Coping behaviors of children hospitalized for cardiac surgery: a secondary analysis.

While the coping behaviors of hospitalized children continue to be an area of interest for researchers, systematic documentation in the literature concerning children's coping remains limited. In this descriptive secondary analysis, 23 master's thesis case studies were analyzed to determine how researchers described the range of coping behaviors that children used while hospitalized for cardiac surgery. The analysis sought to determine patterns of coping in both preschool and school-age children. A second aim was to validate further and refine the dimensions and items of the Children's Coping Behaviors Category System developed by Ritchie, Caty, and Ellerton in 1987. Results revealed that a broad range of names and labels of behavior was used to describe children's coping. The predominant patterns of behavior that emerged were direct action and information-seeking. Differences between preschool and school-age children's reported behaviors were evident. The coping category system was validated further and refinements are suggested.