The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of two types of information, separately and in combination, on the process and outcomes of maternal and child coping with unplanned childhood hospitalization. A 2 x 2 factorial design was utilized with child behavioral information and parental role information as the experimental factors which resulted in four study groups: (1) mothers who received no experimental information; (2) mothers who received only child behavioral information which described behaviors typically displayed by young children during and after hospitalization; (3) mothers who received only parental role information which focused on strategies to assist young children in coping with hospitalization; and (4) mothers who received both types of information. Subjects were randomly assigned to groups.

Study participants were chosen from the population of mothers whose children were admitted to the pediatric units of two acute care institutions in Upstate New York. A total of 108 mothers whose children met the following criteria comprised the sample: (1) age between two and five years inclusive; (2) unplanned medical or surgical admission; and (3) no diagnosed cancer.

The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) (Spielberger, 1970) measured maternal anxiety during and following hospitalization. The Index of Parent Participation (Melnyk, 1991) and the Index of Parental Support During Intrusive Procedures (Melnyk, 1991) measured parent participation and support during hospitalization. The Parental Beliefs Scale (Melnyk, 1991) measured parents' beliefs about their hospitalized children and their role during hospitalization. Children's negative behavioral changes following hospitalization were measured by the Posthospital Behavioral Questionnaire (Vernon, 1966).

Findings revealed positive main effects for child behavioral information and parental role information on state anxiety as well as parent participation and support during hospitalization. The effects of the experimental information were found to be mediated by parental beliefs regarding their children and their role during hospitalization. Mothers who received the combined information supported their children more through an intrusive procedure than mothers who received only the parental role information. Ten to fourteen days following hospitalization, there was a positive main effect for child behavioral information on children's negative behaviors and a positive main effect of parental role information on mothers' state anxiety levels.