Everyday children are diagnosed and hospitalized with a wide range of acute and chronic diseases, and surgical anomalies. Despite this, there lacks a comprehensive framework to aid them in comprehending their own health conditions. The Pediatric Health Mindset Lab aims to assist children and their families better understand their illnesses and the role of psychological process associated with their health. The lab explores the power and impact of mindset theory which explores the influence of individuals’ beliefs, attitudes, and assumptions on their health outcomes. By integrating this theory into practical applications and interventions, the Pediatric Health Mindset Lab seeks to improve health outcomes.
Research Director
Dr. Claudia Mueller
Dr. Claudia Mueller earned her Ph.D. in Social/Personality Psychology from Columbia University where she worked closely with Professor Carole Dweck in developing the health mindset scale and conducting mindset research in pediatric populations. From her work with Professor Dweck, she has brought her knowledge to Stanford in hoping to better understand how children and parents think about health. In addition, how a child’s mindset of health can influence their management of their illness and the outcome. With her work in children’s health mindsets, she hopes to develop interventions which would change children’s health beliefs and their health outcomes. Dr. Mueller has applied the health mindset scale to various studies, one of which focusing on adolescents with Type 1 diabetes. Dr. Mueller is also interested in physician wellness and gender equity and is the Co-Director of the Pediatric Colorectal Surgery Clinic. Her clinical interests include general pediatric and neonatal surgery.
Mission Statement
The Pediatric Health Mindset Lab aims to understand individuals’ mindsets of health—growth and fixed—to better help children and families cope with disease.
Goals
- The main objectives of the Pediatric Health Mindset Lab are to:
- Study the role of mindset in pediatric medical and surgical diseases.
- Develop interventions focused on mindset to help children cope with disease.
- Develop support mechanisms for children and families within the healthcare system.
Research Team
Elena Harnish
Elena is currently a clinical research coordinator in the Division of Pediatric Surgery at Stanford and joined the Pediatric Health Mindset Lab in September of 2023. She obtained her master’s in clinical psychology from Towson University and her research interests focus on psychological adaptation to chronic illness among pediatric populations. In her free time, she enjoys reading, exploring new cities, and spending time outside.
Current Projects
Questions about your diagnosis and what comes next? Children's books are a great resource to learn and get acquainted with your diagnosis and prepare for your hospital visit. The Strength of My Scars books are written and illustrated by Maria Baimas-George, MD, MPH to help children and their families through their hospital experience.
Colorectal Experience
The purpose of this study is to assess families in how they utilize bowel
management tools provided by the colorectal clinic, and the empowerment they feel in their treatment and execution of care. Additionally, this study aims to gauge health mindsets (fixed versus growth) in parents of children with diseases that affect bowel management. The ultimate goal of this line of inquiry is to assist healthcare practitioners in creating better bowel management tools and procedures that allow families and children who deal with colorectal diseases to feel empowered in their medical care.
The Role of Health Mindset in Pediatric Bariatric Surgery
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the role of health mindsets among pediatric patients who meet criteria for severe obesity and are undergoing bariatric surgery. Past research has shown that health mindsets may influence perioperative experiences. The ultimate goal of this line of inquiry is to assist healthcare practitioners in influencing health beliefs among this population that will promote adaptive health goals and behaviors.
Association of Patient Empowerment and Anxiety in Pregnancy with a
Surgical Anomaly
Currently, the role of patient empowerment has not been evaluated in the setting of a recently diagnosed fetal anomaly. Additionally, possible disparities in patient empowerment across language and racial differences has not been explored. Therefore, we plan to use previously validated patient and pregnancy empowerment and anxiety scales to quantify empowerment and anxiety at different levels of care following an initial fetal anomaly diagnosis. We hope in doing this we learn more about the role of empowerment and anxiety in pregnant women and the impact it has with their pregnancies.