Parenting an adolescent with chronic pain: an investigation of how a taxonomy of adolescent functioning relates to parent distress.
OBJECTIVE
Cluster analyses allow health professionals to classify adolescents with chronic pain into subgroups, which might allow efficient tailoring of treatment. Given the nature of family relationships when a child has chronic pain, we aimed to evaluate whether an adolescent-disability-derived cluster formula would appropriately classify their parents via parenting stress, anxiety, and depression.


METHODS
A patient-report data-derived cluster formula sorted 204 parents of adolescents with chronic pain into 4 groups. Parents completed measures of distress, anxiety, and depression.


RESULTS
The 4-group solution generally sorted parents accurately, with parents of the least disabled adolescents functioning well and parents of the most disabled adolescents reporting clinically significant levels of stress, anxiety, and depression.


CONCLUSIONS
Findings suggest the patient-derived 4-group cluster solution might be an efficient method of distinguishing subgroups of parents with varying levels of stress, anxiety, and depression, which can be used to guide family-oriented treatment efforts.
Cohen
Lindsey L
LL
Department of Psychology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302, USA. llcohen@gsu.edu
Vowles
Kevin E
KE
Eccleston
Christopher
C
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological / Q000145:classification; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001007:Anxiety / Q000145:classification / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000145:classification / Q000523:psychology; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D003863:Depression / Q000145:classification / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000145:classification / Q000523:psychology*; D010147:Pain Measurement; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D016487:Parenting / Q000523:psychology*; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000145:classification* / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires