256 DAHLQUIST ET A L .

1.8
1.6 h o Pos/Neutral
2L • Negative
1.4
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0 __ 1.2
| | 1.0I-
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1 * 0.8 L
0.6I

0.2\- c/ FIG. 1 Mean OSBD distress

scores for children with previous
0.0 negative medical experiences and
previous positive/neutral medical
experiences across treatment condi-
Condition tions.

0)v> -2c

FIG. 2 Means and standard devi-

ations of OSBD distress scores of
Did Not Use Used children who did and who did not
Coping Strategies report the use of coping strategies.

the scores o f c h i l d r e n w h o d i d n o t report using c o p i n g strategies ( M = .42,

S D = .29) was i n the same d i r e c t i o n , b u t was n o t significant, f(19) = 1.29, p
< .12.

DISCUSSION

The results of this study suggest that the quality of a child's previous medical
experience may be a more important determinant of his or her reactions to
subsequent routine medical procedures than the amount of exposure the
child has had to the specific medical procedure. Children with a history of
negative medical experiences were rated as more anxious and less co-
operative, and demonstrated higher levels of distress during a throat culture
examination than did children with previous positive or neutral medical
experiences.