A Study on the Anxiety and Mastery among Mothers of Hospitalized Young Children

Yoo, Kyung Hee

Abstract

PURPOSE
This study was conducted to investigate the correlation between anxiety and mastery in hospitalized young children's mothers.
METHODS
The subjects were 118 mothers of young children who were hospitalized in a pediatric unit. Self-report questionnaires were used to measure the variables of anxiety and mastery. In the data analysis, SPSSWIN 23.0 was used for descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation coefficients and multiple regression.
RESULTS
The reliability of instruments were found to have a Cronbach's alpha of .84 to .92. Anxiety correlated negatively with mastery (r=-.43, p<.001) and positively with duration of hospitalization (r=.26, p=.004). In multiple regression, mastery and duration of hospitalization were significant predictors of anxiety in hospitalized young children's mothers, explaining 24.0%.
CONCLUSIONS
Anxiety and mastery were significant variables in hospitalized young children's mothers. A strategy of nursing intervention which decreases anxiety in mothers must be developed by increasing the level of mastery in mothers of hospitalized young children.