Improvements in therapy have resulted in increasing numbers of children being successfully treated for cancer. However the aggressiveness of therapy & uncertainty about prognosis are associated with many adverse effects, psychological as well as physical for both the child & family.
The purpose of this study were to measure the degree of perceived uncertainty, self-efficacy & coping, and then to examine the relationship between the perceived uncertainty, self-efficacy & coping in parents of children cancer patients.
The subjects of this study consist of 140 parents with pediatric cancer, registered at pediatric cancer ward & Out Patient Department. Data was collected from July 1st to August 15th 1998.
The tools used in this study were Mishel's the Parents' Perception of Uncertainty Scale(28item, 4 likert scale), Shere's Self-Efficacy Scale)17item, 5 likert scale) & Folkman & Lazarus Ways of Coping Checklist)34 items, 4 likert scale). Data was analyzed by t-test, Anova, Pearson Correlation co-efficient.
Results of this study are summarized as follows : 1. Parents perceived their uncertainty to be slightly high(Mn 2.41). The degree of perceived uncertainty by the four components were followed as : lack of clarity(2.60), unpredictability(2.59), ambiguity(2.51) & lack of information(1.90). The degree of perceived uncertainty of parents with pediatric cancer revealed to be influenced significantly by the family outcome, reliability about health care provider & perceived severity of illness.
2. The range of parents' self-efficacy was measured from 35 to 85 point, so revealed slightly high. The degree of self-efficacy related to be influenced significantly by the sequency of child birth, family religion & degree of perceived support.
3. The degree of parents' coping was measured slightly high(Mn 2.78). The degree of coping related to be influenced significantly by the sequency of child birth, number of sible & degree of perceived support.
4. parents' uncertainty was related inversely to the parents' self-efficacy(r=-.38, p<.001) & coping(r=-.26, p<.001). And also parents' self-efficacy was positively related to coping(r=.56, p<.001).
From the above results, it can be concluded that predicting & controlling parents' uncertainty with children cancer are necessary to improve positive coping strategies. This information may be used as a foundation for developing nursing interventions to decrease perceived uncertainty & to foster self-efficacy & coping for parents with children cancer.
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