The unprecendented horror of the World Trade Center (WTC) disaster is likely to result in unique and subtle effects in both parents and young children (under 5 years). Thus, the proposed study will document the complexities of young children's responses to the events of 9-11-01, with an emphasis on social- emotional and behavioral functioning, and traumatic stress reactions. The responses of caregivers, including parents and day care providers, also will be explored. With parents, we will focus specifically on describing parenting attitudes and behaviors, and perceptions of role changes since 9-11-01. With day care providers, we seek to examine day care providers' perceptions of ongoing needs for training and support as they develop long-term approaches to the disaster in their professional roles with young children. A combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches will illuminate the accumulated effects of the various WTC-types of trauma (i.e., death of loved one, evacuation status, level of current dislocation from home or work, loss of employment) on parents and young children, changes in parenting attitudes, behaviors, and perceptions of parenting role, and the relationship between these presumed changes in parenting and child outcomes since 9-11-01. The proposed study will be conducted through a network of day care and early childhood centers identified through Day Care Council of New York, Inc., in New York City. A sample of 200 families will be recruited through early childhood programs. It is expected that the sample will be diverse both in terms of socio-demographic characteristics and proximity to the site of the former WTC site. The design of the proposed research includes four components: 1) Focus groups with parents (n=50); 2) In-depth interviews with parents (n=150); 3) Brief interviews with children ages 3-5 years old; and 4) Focus groups with day care providers (n=20). Given the time-sensitive nature of this project, implementation of all aspects of the research will proceed simultaneously. Based on communication with children's mental health researchers across the city, a majority of proposals developed in response to the WTC disaster are focused on school-based screening and mental health initiatives for older children and adolescents. Thus, the proposed research addresses this gap in knowledge regarding young children's responses to trauma. Findings from this preliminary research will provide critical knowledge regarding post-disaster adaptation in parents and young children in the New York City area and will inform the development of a full proposal for submission to NIMH for a longitudinal investigation of children's responses to the disaster. The proposed research will be conducted by a team of investigators from Columbia University School of Social Work and Barnard College Department of Psychology in collaboration with the Day Care Council of New York.
| DeVoe, Ellen R; Bannon Jr, William M; Klein, Tovah P (2006) Post-9/11 helpseeking by New York City parents on behalf of highly exposed young children. Am J Orthopsychiatry 76:167-75 |
