Comparing Parent and Family Factors Associated with Child Adjustment 9 at Pennsylvania State U niversity on M arch 1, 2014 http://jpepsy.oxfordjournals.org/ D ow nloaded from parental distress, family functioning, and the role of social support for caregi

Objective To identify factors that influence the association between parent and child distress among families of children with cancer and comparison peers. Methods Parent and child distress, social support, and family environment were assessed among families of 95 children with cancer (94 mothers, 67 fathers) and 98 comparison peers (97 mothers, 77 fathers). Results Significant associations were found between parent and child distress. For models examining the impact of fathers ’ distress on children, several moderators were identified (i.e., family environment, child age and gender, a cancer diagnosis, and treatment severity). Family environment also partially mediated father and child distress. Conclusions Children whose parents were distressed were more likely to be distressed themselves. Subgroups of children were particularly vulnerable, indicating a need to identify further mechanisms of risk and resilience and to develop family-based interventions. Support was found for including fathers as independent sources of information in pediatric psychology research and clinical practice. Key words adjustment; cancer; families; family environment; social support. Cancer is diagnosed in over 12,000 US children under the age of 20 each year (Ries et al., 2005). Although recent advances in treatment have lead to a significant increase i