Psychometric evaluation of the brief RCOPE and relationships with psychological functioning among caregivers of children undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplant

• Published in: Psycho-oncology (Chichester, England) England), 2021-09, Vol.30 (9), p.1457-1465
• Main Authors: McGrady, Meghan E., Mara, Constance A., Geiger‐Behm, Karen, Ragsdale, Judith, Davies, Stella M., Schwartz, Lisa A., Phipps, Sean, Pai, Ahna L. H.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: cancer; Caregivers; Children; Coping; coping skills; hematopoietic stem cell transplantation; Membership; oncology; Psychological functioning; psychometrics; Quantitative psychology; Religion; spirituality; Stem cell transplantation; Stem cells; Transplants; Transplants & implants
• ISSN: 1057-9249; 1099-1611
• DOI: 10.1002/pon.5705

Objective Spiritual and religious (S/R) coping is a relevant yet understudied domain of coping among caregivers of children undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HCT). The aims of this manuscript are to: (1) conduct the first psychometric evaluation of the Brief RCOPE in this population; (2) examine levels of and changes in S/R coping over time; and (3) explore the relationship between S/R coping trajectories and psychological functioning post‐HCT. Methods Caregivers (n = 170) of children (ages ≤12 years, n = 170) undergoing HCT completed the Brief RCOPE and the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) pre‐ and at multiple time points post‐HCT discharge. Factor structure, internal consistency, and validity were examined. Growth mixture models were used to identify subgroups with similar S/R coping trajectories, with group memberships added to mixture models to explore relationships between group membership and caregiver psychological functioning trajectories. Results The Brief RCOPE exhibited the previously‐supported two factor structure and each subscale demonstrated strong internal consistency (α = 0.85 and 0.92). Validity was supported by significant correlations with BSI scores. There were distinct subgroups of caregivers with different patterns of positive (n = 4 subgroups) and negative (n = 3 subgroups) S/R coping, with negative coping subgroup membership predicting changes in psychological functioning. Conclusions The Brief RCOPE is a promising measure for assessing S/R coping among caregivers of children undergoing HCT and has the potential to identify caregivers at risk for poorer long‐term psychological functioning.