The goal of this research is to identify those factors that predict child adaptation to epilepsy. The proposed study in this continuation study is a logical extension of the investigator's previous theoretical and empirical work in this area. The primary aim is to identify a predictive model for change in child adaptation (e.g., behavior problems, self- competence, and depression) based on retrospective measurement of characteristics prior to the onset of seizures as well as their changes over a period of two years. These characteristics are: a) family (resources, demands, demographic variables, adaptation, attitudes, and coping responses), b) health condition (severity, frequency, medication, seizure syndrome, seizure type, and psychosocial care), and c) child (neurological status, temperament, prior behavior problems, attitudes, and coping responses). Data will be collected at the time of the first seizure and will measure child and family characteristics prior to the seizure. A total of 240 children with seizures will be recruited from two sites - Indiana and Memphis, Tennessee. A group of 120 children with newly diagnosed asthma will also be recruited from both sites. Parents will also be requested to complete selected questionnaires on the behavior of a nearest-age sibling. Children recruited as first seizure subjects, but who suffered only one seizure, and were not diagnosed with nor treated for epilepsy will comprise another comparison group. The design includes five data collection points over a 2-year period (baseline, 3, 6, 12, 24 months) using a structured telephone interview and mailed questionnaires. Child adaptation will be measured using the Child Behavior Checklist's (CBCL) Parent Form, Youth Self-Report form (YSR), and Teacher's Report form (TRF), as well as the Child Depression Inventory (CDI), and the Piers- Harris Self-Concept Scale. Family adaptation will be measured by parents using the original family APGAR and by children using the APGAR as revised by the investigator for use in her earlier studies. Parent adaptation will be measured using the Multiple Affect Adjective Checklist - Revised (MAACL), which measures anxiety, depression, and hostility.
Specific aims of the study include identification of differences in the four study groups in child characteristics and child adaptation from baseline to two years, prediction of child adaptation at two years from measures of family and health condition characteristics, assessment of changes in adaptation over the two year period, and the identification of predictors of change in adaptation.
These aims are to be addressed using a series of standard analyses for group comparisons, as well as more advanced techniques such as random coefficient regression and structural equation models.
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