Social functioning in children with a chronic illness

Behavioural, cognitive, and affective aspects of social functioning of 107 children with a chronic illness were studied. The aim of the study was twof old. (I) to describe peer interaction of children with a chronic illness in comparison with normative data of healthy children; (2) to examine whether peer interaction was related to the illness characteristics physical restr ictions and pain. Peer interaction was assessed with measures of social act ivities (CBCL), parent-reported social skills (CABS), child-reported social skills (MESSY), social self-esteem (SPPC), and social anxiety (SASK). Resu lts showed no differences between diagnosis groups, suggesting that the soc ial consequences of chronic illness are not diagnosis specific. Compared wi th healthy norms, chronically ill children reported less aggressive behavio ur. The parent-report measures suggested a similar trend. Children with chr onic illness also tended to display more submissive behaviour than healthy norms: as perceived by their parents. With regard to illness characteristic s. both physical restrictions and pain were associated with restricted soci al activities, but not with other measures of social peer interaction. Chil dren who display submissive behaviour and children who are restricted in th eir social activities should receive extra attention because they are espec ially vulnerable for problems in their social development.