A preliminary investigation of 4 to 11-year-old children's knowledge and understanding of stress

Althea Valentine, Heather Buchanan, Rebecca Knibb

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Objective. To examine children's knowledge, understanding and experience of stress from 4 to 11 years of age across four age groups (4–5, 6–7, 8–9, and 10–11 years old).
Methods. A semi-structured interview format was used to elicit information from 50 children about their understanding and experience of stress.
Results. Most children were able to define stress, with older children providing more complex responses. Many children had indirect and/or personal experience of stress. Younger children were more likely than older children to report that there was nothing people could do to stop stress; children reported using both adaptive and maladaptive coping strategies to deal with stress.
Conclusion. Some young children have a basic understanding of stress and many have experience of stress; both understanding and experience develop with age.
Practice Implications. The research has potential implications for provider-patient communication, particularly within preventative health education and clinically within the field of childhood post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)255-257
Number of pages3
JournalPatient Education and Counseling
Volume79
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - May 2010

Bibliographical note

NOTICE: this is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Patient education and counseling. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Valentine, A, Buchanan, H & Knibb, R, 'A preliminary investigation of 4 to 11-year-old children's knowledge and understanding of stress' Patient education and counseling, vol. 79, no. 2 (2010) DOI http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2009.08.011

Keywords

  • children
  • development
  • knowledge
  • understanding
  • stress

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