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Support Systems for Parents of Children With Special Needs
Objectives
To address common issues expressed by parents of children with special needs
To provide an overview of the current study
To increase the public awareness of the issues and needs of such parents
Common Concerns/Issues Expressed by the Parents
The goal of Study
To investigate the types of services used by parents of children with special needs residing in the state of Michigan and their effectiveness for reducing the parents’ stress levels as well as increasing their coping skills
Research Questions
What are the types of services used by the parents?
How effective are the services in reducing stress of the parents?
How effective are the services in increasing their coping skills?
What are some needs of such parents which may be met by counseling services?
Mixed Method
Survey
Participants recruited through listservs, contact with local organizations, and word of mouth
Online, through www.surveymonkey.com
Paper, for the Counseling & Speech Therapy Clinic on campus
Total of 64 participants
Focus group/interview
Recruited among the survey participants
Participant Demographics
98.4% (60 out of 61) were female
93.3% (56 out of 60) were Caucasian
51.7% (31 out of 60) were between age 31
and 40
83.6% (51 out of 61) were married
88.3% (53 out of 60) had one child with special needs
47.7% (26 out of 55) rated the severity of the child’s disability as moderate
Overview of Survey Results
“How would you rate your level of stress?”
“What would be the ratio of each factor that might be contributing to your stress level?”
“Have you sought professional services in dealing with your stress of raising a child(ren) with special needs?”
Most frequently cited reason for not seeking such services: “Unable to find services that seemed helpful for my needs” (25.6%; 10 out of 39)
Most Frequently Used Services
Effectiveness of Services
Effectiveness of Services
“What have you gained from receiving the service(s)?”
“How likely are you to seek an additional service(s) in the future?”
“If you were to receive an additional service(s), what would be the most likely format?”
Limitations
Very few male participants?
Confusion with some terminology
Distinction among various services was vague
Accessibility to Internet
Limited to Michigan participants
Implications for Counseling Services
Primary format – group (low-cost, mutual support)
Sessions divided into two parts: psychoeducation and support group
Individual or family counseling as a follow-up service
How they meet should be flexible (face-to- face, home visit, email, by phone etc.)
References
Ergüner-Tekinalp, B., & Akkök, F. (2004). The effects of a coping skills training program on the coping skills, hopelessness, and stress levels of mothers of children with autism. International Journal for the Advancement of Counselling, 26, 257-269.
Gettinger, M., & Guetschow, K. W. (1998). Parent and parent/child groups for young children with disabilities. In Stoiber, K. C. & Kratochwill, T. R. (Eds.), Handbook of Group Intervention for Children and Families. (pp. 345- 360). Needham Heights: Allyn & Bacon.
Goddard, J. A., Lehr, R., & Lapadat, J. C. (2000). Parents of children with disabilities: Telling a different story. Canadian Journal of Counselling, 34, 273-289.
Heiman, T. (2002). Parents of children with disabilities: Resilience, coping, and future expectations. Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities, 14, 159-171.
Contact Information
Chiharu Hensley, MT-BC
Email: [email protected]
Bio
Hensley, Chiharu, is a Master’s counseling student at Eastern Michigan University. Her research interest in parents of children with special needs has come from her experience of working with individuals with special needs as a board-certified music therapist (MT-BC). Her goal as a professional counselor is to integrate music therapy into counseling.