Research Methods in Child Disaster Studies: A Review of Studies Generated by the September 11, 2001, Terrorist Attacks; the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami; and Hurricane Katrina

Abstract

Background A comprehensive review of the design principles and methodological approaches that have been used to make inferences from the research on disasters in children is needed. Objective To identify the methodological approaches used to study children’s reactions to three recent major disasters—the September 11, 2001, attacks; the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami; and Hurricane Katrina. Methods This review was guided by a systematic literature search. Results A total of 165 unduplicated empirical reports were generated by the search and examined for this review. This included 83 references on September 11, 29 on the 2004 Tsunami, and 53 on Hurricane Katrina. Conclusions A diversity of methods has been brought to bear in understanding children’s reactions to disasters. While cross-sectional studies predominate, pre-event data for some investigations emerged from archival data and data from studies examining non-disaster topics. The nature and extent of the influence of risk and protective variables beyond disaster exposure are not fully understood due, in part, to limitations in the study designs used in the extant research. Advancing an understanding of the roles of exposure and various individual, family, and social factors depends upon the extent to which measures and assessment techniques are valid and reliable, as well as on data sources and data collection designs. Comprehensive assessments that extend beyond questionnaires and checklists to include interviews and cognitive and biological measures to elucidate the negative and positive effects of disasters on children also may improve the knowledge base.

Children’s knowledge of bushfire emergency response

“…American Bar Association 2009; Kilmer et al 2010;Shaw et al 2012). Although a substantial proportion of this research has focussed on children's psychosocial adjustment in the aftermath of disaster (Masten and Narayan 2012;Pfefferbaum et al 2013), a small but growing body of research has focussed specifically on children's knowledge and education (Ronan and Johnston 2005;In the most empirically rigorous studies to date, Ronan and colleagues Ronan and Johnston 2003;Finnis et al 2004;Finnis et al 2010;Ronan et al 2010) used quantitative questionnaire-based methods to investigate the influence of school-based hazards education on a range of variables, including children's knowledge of protective response behaviours for various hazards (i.e. floods, storms, structural fires, earthquakes, snow storms and tsunami).…”

The relationship between social support and posttraumatic stress symptoms among youth exposed to a natural disaster

“…This is due in part because few studies have assessed children at multiple timepoints post-disaster, and even fewer studies have followed children beyond the first 12 months (Kessler, Keane, Ursano, Mokdad, & Zaslavsky, 2008; Pfefferbaum et al, 2014). Studies are needed that simultaneously test these mechanisms in order to understand how and when the relationship between social support and PTSS arises and develops.…”

Approaches to the Assessment of Children in the Context of Disasters

“…Children who report moderate levels of distress may need referrals for psychosocial support [35]. Children who report elevated levels of distress may need clinical evaluations and interventions.…”

“…Clinical evaluations serve as later gates, as they are more costly, time-intensive, and intrusive, and they require larger amounts of personnel and training. The goals of a clinical evaluation are: (a) to identify whether children meet criteria for psychological disorders and (b) to inform treatment planning [35].…”