Influences of Parent’s Cancer Suffering on Children

• Main Authors: Ping-Fang Yuan, 袁萍芳
• Other Authors: 張宏哲
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2001
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/59484199864720631073

碩士 === 中國文化大學 === 兒童福利研究所 === 90 === It is easy to torment children’s mentalities when their parent suffers from cancer. Such torment may extend to children’s growth period in future. However, many researchers’ focuses are still on patient himself/herself and his/her families but neglect of children. Therefore, we need to pay immediate attention on studies of children’s mentalities and feelings. Goals of this study are as follow: I. To understand what children’s internal feelings and influences on them as their parent suffers from cancer. II. Provide the results to clinically medical social workers, parents or guardians of children and schoolteachers for suggestions to assist children. The object of this study is children aged from seven to twelve, who are main interviewed objects, and others, who have important relationship with children and are auxiliary interviewed objects, in Taipei metropolitan areas. There are three sample families, which accept interviews in this study, including five children. Researchers base Heidegger’s hermeneutics as a theoretical base and make use of children painting books and drawings as an interview media for building relationship and as a tool for collecting data. Deep interview method can lead children to use their languages to describe their experiences while their parent suffered from cancer. As a result, we find that: I. Children’s Recognition on Cancer A. The channel from which children learn related information about their parent’s cancer. Children accidentally learn about parent’s cancer conditions from such channels as family relatives, medical personnel or are directly informed by sick parent. B. Cancer on children’s recognition Children have recognized and felt that their parent may die of cancer. Besides, they have concepts in their minds that their parent would die if the operation was not successful, cancer is so serious that it cannot be treated and those who suffer from cancer will die, etc. II. Influences of Parent’s Cancer Suffering on Children A. Fatalism With a view on family system, children’s recognition and behaviors are easily affected by adults’ attitudes. How do children in this study react to changes in circumstance while they go through changes in life as their parent suffers from cancer? We address following three concepts to illustrate what influences of adult’s fatalism attitudes and of changes in the whole environmental structure on children, including: you have to accept your fate! This is my fate! And why do I need to accept my fate? B. Behaviors of Externalization Children may have some behaviors of externalization through pressures of recognition. That is, children will have some behavior problems such as behaviors in incompliance with social standards and learning problems as they face pressures so as to cause changes in social interaction. Such changes belong to changes in external behaviors. There are six categories of this study through our analysis as below: seeking for mutual sympathy in human relationship, affected learning performance, a role of little mother, pursuing to be unique, stealing and lonely enter the ivory tower. C. Behaviors of Internalization Behaviors of Internalization mean that: children’s mental pressures cause their behaviors to be controlled excessively so as to unaccommodating their bodies. Besides, such pressures will also affect individual’s internal feelings so as to change children’s emotions. There are eleven categories in this study through our analysis as below: hiding secrets as well as afraid of stamp; having no idea to interact with sick parent; capturing the memory related with father; having some good memories although it is not convenient to depend on others for living; isolating anxiety, nightmare; contradiction; resistant and defensive mentality; having hallucination; yearning for being same dearly love as little brother; and wishes.