Abstract
Social support and benefit finding are two related processes that may protect youth from the adverse effects of caring for an ill parent. The primary purpose of this study was to test a mediational model proposal that benefit finding mediates the effects of social support and caregiving on youth adjustment in the context of parental illness. Given the dearth of research on benefit finding in the youth caregiving field, an additional aim was to further clarify the benefit finding construct in the parental illness context. A total of 428 Australian youth (mean age 12.77 years) who had a parent with a serious health problem completed a questionnaire. Exploration of the benefit finding construct showed that it was unidimensional, relevant to youth caregivers, unrelated to measured demographics, but highly linked to caregiving demands and engagement. Results from path modelling analysis supported the mediational model proposal that benefit finding mediates the effects of social support and caregiving on youth adjustment. While caregiving responsibilities in general has a detrimental effect on adjustment, a small counter-balancing indirect effect was detected via the role of increased benefit finding due to caregiving responsibilities. Most of the benefit finding research in youth has been conducted in the context of trauma, where parental support is a significant protective factor. This study makes an important contribution to understanding benefit finding and social support processes in the context of a chronic stressor where one of the usual sources (parents) of significant coping support is limited.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Anderson, C. A., & Hammen, C. L. (1993). Psychosocial outcomes of children of unipolar depressed, bipolar, medically ill, and normal women: A longitudinal study. Journal of Consulting & Clinical Psychology, 61(3), 448–454. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-006X.61.3.448.
Australian Bureau of Statistics (2006). Census of Population and Housing: Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA: cat. no. 2033.0.55.001). http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/allprimarymainfeatures/356A4186CCDDC4D1CA257B3B001AC22C. Accessed 29 Mar 2018.
Australian Bureau of Statistics (2011). Australian Standard Classification of Cultural and Ethnic Groups (ASCCEG: cat. no.1249.0). http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/allprimarymainfeatures/388FA150E28D57E2CA257FF1001E65F6. Accessed 29 Mar 2018.
Barkmann, C., Romer, G., Watson, M., & Schulte-Markwort, M. (2007). Parental physical illness as a risk for psychosocial maladjustment in children and adolescents: epidemiological findings from a national survey in Germany. Psychosomatics, 48(6), 476–481. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.psy.48.6.476.
Becker, S. (2007). Global perspectives on children’s unpaid caregiving in the family. Global Social Policy, 7(1), 23–50. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468018107073892.
Bursnall, S., & Pakenham, K. I. (2013). Too small for your boots! Understanding the experience of children when parents acquire a neurological condition. In H. Muenchberger, E. Kendall & J. Wright (Eds.), Health and healing after traumatic brain injury: Understanding the power of family, friends, community and other support systems (pp. 87–100). Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger Press.
Cassidy, T., & Giles, M. (2013). Further exploration of the Young Carers Perceived Stress Scale: identifying a benefit-finding dimension. British Journal of Health Psychology, 18(3), 642–655. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjhp.12017.
Cheng, C., Wong, W., & Tsang, K. W. (2006). Perception of benefits and costs during SARS outbreak: an 18-month prospective study. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 74(5), 870–879.
Cheng, S. T., Mak, E. P. M., Fung, H. H., Kwok, T., Lee, D. T. F., & Lam, L. C. W. (2017). Benefit-finding and effect on caregiver depression: a double-blind randomized controlled trial. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 85(5), 521–529. https://doi.org/10.1037/ccp0000176.
Chu, P., Saucier, D. A., & Hafner, E. (2010). Meta-analysis of the relationships between social support and well-being in children and adolescents. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 29(6), 624–645. https://doi.org/10.1521/jscp.2010.29.6.624.
Crawford, J. R., & Henry, J. D. (2004). The Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS): construct validity, measurement properties and normative data in a large non-clinical sample. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 43(3), 245–265. https://doi.org/10.1348/0144665031752934.
Derogatis, L. R. & Cleary, P. A. (1977). Confirmation of the dimensional structure of the SCL-90: a study in construct validation. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 33(4), 981–989.https://doi.org/10.1002/1097-4679(197710)33:4 981::AID-JCLP2270330412 3.0.CO;2-0.
Earley, L., Cushway, D., & Cassidy, T. (2007). Children’s perceptions and experiences of care giving: a focus group study. Counselling Psychology Quarterly, 20(1), 69–80. https://doi.org/10.1080/09515070701217830.
Goodman, R., Meltzer, H., & Bailey, V. (1998). The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire: a pilot study on the validity of the self-report version. European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 7(3), 125–130. https://doi.org/10.1007/s007870050057.
Helgeson, V. S., Lopez, L., & Mennella, C. (2009). Benefit finding among children and adolescence. In C. L. Park, S. C. Lechner, M. H. Antoni SpringerAmpamp; A. L. Stanton (Eds.), Medical illness and positive life change: can crisis lead to personal transformation? (pp. 65–86). Washington: APA.
Herzberg, D. S., Hammen, C., Burge, D., Daley, S. E., Davila, J., & Lindberg, N. (1999). Attachment cognitions predict perceived and enacted social support during late adolescence. Journal of Adolescent Research, 14(4), 387–404. https://doi.org/10.1177/0743558499144001.
Huebner, E. S. (1991). Initial development of the Student’s Life Satisfaction Scale. School Psychology International, 12(3), 231–240. https://doi.org/10.1177/0143034391123010.
Huebner, E. S. (1994). Preliminary development and validation of a multidimensional life satisfaction scale for children. Psychological Assessment, 6(2), 149–158. https://doi.org/10.1037/1040-3590.6.2.149.
Ireland, M., & Pakenham, K. I. (2010). The nature of young caregiving in families experiencing chronic illness/disability: Development of the Youth Activities of Caregiving Scale (YACS). Psychology and Health, 25(6), 713–731. https://doi.org/10.1080/08870440902893724.
Janoff-Bulman, R. (1992). Shattered assumptions: towards a new psychology of trauma. NY: Free Press.
Janoff-Bulman, R., & Yopyk, D. J. (2004). Random outcomes and valued commitments: existential dilemmas and the paradox of meaning. In J. Greenberg, S. L. Koole & T. Pyszczynski (Eds.), Handbook of experimental existential psychology (pp. 122–138). New York: Guilford Press.
Kilmer, R. P., Gil-Rivas, V., Griese, B., Hardy, S. J., Hafstad, G. S., & Alisic, E. (2014). Posttraumatic growth in children and youth: Clinical implications of an emerging research literature. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 84(5), 506–518. https://doi.org/10.1037/ort0000016.
Lepore, S. J., & Kernan, W. D. (2009). Positive life change and the social context of illness: an expanded social-cognitive processing model. In C. L. Park, S. C. Lechner, M. H. Antoni SpringerAmpamp; A. L. Stanton (Eds.), Medical illness and positive life change: Can crisis lead to personal transformation? (pp. 139–152). Washington: APA.
Levine, C., Hunt, G. G., Halper, D., Hart, A. Y., Lautz, J., & Gould, D. A. (2005). Young adult caregivers: A first look at an unstudied population. American Journal of Public Health, 95(11), 2071–2075.
McCausland, J., & Pakenham, K. I. (2003). Investigation of the benefits of HIV/AIDS caregiving and relations among caregiver adjustment, benefit finding, and stress and coping variables. AIDS Care, 15(6), 853–869. https://doi.org/10.1080/09540120310001618694.
Melvin, G. A., & Molloy, G. N. (2000). Some psychometric properties of the positive and negative affect schedule among Australian youth. Psychological Reports, 86(3), 1209–1212. https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.2000.86.3c.1209.
Meyerson, D. A., Grant, K. E., Smith-Carter, J., & Kilmer, R. P. (2011). Posttraumatic growth among children and adolescents: a systematic review. Clinical Psychology Review, 31(6), 949–964. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2011.06.003.
Muris, P., Meesters, C., Eijkelenboom, A., & Vincken, M. (2004). The self-report version of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire: its psychometric properties in 8 to 13-year-old non-clinical children. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 43(4), 437–448. https://doi.org/10.1348/0144665042388982.
Pakenham, K. I. (2001). Application of a stress and coping model to caregiving in multiple sclerosis. Psychology, Health & Medicine, 6(1), 13–27. https://doi.org/10.1080/13548500125141.
Pakenham, K. I. (2005). The positive impact of multiple sclerosis (MS) on carers: associations between carer benefit finding and positive and negative adjustment domains. Disability and Rehabilitation, 27(17), 985–997. https://doi.org/10.1080/09638280500052583.
Pakenham, K. I. (2007a). The nature of benefit finding in Multiple Sclerosis. Psychology Health and Medicine, 12(2), 190–196. https://doi.org/10.1080/13548500500465878.
Pakenham, K. I. (2007b). The nature of caregiving in multiple sclerosis: development of the Caregiving Tasks in Multiple Sclerosis Scale. Multiple Sclerosis, 13(7), 929–938. https://doi.org/10.1177/1352458507076973.
Pakenham, K. I (2009). Children who care for their parents: the impact of disability on young lives. In: In C. A. Marshall, E. Kendall, M. Banks, R. M. S. Gover (Eds.) Disability: Insights from across fields and around the world. Vol II. Westport, CT: Praeger Press.
Pakenham, K. I., & Bursnall, S. (2006). Relations between social support, appraisal and coping and both positive and negative outcomes for children of a parent with MS and comparisons with children of healthy parents. Clinical Rehabilitation, 20(8), 709–723. https://doi.org/10.1191/0269215506cre976oa.
Pakenham, K. I., Bursnall, S., Chiu, J., Cannon, T., & Okochi, M. (2006). The psychosocial impact of caregiving on young people who have a parent with an illness or disability: comparisons between young caregivers and non-caregivers. Rehabilitation Psychology, 51(2), 113–126. https://doi.org/10.1037/0090-5550.51.2.113.
Pakenham, K. I., Chiu, J., Bursnall, S., & Cannon, T. (2007). Relations between social support, appraisal and coping and both positive and negative outcomes in young carers. Journal of Health Psychology, 12(1), 89–102. https://doi.org/10.1177/1359105307071743.
Pakenham, K. I., & Cox, S. (2008). Development of the Benefit Finding in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Caregiving Scale: a longitudinal study of relations between benefit finding and adjustment. British Journal of Health Psychology, 13(4), 583–602. https://doi.org/10.1348/135910707X250848.
Pakenham, K. I., & Cox, S. (2012). The nature of caregiving in children of a parent with multiple sclerosis from multiple sources and the associations between caregiving activities and youth adjustment overtime. Psychology and Health, 27(3), 324–346. https://doi.org/10.1080/08870446.2011.563853.
Pakenham, K. I., & Cox, S. (2014). The effects of parental illness and other ill family members on the adjustment of children. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 48(3), 424–437. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12160-014-9622-y.
Pakenham, K. I., & Cox, S. (2015). The effects of parental illness and other ill family members on youth caregiving experiences. Psychology & Health, 30(7), 840–856. https://doi.org/10.1080/08870446.2014.1001390.
Park, C. L., & Folkman, S. (1997). Meaning in the context of stress and coping. Review of General Psychology, 1(2), 115–144. https://doi.org/10.1037/1089-2680.1.2.115.
Prati, F., & Pietrantoni, L. (2009). Optimism, social support and coping strategies as factors contributing to posttraumatic growth: a meta-analysis. Journal of Loss and Trauma, 14(5), 364–388. https://doi.org/10.1080/15325020902724271.
Proctor, C., Alex Linley, P., & Maltby, J. (2009). Youth life satisfaction measures: a review. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 4(2), 128–144. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760802650816.
Roy, B., Groholt, B., Heyerdahl, S., & Clench-Aas, J. (2006). Self-reported strengths and difficulties in a large Norwegian population 10–19 years: age and gender specific results of the extended SDQ-questionnaire. European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 15(4), 189–198.
Rueger, S. Y., Malecki, C. K., Pyun, Y., Aycock, C., & Coyle, S. (2016). A meta-analytic review of the association between perceived social support and depression in childhood and adolescence. Psychological Bulletin, 142(10), 1017–1067. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000058.
Sarason, I. G., Sarason, B. R., & Shearin, K. N. (1987). A brief measure of social support: practice and theoretical implications. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 4(4), 497–510. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407587044007.
Sieh, D. S., Meijer, A. M., Oort, F. J., Visser-Meily, J. M. A., & Van der Leij, D. A. V. (2010). Problem behavior in children of chronically ill parents: a meta-analysis. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 13(4), 384–397. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10567-010-0074-z.
Sieh, D. S., Visser-Meily, J. M. A., & Meijer, A. M. (2013). Differential outcomes of adolescents with chronically ill and healthy parents. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 22(2), 209–218. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-012-9570-8.
Sijtsma, K. (2009). On the use, the misuse, and the very limited usefulness of Cronbach’s alpha. Psychometrika, 74(1), 107–120. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11336-008-9101-0.
Taylor, S. E. (1983). Adjustment to threatening events: a theory of cognitive adaptation. American Psychologist, 38(11), 1161–1173. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.38.11.1161.
Tedeschi, R. G., & Calhoun, L. G. (2004). Posttraumatic growth: conceptual foundations and empirical evidence. Psychological Inquiry, 15(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327965pli1501_01.
Tedeschi, R. G. & Calhoun, L. G. (2009). The clinician as expert companion. In C. L. Park, S. C. Lechner, M. H. Antoni & A. L. Stanton (Eds.), Medical illness and positive life change: Can crisis lead to personal transformation?. (pp. 215–236). Washington: APA.
Tennen, H., & Affleck, G. (2002). Benefit-finding and benefit-reminding. In C. R. Snyder & S. J. Lopez (Eds.), Handbook of positive psychology (pp. 584–597). London: Oxford University Press.
Thompson, R. A., Flood, M. F., & Goodvin, R. (2006). Social support and developmental psychopathology. In D. Cicchetti & D. J. Cohen (Eds.), Developmental psychopathology (2nd ed., pp. 1–37). New Jersey: Wiley.
Watson, D., Clark, L. A., & Tellegen, A. (1988). Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect: The PANAS scales. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 54(6), 1063–1070. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.54.6.1063.
Worsham, N. L., Compas, B. E., & Sydney, E. Y. (1997). Children’s coping with parental illness. In S. A. Wolchik & I. N. Sandler (Eds.), Handbook of children’s coping: Linking theory and intervention (pp. 195–213). New York: Plenum Press.
Funding
This study was funded by the Australian Research Council (grant number DP0879595).
Author Contributions
K.P.: designed and executed the study, and wrote sections of the paper. S.C.: analysed the data and wrote the results and parts of the discussion.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Ethical Approval
All research procedures (including informed consent) were in accordance with the ethical standards of The University of Queensland’s ethical clearance research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Pakenham, K.I., Cox, S. Effects of Benefit Finding, Social Support and Caregiving on Youth Adjustment in a Parental Illness Context. J Child Fam Stud 27, 2491–2506 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-018-1088-2
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-018-1088-2