A comparative study of fears in middle-childhood South African children with and without visual impairments

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The experience of fear is a normal phenomenon in the development of children. However, the often marginalised population of children with visual impairments, is one which has been neglected in past fear research. As far as could be ascertained, no research assessing the fears of children with visual impairments has been carried out the past 18 years, and studies within the South African context are non-existent. Previous research has suggested that children, who have a physical disability, are more prone to the development of a psychopathology than their non-disabled peers. It has also been suggested that, due to their physical limitations, children with visual impairments would express a higher prevalence of anxiety and fear. Therefore it is important to identify these children's fears, to enable those involved in their day-to-day lives to gain a greater understanding of their emotional world. The present study aimed to determine whether significant differences exist between the fear profiles of middle-childhood South African children with visual impairments when compared to their sighted counterparts. A differential research design was employed, and results were examined across the four independent variables of gender, age, culture, and vision. A total of 129 assenting children from three schools in the Western Cape participated in the present study, including 67 children with varying degrees of visual impairments, and 62 gender- and age-matched controls. All the children were administered a short biographical questionnaire and Burkhardt's (2007) child friendly South African Fear Survey Schedule for Children (FSSC-SA). The administration of these measures was adapted according to the children's degree of visual impairment. Results of the FSSC-SA indicated that the most feared item for the children with visual impairments was 'Fire - getting burned, while the children without visual impairments feared 'Getting HIV the most. The 10 most common fears related mainly to situations in which the possibility of danger and harm is present, with the majority of fears loading onto Factor I (fear of danger and death) of the FSSC-SA. Consistent with previous research, gender differences were apparent across number, level, and pattern of fear, with girls consistently being more fearful than boys. There was no significant relationship between age or culture and self-reported fear. In terms of the three sub-groups of visually impaired children, the children with severe visual impairment reported the highest number and level of fear. However, in general terms, the fear profiles of the two overall groups (children with and children without visual impairments) did not differ significantly, thus showing that the worlds, in which these children live, are not as different as was originally anticipated. In conclusion the present study's contributions as well as shortcomings are discussed, along with recommendations for future research.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University