Cancer is currently the leading cause of death by disease in children under the age of 15 in the US. While the number of childhood cancer survivors continues to grow, psychological research on this population has lagged. Existing research on the psychosocial effects of childhood cancer is marked by inconsistent conclusions as well as methodological limitations. However, the effect of childhood cancer on social functioning is one area with relatively more consistency. Existing research suggests that childhood cancer can lead to deficits in prosocial skills as well as the emergence of social problems. The present study investigated individual change in social functioning for five children diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia ALL) over the first year of treatment compared to healthy control peers. Children with cancer demonstrated a decrease in social activity as well as an unexpected increase in social skills not demonstrated by healthy control children.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UTAHS/oai:digitalcommons.usu.edu:etd-2248 |
| Date | 01 May 2012 |
| Creators | Duchoslav, Rachel L. |
| Publisher | DigitalCommons@USU |
| Source Sets | Utah State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | All Graduate Theses and Dissertations |
| Rights | Copyright for this work is held by the author. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user. For more information contact Andrew Wesolek (andrew.wesolek@usu.edu). |
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