that this deceleration is affected by a number of factors, several mediated by the vagus nerve. However, the effects of denervation on this response are not known. Studies with adult heart transplant recipients have shown attenuated acceleration in response to stressful mental tasks. This study investigated the cardiac response to attention in infants who had received a heart transplant, using a habituation paradigm. The hypothesis that they would show …

Family And Child Psychosocial Functioning Of Infant Heart Transplant Recipients, Kimberly R. Freeman

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

With the advancement of medical procedures, heart transplantation has become a viable alternative for infants born with congenital or acquired heart disease. Although these children are thought to experience much improvement in their overall physical functioning post-transplantation, the long-term psychological functioning of these children and their families is currently unknown. This study examines the long-term family functioning and psychosocial development of infant heart transplant recipients in comparison to children with congenital heart disease (CHD) and non-clinical control children. Results indicate that infant heart transplant recipients and their families experience fewer overall problems as compared to the CHD group, and more …

Attachment And Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptom Severity In Physically And Sexually Abused Adolescents, Lauren Woods

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

The relationship between symptoms associated with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and attachment was assessed. All students (n=109) at a residential school were screened for a history of physical or sexual abuse. Thirty-seven subjects who reported such a history, ranging in age from 11 to 19, were assessed using the Children’s Post-Traumatic Stress Reaction Index (CPTSD-RI), Bell Object Relations and Reality Testing Inventory (BORRTI), Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA), Revised Children’s Manifest Anxiety Scale (RCMAS), and Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI). Results indicate that attachment difficulties were common in this sample and that current diagnostic criteria for PTSD did not …

The Effect Of Preadmission Orientation On Post Hospital Behavior In Children, Alice Loo

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Hospitalization was assessed as imposing stress on a child which may result in negative behavior. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of a planned preadmission orientation in decreasing negative behavior after hospitalization.

An experimental randomized group design was used.

There were fifteen subjects ages 3.8 to 10.6 years who had a planned admission to Loma Linda University Medical Center for a minor surgery and brief hospital stay. The children were randomly assigned to two experimental groups and a control group. It was hypothesized that those receiving an orientation would have less negative post hospital behaviors than …

Play Preparation For The Adeno-Tonsillectomy Patient, Carol Brown, Harriet Hecker

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Hospitalization and surgery have been recognized as being psychologically stressful for the majority of children. Hospital personnel have attempted to reduce some of the unnecessary psychological stress incurred by children by the use of many different methods. This study attempted to evaluate the use of preoperative play preparation sessions for minimizing this stress. The method was experimental with one variable. The subjects were forty-one children aged three and one-half to seven and one-half who had adeno-tonsillectomies. Twenty-one children comprising Group E were involved in a play session by the researchers. Twenty children were not prepared in this way. The tools …

Morbidity, Growth And Development Of Prematurely-Born Twins In Early Childhood, Lynelle King

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

This study was concerned with the problem of determining the effect of twinship on the prematurely-born twin's growth and physical and emotional morbidity during early childhood. The immediate purposes of the study were to compare prematurely-born twins with prematurely-born singletons regarding their incidence and types of physical and emotional morbidity, and their growth during early childhood. It was hypothesized that prematurely-born twins have slower growth and more physical and emotional morbidity than prematurely born singletons. The descriptive survey method was used. From children cared for at a selected premature clinic, nineteen twins were matched with nineteen singletons for: race, sex, …

The Reaction Of Hospitalized Children To Food, Lois Masat Magnussen

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Hospital personnel are becoming more aware of the fact that hospitalization is traumatic to the emotional life of the young child. Since eating habits and emotions are so closely allied, it is probable that the young child's eating pattern will be affected during hospitalization. The purpose of this study was to determine the reaction of children between the ages of one through four to food during the first three days of hospitalization at the White Memorial Hospital. The method chosen to obtain this information was the descriptive survey. The tools used were a checklist for the researcher to record her …

Distress In Children Going To X-Ray, Ina Madge Longway

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

It is commonly recognized that hospitalized children need psychological support and preparation for painful procedures. It is probable that little thought is given by hospital personnel to a similar preparation of the child for non-painful procedures. This study attempted to evaluate the distress incurred by children subjected to non-painful hospital procedures with little or no preparation. The procedure of x-ray was selected as being common and typical. The method used was the descriptive survey. The tools used were the taking of a series of six blood pressure readings per child, the administration of two forms of a short psychological test …

Change In Selected Sensitive Psychological Areas Of The Only Child When A Sibling Is Born, Eveline H. Loewe

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

A study was undertaken to see if, through the use of story projective fables, data could be obtained about the change in selected sensitive psychological areas of an only child when a sibling is born.

Projective stories from the Fine Revision of the Despert Fables were used to form brief tests of the sensitive psychological areas of parental rejection/sibling rivalry, dependency and aggression/hostility. These test were given, both before and six weeks after the birth of a sibling, to fifty children from families in the Santa Clara Valley. Criteria used in selecting the children limited the subjects to those who …

Change In Selected Sensitive Psychological Areas Of The Only Child When A Sibling Is Born, Eveline H. Loewe

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

A study was undertaken to see if, through the use of story projective fables, data could be obtained about the change in selected sensitive psychological areas of an only child when a sibling is born.

Projective stories from the Fine Revision of the Despert Fables were used to form brief tests of the sensitive psychological areas of parental rejection/sibling rivalry, dependency and aggression/hostility. These tests were given, both before and six weeks after the birth of a sibling, to fifty children from families in the Santa Clara Valley. Criteria used in selecting the children limited the subjects to those who …