Parental Attitude to Upbringing the Child with Chronic Somatic Disease (Based on Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis)

The article describes a study of upbringing attitudes of 30 mothers of children and adolescents aged 7–16 years old suffering from severe chronic disease – juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. Modified method of A.A. Shvedovskaya "Parent's essay" in the form of unfinished sentences was used. Content-analysis identified three variants of the upbringing attitudes of mothers. The most supportive, person-focused attitude manifested in 13.3% of mothers. Training-focused attitude was revealed in 33.3% of mothers; it leads to the neglect of physical and psychological difficulties of the child caused by the disease. Treatment-focused attitude, which leads to an underestimation of the psychological needs of the child and his or her mental development objectives, was observed in 50% of mothers. Results of the "Parent's essays" were compared with the data of interaction observation of mothers with children during their stay in hospital. As a result of observation, in one mother "distant" attitude was detected. The article discusses the impact of suboptimal parental attitudes on the psychological state and personality development of a chronically ill child. The obtained data allow to determine the direction of the consultative psychological care to facilitate the harmonization of parental upbringing attitudes.