title: Type D personality parents of children with leukemia tend to experience anxiety: the mediating effects of social support and coping style.
abstract: The aims were to access anxiety and type D personality (TDP) in parents of children with leukemia, and to determine the mediating effect of social support and coping style on the relationship between TDP and anxiety. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 231 parents of children with leukemia and 261 parents of children with acute diseases in hospitals. Parents completed questionnaires on anxiety, TDP, social support, coping styles, children's clinical characteristics, and demographic characteristics. Parents of children with leukemia showed higher prevalence of anxiety (64.5% vs 40.2%, P < 0.01) and TDP (44.2% vs 24.1%, P < 0.01) compared with controls. TDP (odds ratio [OR] = 4.34, P < 0.01), lower social support (OR = 1.92, P = 0.02), and less positive coping (OR = 1.87, P = 0.02) were independently associated with anxiety. Parents with TDP showed lower social support and less positive coping, but more negative coping compared with those without. Moreover, multiple mediation analyses revealed that the significant effect of TDP on anxiety was partially mediated by social support and positive coping. In conclusion, anxiety and TDP were highly prevalent in parents of children with leukemia. The predictive factors could be used to identify those parents who are at high risk of anxiety and may also be targets for prevention and intervention.
authors.affiliation: From the Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology (JC, YL, TW, KZ, JFW, HH); Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University (JC, YL, YML, TW, KZ, JFW, HH); Department of Internal Medicine (QQC), Cancer Center; and Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology (WQC), School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Qing-Qing
authors.initials: QQ
authors.lastname: Cai
authors.forename: Yi-Min
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Tong
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Kun
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Jing-Feng
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Wei-Qing
authors.initials: WQ
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Huang
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D001007:Anxiety / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005192:Family Health; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007938:Leukemia / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012944:Social Support; D013315:Stress, Psychological; D064415:Type D Personality