The effects of parenting behavior on children's mental health after Hurricane Katrina: Preliminary findings.

Abstract

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, many adults and children experienced a high level of secondary stressors and mental health problems associated with their hurricane exposure (see Introduction and chap. 10, this volume;Brewin et al, 2006;Kessler, Galea, Jones, & Parker, 2006). The full impact of the disaster's effect on these children and families has yet to be elucidated. In general, research on children and families affected by disasters is limited; in fact, only 16% of disaster studies have targeted youth samples (Norris & Elrod, 2006). However, some studies have provided a general understanding of key outcomes and common trajectories of disaster-affected youth. Most children return to their premorbid level of functioning following exposure to natural disasters, although a sizeable minority continue to evidence symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) months after the traumatic experience . Although PTSD is the most common psychological outcome studied in individuals who experience trauma, children may present with a variety of difficulties, including anxiety, depression, or behavior problems (Goenjian et al., 2001;Shaw et al., 1995).

Family Influences on the Long Term Post-Disaster Recovery of Puerto Rican Youth

“…Caregiver-child conflict, caregiver unavailability to talk about the hurricane, and children’s perceptions of caregiver’s hurricane-related distress, was related to children’s post-disaster traumatic stress symptoms beyond what was explained by hurricane exposure alone (Gil-Rivas, Kilmer, Hypes, & Roof, 2010). However, in another study of parent-child factors affecting MH in Hurricane Katrina survivors, parenting behaviors did not add to the variance accounted for above and beyond hurricane exposure amongst those displaced after the storm (Kelley et al, 2010). This coupled with the lack of disaster studies on the role of parental discipline and monitoring on child and youth MH indicate a need for further research.…”

The youth coping responses inventory: development and initial validation

“…The BASC‐2 scales described appear to have adequate reliability and validity with the study sample. Analyses employing the study sample at an earlier time point in longitudinal data collection revealed that the Internalizing Problems composite was significantly and positively related to measures of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology, feelings of loss/disruption, and feelings of life threat (see Kelley et al, 2010). In addition, internal consistency analyses produced an Internalizing Problems composite coefficient alpha of .95 for both the child and adolescent report (Kelley et al, 2010).…”

Family Influences on the Relationship Between Hurricane Exposure and Ataques de Nervios

“…Caregiver-child conflict, caregiver unavailability to talk about the hurricane, and children’s perceptions of caregiver’s hurricane-related distress, was related to children’s post-disaster traumatic stress symptoms beyond what was explained by hurricane exposure alone (Gil-Rivas et al 2010). However, in another study of parent–child factors affecting mental health in Hurricane Katrina survivors, parenting behaviors did not add to the variance accounted for above and beyond hurricane exposure amongst those displaced after the storm (Kelley et al 2010).…”