Robinson Joanne C, Butler Richard J, Holland Philip, Doherty-Williams Dianne
Child & Adolescent Mental Health Service, East Leeds PCT, Leeds, UK.
Scand J Urol Nephrol. 2003;37(2):124-8. doi: 10.1080/00365590310008857.
This study aims to measure different aspects of self-construing in children with primary mono-symptomatic nocturnal enuresis.
25 children aged 7-14 years, with nocturnal enuresis were recruited from a paediatric outpatient's unit specialising in enuresis [mean age 10.6 [males], 9.39 [females]] and 25 children acting as controls, were recruited from one primary and one secondary school [mean age 10.08 [males], 9.39 [females]].
The Butler Self Image Profile [SIP], Coopersmith Self Esteem Inventory, Ouvinen-Birgerstam "I think I am" Self Perception Scale were administered.
This study was a matched controlled group comparison.
The only significant difference was the tendency for children with enuresis to construe themselves more negatively on the SIP. There were no significant differences between children with enuresis and the matched controls on all the other measures.
Children with nocturnal enuresis generally perceive themselves similar to children without nocturnal enuresis, and are not "psychologically or emotionally disturbed." It is important to assess a child's self-construing in order to identify those children who are more vulnerable to a lower self-esteem. Future research needs to take into account self-construing in different clinical populations, i.e. those children who have non-mono symptomatic nocturnal enuresis.
