Therapist Unlimited Blog

A recent study has shown that new parents have less knowledge on child-injury risks that could jeopardize the life of their treasured angel.
According to the study made by the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Department of Psychology new parents identified less than half of the safety hazards in a simulated home environment, and most perceived that their children were less vulnerable to injuries than other children.
UAB doctoral student Joanna Gaines, M.A., the lead author of the study, and UAB pediatric psychologist David Schwebel, Ph.D., is its co-author, explained based on their study they found out that parents recognized only 47 percent of the safety hazards placed inside a home setting.
The researchers said while there were no benchmarks to assess whether this is a good or bad rate of recognition, it is concerning if it approximates behavior in real homes.
The researchers added one would hope that parents might recognize all or almost all of the safety hazards present, since they cannot act for prevention, thus placing their children at risk of serious injury if they do not know the risks involved.

New parents need to orient themselves on possible injuries their child faces to protect them from harm from injuries inside their own home.

Gaines said surprisingly, when asked to identify hazards they considered dangerous for their own children, the parents identified only 40 percent of the hazards.
She said the results suggest that parents tend to perceive their children as being somewhat invulnerable or smarter, safer or developmentally more advanced than other children.
Earlier studies have shown that unintentional injuries are the leading cause of death for toddlers in the United States, according to the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC).
In fact, the NCIPC reports that more than 1,300 1- and 2-year-old American children died from accidental injuries in 2005.
Based on the study it was discovered that formal education was not related to hazard recognition.
The researchers explained parents with fewer years of education recognized safety hazards just as well as parents with more education.
However, the researchers revealed the study also found that more hazards were identified by adults with more parent-related education, which suggests these classes and magazine articles focused on injury prevention may benefit child safety.
Moreover, the researchers said the parents, however, recognized more hazards than the professionals who worked with children daily.
The researchers revealed the health professionals recognized only 29 percent of the hazards, and the day-care workers recognized 37 percent.
The researchers explained parents spend more time with toddlers than day-care employees and parents have more invested in safeguarding their own children.
In addition, the research team said parents have more experience watching children in a home environment than most child-care professionals.