Systems in pediatric psychology - Exam 1

Question 1

Be familiar with Bronfenbrenner’s social-ecological systems theory.

Answer 1

Microsystems: Child + most immediate systems that the child directly participates in (parents, siblings, peer, treatment, the illness) (most research has been done at the microsystem level
Mesosystems: Interactions b/w two or more microsystems (these have an effect on the child’s care, adjustment, or outcome)(family-health care team interactions, family-school interactions)
Exosystems: More distal than the micro- and meso-systems (while the child isn’t directly participating in these systems, they still indirectly affect the child)(parent employment, parent social network, family SES, health care environment, community services)
Macrosystems: Most distal from child (cultural values, norms, expectations)(cultural values realted to medical care, cultural values that prompted FMLA policy, norms and societal customs, etc.)

Question 2

Know that there is a lack of father-reported research in pediatric psychology.

Answer 2

just know that

Question 3

What is the association between pediatric illness and marital separation?

Answer 3

No effect on marital separation or divorce

Question 4

What is the association between illness severity and child psychological adjustment?

Answer 4

This can have an impact on what the child and family believe about outcome and treatment is very important (the illness experience often better predictors than objective measures of diseases when predicting distress)

Question 5

How do subjective vs. objective factors predict health outcomes?

Answer 5

Subjective factors (what parent and child think about certain disease/illnesses) are often more important in predicting health outcomes than objective ones (the tests the doctors are running, etc.)

Question 6

How do chronic illnesses play a role in internalizing and externalizing problems?

Answer 6

Have a slightly elevated risk of internalizing (anxiety/depression) and externalizing (acting out)

Question 7

How does family functioning affect disease outcome?

Answer 7

If the family functioning is not well, the child may have less adherence to the treatment