Parent Meta-Emotion Philosophy and Trajectories of Caregiving Stress in Caregivers of Children with Cancer

Abstract

Caregivers of children with cancer are at risk for numerous negative psychological outcomes, including elevated caregiving stress (CS). Different approaches to managing negative emotions that arise during cancer treatment as outlined in the framework of Parent Meta Emotion Philosophy (PMEP) may help explain caregivers’ experience of CS. This paper aims to 1) characterize the course of CS over time and 2) identify PMEP factors that are associated with lower levels of CS and trajectories of decreasing CS. Participants were primary caregivers of 159 families of children aged 2-17 who were recently diagnosed with cancer. Caregivers completed a measure of CS at 1, 6, and 12-months post-diagnosis, and a subset (n=110) completed PMEP interviews roughly 3 months post-diagnosis. Growth models conducted using multilevel modeling (MLM) showed that CS tends to be highest immediately following diagnosis and decline over time, however there is considerable individual variability in the level CS at one-year post-diagnosis and its rate of change over time. Additionally, PMEP dimensions predicted CS, such that caregivers who were more accepting/regulating and had lower awareness of negative emotions generally reported lower CS at one year. Results suggest that primary caregivers may benefit from screening for elevated CS immediately following diagnosis as well as early intervention to teach strategies for acceptance and regulation of negative emotions.