Nursing Strategies to Promote Young Children's Ability to Cope with Pain

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The purposes of this study were (1) to explore young children's coping behaviors to a venipuncture, (2) to examine mother's perceptions of their child's pain experience, (3) to identify relatiomships among child's coping behaviors, mother's perception and other factors.At a pediatric out-patient unit, a questionaire about child's pain experience was administered to 62 mothers with 1 to 6 year-old child, and 33 venipunctures with 28 children were observed.Results of this study were as follows :1. Developmental level and previous pain experience of young children were the important infliencing factors on the children's appraisal of a venipuncture. Children could appraise a venipuncture and tried to cope with intrusive pain and fears.2.4 to 6 year-old children showed self-protective behaviors and information-seeking and participative behaviors before a venipuncture more frequently than those under 4 yesr-old children did. Also they could take behavioral and cognitive coping strategies during the whole process of a venipuncture.3. Young children who participated in a venipuncture with independent attitude to meet their mother's expectation attained satisfaction and mastery from mother's support to accept their sfforts. Children with much fears could take few coping strategies during the whole process of a venipuncture, and their mothers also had much fears and were not able to provide effective support to their child.