Kara Shaver

Bradley Davis

Parental and Child Empathetic Relationship following Pediatric Trauma

Parent-child relationships play a critical role in the coping process after a traumatic event (Wade, Yates, & Stancin, 2001). Parent-child dyads were recruited from Akron Children's hospital emergency department and completed questionnaires during their time in the emergency department and also at two-week post-injury. These questionnaires included a measure of child empathy, and parental and child distress levels resulting from the injury. We hypothesize that children who are high in empathy, and low in emotional distress immediately following the trauma, will be associated with parental acute stress symptoms at two-weeks post injury. Data collection is ongoing, however, results will be incorporated into the poster presentation. If we can identify these individuals immediately following the traumatic event, we can intervene with resilience strategies earlier in order to prevent the development of chronic distress, including posttraumatic stress symptoms.

Wade, S. L., Yates, K. O., & Stancin, T. (2001). The Relationship of Caregiver Coping to Family Outcomes During the Initial Year Following Pediatric Post Injury [Abstract]. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 69(3), 406-415. doi:10.1037//0022-006X.69.3.406