A Correlation Study on the Resilience of Children with Cancer and Their Mothers

Shin, Hyewon; Lee, Ja Hyung

Abstract

PURPOSE
The purpose of this study was to evaluate resilience of children with cancer and their mothers. This study aims to identify the main factors behind the resilience of these patients and their mothers. METHOD: To measure the resilience of cancer patients, Kim's (2002) resilience scale was utilized. The Korean Family Functioning Scale revised by Chae (2004) was used to calculate the resilience of mothers. Respondents for this study consist of 60 pediatric cancer patients and their mothers. Data was collected a Medical Center in Seoul, Korea. Descriptive statistics, t-test, ANOVA, and the Pearson's correlation coefficients were used for data analysis. RESULTS: The resilience mean of pediatric cancer patients is 98.32 (3.09+/-0.03) and of mothers is 64.95 (3.08+/-0.25). There appears to be a high resilience in pediatric cancer patients who hold religious beliefs. Similarly, there is a high resilience for mothers who are employed. And there is a significant positive correlation between the resilience of pediatric cancer patients and their mothers. CONCLUSIONS: As the study indicates that there is a definite relationship between the resilience of pediatric cancer patients and their mothers, it is vital to improve the condition of both the patient and his mother to augment the healing process.