Factors influencing young children's coping behaviors during stressful healthcare encounters.

The authors examined the coping behaviors of 80 preschool children during venipuncture, and selected situational and personal variables thought to influence their coping. The children's behaviors were recorded on the Children's Coping Strategies Checklist-Intrusive Procedures; the helpful behaviors of health professionals were recorded on the Nursing Actions Checklist. Information about specific influencing variables was gathered through questionnaires and parent interviews. The children's report of procedural pain was correlated with the number of coping behaviors used, with the children's attempts to protect themselves, and with helpful nursing interventions. Socioeconomic status, nursing interventions, and preparation for the procedure had low to moderate correlations with number and type of the children's coping behaviors. The results indicate that a child's coping is related to the situation, and the actions of professionals in that situation rather than to the characteristics of the individual child.