Patterns of Participation in a Self-Help Group for Parents of Children with Cancer

Abstract

Some parents of children with cancer participate in self-help groups to gain the support they need to deal with the stress and crises they experience. This article reports on a study of 95 participants and non-participants in one such group. The results showed that participants and non-participants did not differ on the bases of gender, education, income, or attitudes toward the medical system. However, parents who lived closer to the hospital, whose children had been diagnosed one to four years previously, and who reported a high degree of stress from their child's illness were more likely to participate in the group.