Skip to main content
Log in

Mother and Child Reports of Hurricane Related Stressors: Data from a Sample of Families Exposed to Hurricane Katrina

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Child & Youth Care Forum Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Background

Families exposed to disasters such as Hurricane Katrina are at risk for numerous adverse outcomes. While previous literature suggests that the degree of disaster exposure corresponds with experiencing negative outcomes, it is unclear if parents and children report similar levels of disaster exposure.

Objective

The purpose of this paper was to examine levels of disaster stressor agreement among mother–child dyads affected by Hurricane Katrina, and to examine whether discrepancies in disaster stressor reports are associated with higher levels of posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms.

Methods

Participants in this study consisted of 353 dyads of mothers (age M = 38.79 years, SD = 7.52; 68 % African American) and children (52 % girls; age M = 11.61 years, SD = 1.57) exposed to Hurricane Katrina. Parents and children were assessed at two timepoints, 3–7 months and 14–17 months postdisaster. Parent and child responses to items regarding hurricane related stressor exposure and PTS symptoms were analyzed.

Results

Agreement on hurricane related exposures was predominately slight to moderate, with kappas ranging from κ = 0.19 to κ = 0.83. Polynomial regression analyses revealed that when mothers reported low levels of Immediate Loss/Disruption stressors and children reported high levels of these stressors, children reported higher levels of Time 2 PTS symptoms, b = −0.72 (0.33), p = .03.

Conclusions

Overall, levels of mother–child response agreement were low. Discrepancies in mother and child reports predicted higher levels of child PTS symptoms. Clinicians may want to query both parents and children about their disaster experiences when working with families postdisaster.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Achenbach, T. M. (2011). Definitely more than measurement error: But how should we understand and deal with informant discrepancies? Discussion of A. De Los Reyes; Part of a special section: More than measurement error: Discovering meaning behind informant discrepancies in clinical assessments of children and adolescents. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 40(1), 80–86. doi:10.1080/15374416.2011.533416.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, fourth edition, text revision (DSM-IV-TR). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Baumrind, D. (1991). The influence of parenting style on adolescent competence and substance use. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 11(1), 56–95. doi:10.1177/0272431691111004.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bollen, K. A. (1989). Structural equations with latent variables. New York: Wiley.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Bonanno, G. A., Brewin, C. R., Kaniasty, K., & La Greca, A. M. (2010). Weighing the costs of disaster: Consequences, risks, and resilience in individuals, families, and communities. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 11(1), 1–49. doi:10.1177/1529100610387086.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, T. H., Mellman, T. A., Alfano, C. A., & Weems, C. F. (2011). Sleep fears, sleep disturbance, and PTSD symptoms in minority youth exposed to Hurricane Katrina. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 24(5), 575–580. doi:10.1002/jts.20680.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ceballo, R., Dahl, T. A., & Aretakis, M. T. (2001). Inner-city children’s exposure to community violence: How much do parents know? Journal of Marriage & Family, 63(4), 927–940. doi:10.1111/j.1741-3737.2001.00927.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cerda, M., Bordelois, P. M., Galea, S., Norris, F., Tracy, M., & Koenen, K. C. (2013). The course of posttraumatic stress symptoms and functional impairment following a disaster: What is the lasting influence of acute versus ongoing traumatic events and stressors? Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 48(3), 385–395. doi:10.1007/s00127-012-0560-3.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Chemtob, C. M., Nomura, Y., Rajendran, K., Yehuda, R., Schwartz, D., & Abramovitz, R. (2010). Impact of maternal posttraumatic stress disorder and depression following exposure to the September 11 attacks on preschool children’s behavior. Child Development, 81(4), 1129–1141. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01458.x.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cremeens, J., Eiser, C., & Blades, M. (2006). Factors influencing agreement between child self-report and parent proxy-reports on the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory™ 4.0 (PedsQL™) Generic Core Scales. Health and quality of life outcomes, 4(1), 58. doi:10.1186/1477-7525-4-58.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • De Los Reyes, A. (2011). Introduction to the special section: More than measurement error: Discovering meaning behind informant discrepancies in clinical assessments of children and adolescents. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology: The Official Journal for the Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, American Psychological Association, Division 53, 40(1), 1–9. doi:10.1080/15374416.2011.533405.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Los Reyes, A., & Kazdin, A. E. (2005). Informant discrepancies in the assessment of childhood psychopathology: A critical review, theoretical framework, and recommendations for further study. Psychological Bulletin, 131(4), 483–509. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.131.4.483.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • DeVellis, R. F. (1991). Scale development: Theory and applications (p. c1991). DeVellis: Newbury Park, CA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dirks, M. A. B. M. H. G. K. (2011). Psychological symptoms in youth and later socioeconomic functioning: Do associations vary by informant? Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 40(1), 10–22. doi:10.1080/15374416.2011.533403.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Drabick, D. A. G., Bubier, J., Chen, D., Price, J., & Lanza, H. I. (2011). Source-specific oppositional defiant disorder among inner-city children: Prospective prediction and moderation. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 40(1), 23–35. doi:10.1080/15374416.2011.533401.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edwards, J. R. (1994). The study of congruence in organizational behavior research: Critique and a proposed alternative. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 58(1), 51–100.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Foa, E. B. (1995). Posttraumatic stress diagnostic scale: Manual. Minneapolis, MN: NCS Pearson Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Foa, E. B., Cashman, L., Jaycox, L., & Perry, K. (1997). The validation of a self-report measure of posttraumatic stress disorder: The Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale. Psychological Assessment, 9(4), 445–451. doi:10.1037/1040-3590.9.4.445.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hartley, A. G. Z. A. L. W. J. C. (2011). Probing the depths of informant discrepancies: Contextual influences on divergence and convergence. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 40(1), 54–66. doi:10.1080/15374416.2011.533404.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Haslam, C., & Mallon, K. (2003). A preliminary investigation of post-traumatic stress symptoms among firefighters. Work & Stress, 17(3), 277–285. doi:10.1080/02678370310001625649.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jaycox, L. H., Cohen, J. A., Mannarino, A. P., Walker, D. W., Langley, A. K., Gegenheimer, K. L., et al. (2010). Children’s mental health care following Hurricane Katrina: A field trial of trauma-focused psychotherapies. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 23(2), 223–231. doi:10.1002/jts.20518.

    PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kelley, M. L., Self-Brown, S., Le, B., Bosson, J. V., Hernandez, B. C., & Gordon, A. T. (2010). Predicting posttraumatic stress symptoms in children following Hurricane Katrina: A prospective analysis of the effect of parental distress and parenting practices. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 23(5), 582–590. doi:10.1002/jts.20573.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kessler, R. C., Galea, S., Gruber, M. J., Sampson, N. A., Ursano, R. J., & Wessely, S. (2008). Trends in mental illness and suicidality after Hurricane Katrina. Mol Psychiatry, 13(4), 374–384. doi:10.1038/sj.mp.4002119.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Knabb, D. R., Rhome, R. J., & Brown, P. D. (2005). Tropical cyclone report: Hurricane Katrina 23–30 August 2005. Miami, Fl: National Hurricane Center (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration).

    Google Scholar 

  • Kuo, M., Mohler, B., Raudenbush, S. L., & Earls, F. J. (2000). Assessing exposure to violence using multiple informants: Application of hierarchical linear model. The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines, 41(08), 1049–1056.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • La Greca, A. M., Lai, B. S., Llabre, M. M., Silverman, W. K., Vernberg, E. M., & Prinstein, M. J. (2013). Children’s postdisaster trajectories of PTS symptoms: Predicting chronic distress. Child & Youth Care Forum, 42(4), 351–369. doi:10.1007/s10566-013-9206-1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • La Greca, A. M., Silverman, W. K., Vernberg, E. M., & Prinstein, M. J. (1996). Symptoms of posttraumatic stress in children after hurricane Andrew: A prospective study. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 64(4), 712–723. doi:10.1037/0022-006x.66.6.883.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lai, B. S., Kelley, M. L., Harrison, K. M., Thompson, J. E., & Self-Brown, S. (in press). Posttraumatic stress, anxiety, and depression symptoms among children after Hurricane Katrina: A latent profile analysis. Journal of Child and Family Studies. doi: 10.1007/s10826-014-9934-3.

  • Lai, B. S., La Greca, A. M., Auslander, B. A., & Short, M. B. (2013). Children’s symptoms of posttraumatic stress and depression after a natural disaster: Comorbidity and risk factors. Journal of Affective Disorders, 146(1), 71–78. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2012.08.041.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Laird, R. D., & De Los Reyes, A. (2013). Testing informant discrepancies as predictors of early adolescent psychopathology: Why difference scores cannot tell you what you want to know and how polynomial regression may. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 41(1), 1–14. doi:10.1007/s10802-012-9659-y.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Laird, R. D., & Weems, C. F. (2011). The equivalence of regression models using difference scores and models using separate scores for each informant: Implications for the study of informant discrepancies. Psychological Assessment, 23(2), 388–397. doi:10.1037/a0021926.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Landis, J. R., & Koch, G. G. (1977). The measurement of observer agreement for categorical data. Biometrics, 33(1), 159–174. doi:10.2307/2529310.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lowe, S. R., Godoy, L., Rhodes, J. E., & Carter, A. S. (2013). Predicting mothers’ reports of children’s mental health three years after Hurricane Katrina. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 34(1), 17–27. doi:10.1016/j.appdev.2012.09.002.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Overstreet, S., Salloum, A., & Badour, C. (2010). A school-based assessment of secondary stressors and adolescent mental health 18 months post-Katrina. Journal of School Psychology, 48(5), 413–431. doi:10.1016/j.jsp.2010.06.002.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pfefferbaum, B., Weems, C., Scott, B., Nitiéma, P., Noffsinger, M., Pfefferbaum, R., et al. (2013). Research methods in child disaster studies: A review of studies generated by the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks; the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami; and Hurricane Katrina. Child & Youth Care Forum, 42(4), 285–337. doi:10.1007/s10566-013-9211-4.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Polusny, M. A., Ries, B. J., Meis, L. A., DeGarmo, D., McCormick-Deaton, C. M., Thuras, P., et al. (2011). Effects of parents’ experiential avoidance and PTSD on adolescent disaster-related posttraumatic stress symptomatology. Journal of Family Psychology, 25(2), 220–229. doi:10.1037/a0022945.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Proctor, L. J., Fauchier, A., Oliver, P. H., Ramos, M. C., Rios, M. A., & Margolin, G. (2007). Family context and young children’s responses to earthquake. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 48(9), 941–949. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.2007.01771.x.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rath, B., Donato, J., Duggan, A., Perrin, K., Bronfin, D. R., Ratard, R., et al. (2007). Adverse health outcomes after Hurricane Katrina among children and adolescents with chronic conditions. Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 18(2), 405–417.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Reynolds, E. K., MacPherson, L., Matusiewicz, A. K., Schreiber, W. M., & Lejuez, C. W. (2011). Discrepancy between mother and child reports of parental knowledge and the relation to risk behavior engagement. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 40(1), 67–79. doi:10.1080/15374416.2011.533406.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sastry, N., & Gregory, J. (2013). The effect of Hurricane Katrina on the prevalence of health impairments and disability among adults in New Orleans: differences by age, race, and sex. Social Science and Medicine, 80, 121–129.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Self-Brown, S., Lai, B. S., Thompson, J. E., McGill, T., & Kelley, M. L. (2013). Posttraumatic stress disorder symptom trajectories in Hurricane Katrina affected youth. Journal of Affective Disorders, 147(1–3), 198–204. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2012.11.002.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Steinberg, A. M., Brymer, M. J., Decker, K. B., & Pynoos, R. S. (2004). The University of California at Los Angeles Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Reaction Index. Current Pscychiatry Reports, 6(2), 96–100. doi:10.1007/s11920-004-0048-2.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stover, C. S., Hahn, H., Im, J. J. Y., & Berkowitz, S. J. (2010). Agreement of parent and child reports of trauma exposure and symptoms in the early aftermath of a traumatic event. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 2(3), 159–168. doi:10.1037/a0019156.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tingskull, S., Svedin, C. G., Agnafors, S., Sydsjö, G., deKeyser, L., & Nilsson, D. (in press). Parent and child agreement on experience of potential traumatic events. Child Abuse Review. doi: 10.1002/car.2287.

  • Weems, C. F., & Overstreet, S. (2008). Child and adolescent mental health research in the context of Hurricane Katrina: An ecological needs-based perspective and introduction to the special section. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 37(3), 487–494. doi:10.1080/15374410802148251.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Weems, C. F., Pina, A. A., Costa, N. M., Watts, S. E., Taylor, L. K., & Cannon, M. F. (2007). Predisaster trait anxiety and negative affect predict posttraumatic stress in youths after Hurricane Katrina. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 75(1), 154–159. doi:10.1037/0022-006x.75.1.154.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Weems, C. F., Russell, J. D., Banks, D. M., Graham, R. A., Neill, E. L., & Scott, B. G. (2014). Memories of traumatic events in childhood fade after experiencing similar less stressful events: Results from two natural experiments. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 143(5), 2046–2055. doi:10.1037/xge0000016.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weems, C. F., Taylor, L. K., Cannon, M. F., Marino, R. C., Romano, D. M., Scott, B. G., et al. (2010). Post traumatic stress, context, and the lingering effects of the Hurricane Katrina disaster among ethnic minority youth. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 38(1), 49–56. doi:10.1007/s10802-009-9352-y.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This material is based upon work supported by the US Department of Homeland Security under Award Number: 2008-ST-061-ND 0001 and a research grant from the National Institute of Mental Health (RMH-078148A).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Betty S. Lai.

Additional information

Disclaimer The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as necessarily representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, of the US Department of Homeland Security.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Lai, B.S., Beaulieu, B., Ogokeh, C.E. et al. Mother and Child Reports of Hurricane Related Stressors: Data from a Sample of Families Exposed to Hurricane Katrina. Child Youth Care Forum 44, 549–565 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10566-014-9289-3

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10566-014-9289-3

Keywords

Navigation