De invloed van waargenomen ouderlijke controle en gezinscohesie op de ontwikkeling van het niveau van paniekklachten onder adolescenten

Abstract

Panic disorder is in the top five of conditions with the most detrimental effects on an individual’s quality of life. Adolescence is seen as the initial period of onset for this disorder. The aim of this study was to investigate whether a relation exists between perceived intrusiveness and family cohesion on the one hand and the level of panic symptoms on the other and whether these family factors have an influence on the dependent variable. The last aim was to test for moderation by sex. 500 adolescents from various high schools in The Netherlands have filled in questionnaires. Two measurement points were used, with one year in between. Results show there is a weak relation between perceived intrusiveness and the level of panic symptoms on the first measurement point. Both family factors appear to be of influence on the development of the level of panic symptoms. For perceived intrusiveness, the influence is stronger for boys than for girls and for family cohesion the influence appeared only significant for boys. The proportion of explained variance was low for both variables. Therefore, future research should handle a broader focus, so more insight in factors that contribute to the development of this disorder can be gathered.