Comparison of Children With and Without Chronic Health Problems on Self-Perception, Emotional-Behavioral Problems and Parental Attitudes

Objective:

The aim of this study was to compare children diagnosed with developmental delay, obesity, diabetes, asthma and carditis with those who did not have any chronic diseases on measures of selfperception, emotional-behavioral problems and parental attitudes.

Method:

All participating children were recruited from Ministry of Health’s Ankara Dışkapı Training and Research Hospital. A total of 150 children with obesity, diabetes, developmental delay, carditis or asthma diagnoses and 50 children who were not diagnosed with any chronic disease participated in the study. Of these children, 55.5% (n = 111) were girls and 44.5% (n = 89) were boys. The mean ages of girls and boys were 10.87 ± 1.42 and 11.01 ± 1.53 respectively. “The Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire”, “Self-Perception Profi le for Children” and “Strength and Diffi culties Questionnaire” were used in the study.

Results:

Analyses demonstred that the differences in mean scores of children with and without chronic diseases were statistically signifi cant on measures of self-perception, emotional-behavioral problems and parental attitudes. As for psychosocial symptoms, it was found that children diagnosed with obesity were more at risk compared to other groups while mothers of children diagnosed with developmental delay exhibited more authoritarian and permissive parental attitudes compared to the parents of other children.

Discussion:

Research fi ndings were discussed in the direction of benefi cial data for professional health care personnel in the fi eld working with children who are diagnosed with different chronic diseases.