title: Korean mothers' psychosocial adjustment to their children's cancer.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  During the course of adjustment to their child's illness and medical treatment, parents of children with cancer may experience numerous challenges and difficulties. Although parental adjustment has been a research topic for many years, little research has been conducted among families in different cultures and countries.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To identify factors that influence maternal psychosocial adjustment to childhood cancer using a new cultural group: Korean.
  
  
  METHODS
  A sample of 200 Korean mothers of children with cancer was included in the study. Guided by the double ABCX model of family adjustment and adaptation, a series of variables (i.e. maternal stress, coping, social support and selected illness-related and demographic questions) were examined for their relationships with maternal psychosocial adjustment to childhood cancer.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Using a hierarchical multiple regression, we found perceived level of stress, coping, social support, and time since diagnosis to be significant correlates of maternal psychosocial adjustment. Stress accounted for most (50%) of the total variance explained (56%) in maternal adjustment.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results suggest that the stress-coping framework may be appropriate in explaining maternal responses to childhood cancer across cultures.
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21205-2110, USA. hhan@son.jhmi.edu
authors.forename: Hae-Ra
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Han
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007723:Korea / Q000208:ethnology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology*; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012944:Social Support; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology