JPP Student Journal Club Commentary: Stress, Conflict, and the Family System in Pediatric Cancer

Family systems and family dynamics are of utmost importance in understanding both risk and resilience among families affected by pediatric cancer, as well as other medical conditions (Kazak, Alderfer,& Reader, 2017). Over three decades of work suggests that a consistent subset of youth with pediatric illness are at increased risk for negative psychosocial outcomes such as depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress, and this risk extends even beyond the affected children, to include their parents and siblings as well (Pinquart& Shen, 2011a,2011b;Sharpe& Rossiter, 2002). Although it appears clear that family factors are important to individual adjustment, there is still a great need to understand precisely how these family systems dynamics change over time, as well as the underlying processes by which they change.Fladeboe and colleagues (2018) present interesting and compelling findings that add to our understanding of family functioning in the wake of a pediatric cancer diagnosis. Notably, Fladeboe and colleagues (2018) used a novel month-to-month data collection methodology to assess sibling conflict in conjunction with different sources or types of family stressors, which is especially commendable given the current underutilization of advanced methodologies pertinent to accurately understanding family systems (Berlin, Karazsia,& Klages, 2017).
Source: Journal of Pediatric Psychology - Category: Pediatrics Source Type: research