Examing [sic] the coping strategies of parents who have children with disabilities

Abstract

Parenting is one of the most challenging jobs an individual will ever face. Raising children can be stressful at times, but also very rewarding. Becoming the parent of a child who has a disability is a time of great stress and change (Thompson, 2000). Parents who have children with disabilities report higher amounts of physical, emotional, psychological, and financial demands; however the extent of stress depends upon a number of variables that were first introduced in family stress theory and identified in Hill’s ABCX family crisis model (Hill, 1949). A family’s perception of having a child with a disability, the characteristics of the family, the family’s internal and external resources, and the child’s characteristics are all examples of factors that influence the amount of stress a family experiences. Coping is the family’s attempt to manage or deal with the stressful situation. It is important that families learn how to deal with their stress effectively in order to avoid negative psychological, emotional, and physical consequences. The purpose of this study was to identify the coping strategies utilized by parents who have children with disabilities. This study surveyed 89 parents who have children currently receiving services from Cerebral Palsy, Inc.’s Birth to Three Program. The F-COPES scale (McCubbin, Olsen, & Larsen, 1981) was used to assess parental coping attitudes and behaviors that are developed in response to problematic situations. An additional open-ended question was added addressing what has been the most helpful strategy for parents adjusting to their child’s disability. An analysis of the data was conducted to determine if demographic variables had any significant relationships to coping strategies used by the parents in the study. Descriptive statistics were also used to analyze the data. Results indicated that the most helpful strategies reported by parents were social support (M = 31) and reframing (M = 31). The majority of respondents were female and married; therefore, the researcher was unable to report significance regarding these two variables. Statistical significance was found between passive appraisal and the number of children in the household. There was also a positive relationship between annual income and the strategies of seeking spiritual support and reframing. Implications were made for professions working with families who have children with disabilities. Recommendations for future research included sampling a more diverse population and gathering a larger sample of participants from other agencies who provide early intervention services to children and their families; the use of interviews and longitudinal studies examining parental stress and coping behaviors throughout the family life cycle were also recommended.