Lo scopo di questo lavoro di ricerca è quello di riflettere in prospettiva pedagogica sulla relazione tra genitori e figli adolescenti. La società attuale,con il suo pluralismo di valori,porta gli adolescenti a guardare all’imprevedibilità come ad un fattore costitutivo della propria identità. Spesso la tendenza all’individualizzazione della nostra società è prima di tutto radicata nel mondo adulto. I giovani sono lo specchio degli stili di vita che il mondo adulto trasmette loro. In una prospettiva pedagogica,di fiducia e di speranza,è importante continuare a guardare i giovani come una risorsa essenziale per il futuro. I veri valori della vita dovrebbero essere per gli adolescenti un cammino,una scelta consapevole e responsabile di vita;e gli adulti che li affiancano dovrebbero aiutarli in ciò. I genitori hanno la responsabilità di far comprendere e promuovere nei figli l’importanza di essere se stessi,di vivere senza condizionamenti esterni negativi,di creare relazioni significative,di progettare il futuro. L’educazione è una relazione tra persone caratterizzata dall’amore,dal donarsi,dal rispetto reciproco ed è soprattutto orientata alla libertà di ogni persona. Il dono più prezioso è quello di educare i propri figli all’amore e nell’amore e la famiglia è la più importante risorsa educativa ed umana in tal senso. / The purpose of this research is to reflect in a pedagogic perspective on the relationship between parents and adolescents. Today’s society, with its pluralism of values, drives adolescents to look at unpredictability as to a constitutive factor of their own identity. The tendency to individualization typical of our society often takes root first in the adult world itself. Young people are the mirror of the life styles that the adult world transmits them. In a pedagogic perspective, based on trust and hope, it’s important to steadily look at young people as to an essential resource for the future. The true values of life should represent for adolescents a path,an aware and responsible choice of life and adults that are close to them should help them in achieving this. Their parents have the responsibility to make their children understand and urge them to be themselves, to live without negative external conditionings, to create meaningful relationships, to plan their future. Education is a relationship between people, characterized by love, by giving oneself, by a mutual respect and should aim above all at everybody’s freedom. The most precious gift is that of teaching one’s own children love and in love and the family is the most important educational and human resource in this sense.

Thèse (M.Ps.) -- Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, 2005. / "Mémoire présenté à l'Université du Québec à Chicoutimi comme exigence partielle de la maîtrise en psychologie offerte à l'Université du Québec à Chicoutimi en vertu d'un protocole d'entente avec l'Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières." Comprend des réf. bibliogr. : f. [112]-130. Document électronique également accessible en format PDF.

This thesis considers parental psychological well-being and the acceptability of parenting support for those who have an adolescent with type one diabetes (T1D). Within the literature it is acknowledged that T1D diagnosis and management can have an effect on all family members. Furthermore poor parental well-being can impact negatively on adolescent well-being. It is therefore important to understand parental well-being in the context of adolescent T1D. Paper one presents a literature review of the psychological status of parents of adolescents with T1D. The review highlighted that adolescent T1D diagnosis has the potential to impact on parental psychological well-being, with some parents experiencing clinically concerning symptoms of anxiety, depression or psychological distress at different time points during their adolescent’s chronic illness. Over recent years it has increasingly been recognised that psychosocial variables can impact on physical well-being and illness management. It is important that individuals who experience distress are offered appropriate support. With regard to families and parents, psychological support may be offered through parenting interventions. Paper two aimed to explore whether Teen Triple P Positive Parenting Programme resources were acceptable to parents of adolescents with T1D and whether they would be interested in undertaking a parenting intervention. It also explored whether adolescent behaviour difficulties, parental psychological distress or diabetes-related family conflict were related to parents’ acceptability ratings and intentions to participate. Diabetes factors, such as time since diagnosis and levels of blood glucose control were also considered. The results indicated that the Teen Triple P resources have the potential to be acceptable to parents and that they would be interested in participating in a parenting intervention if one was available to them. The critical reflection considers both the literature review and the scientific study. Within this paper the approaches used, the challenges encountered, and the implications for clinical practice, and future research, are considered.

Aims: The general aims of this thesis were 1) To explore how non-western immigrant families’ different background and factors related to immigration and acculturation may affect the outcome of education and support in paediatric diabetes management; 2) To provide knowledge on how diabetes education and support for immigrant children and their families should be given to ensure them adequate competence in disease management and the children optimum metabolic control. Methods: The thesis comprises five studies carried out 2001-2006. Study I was based on national register data on metabolic control (N=977), questionnaires to all 20 Danish paediatric diabetes centres and structured interviews with 38 immigrant families. Study II was an intervention study including the development of guidelines and adapted educational material, followed by a re-education programme for 37 families. Study III was a case study of 11 Turkish and Kurdish children/families comprising data from medical records, a participant observation and qualitative interviews with the parents, one interpreter and three diabetes team members. Study IV included qualitative interviews with Arabic parents of 12 children, living as immigrants in Denmark and in Cairo/Egypt respectively. Study V comprised data on metabolic control and qualitative interviews with 11 young adult immigrants with type 1 diabetes since childhood or adolescence.Findings: The young immigrants were very unevenly distributed between the Danish paediatric centres. Most teams had little knowledge of and no special educational offers for immigrant families, just as the use of professional interpreters was limited. The immigrant parents had clearly different pre-conditions for diabetes education as compared with ethnic Danish parents, just as most had a low level of acculturation as evaluated by their need for an interpreter. Major differences were identified between the different ethnic groups and between the individual immigrants. The immigrant children and adolescents had different pre-conditions as compared to their parents; most, however, had non-optimum metabolic control. The design of an adapted educational programme could optimise the outcome of diabetes education, but was not sufficient to provide the families with competence in diabetes management and the children/ adolescents with good metabolic control of long duration. Many parents in particular experienced difficulty combining diabetes management with their principles relating to good parenthood. In addition, they appeared to be insecure and doubtful about the competence of the Danish health care professionals.Conclusions: A different ethno-cultural background is likely to create barriers to health education, learning and collaboration. The non-homogeneity of non-western immigrant families requires educational initiatives tailored to the pre-conditions and needs of the individual family members; adapted initiatives such as peer education are suggested. Special support for immigrant children and adolescents should be considered. A close, supportive and trust-filled relationship between the families and health care professionals is needed to facilitate learning, collaboration and good metabolic contro