Adolescent views of diabetes-related parent conflict and support: A focus group analysis

Purpose: To increase understanding of adolescent-parent diabetes-related co nflicts and supports in the management of type 1 diabetes by means of a foc us group research approach. Methods: Twenty-four adolescents (10 boys and 14 girls, age 13-15 years; 97 % white) participated in three same-sex focus groups at two diabetes summer camps. The focus group leader used a prepared set of open-ended questions to guide the 90-minute sessions. Sessions were tape-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed by a set procedure for qualitative analysis to identify the ad olescents' perspectives on parent-adolescent sources of diabetes-related co nflict and support. Results: Adolescents reported the following sources of diabetes-related con flict: parental worry and intrusive behaviors; parental lack of understandi ng and blaming behaviors, and the parents focus on the future vs. the adole scent focus on the present. With regard to diabetes-related support, the te ens identified parental understanding of the demands of diabetes and parent al provision of reassurance about their child's illness and normative funct ioning. Conclusions: Adolescents' perceptions of parental worry, lack of understand ing, and resulting intrusive and blaming behaviors are major areas of confl ict that need to be addressed in the management of type 1 diabetes. (C) Soc iety for Adolescent Medicine, 2001.