Question

Helping Children Cope. What are some ways to help children cope with disasters?

1) Listen to your kids. Ask them about their feelings. Validate their concerns.
2) When you can manage your own feelings, you can make disasters less traumatic for your kids.
3) Some children are comforted and reassured by what's called a transition object-some kind of comfort device, such as a stuffed animal or a favorite blanket.
4) Select an age group on the left to read parents' questions, and see how child psychologists would respond based on each developmental stage.

Answer 1

Children's response to disasters varies by age with school-aged children and teenagers facing different emotional challenges. Open communication, emotional regulation by parents, and the use of comfort objects are strategies to help children cope. Understanding developmental stages and behaviors is key to supporting children during times like natural disasters.

Step-by-step explanation:

Disasters can have a different impact on children depending on their developmental stage. School-aged children may struggle with understanding the reasons behind events like divorce, feeling torn between parents, while older teenagers, though they recognize the conflict, may still experience emotional challenges such as fear or guilt. Infants and preschool children often feel the loss of routine acutely. Despite age differences, certain strategies can be beneficial.

• Establishing open communication by listening and validating children's feelings.
• Parents managing their own emotions to reduce trauma for their children.
• Providing comfort through transition objects like stuffed animals or blankets.

Understanding behaviors like stranger anxiety and disorganized attachment in the context of development can aid in supporting children through trying times. Exposure to stressful events such as natural disasters can be conceptualized within personal narratives, which may later inform their adult recollections of the events. Methods like conditioning can also be effective in teaching adaptive behaviors for coping with stress.