A Needs Assessment of Caregiving Parents to Children with Substantial Disabilities
Parents who have a child with substantial disabilities have two distinct roles, parent and caregiver. This study sought to understand how parental and caregiver roles require distinct skills, attitudes, and behaviors that are affected by the concept of parental ambiguous loss. Using boundary ambiguity as a predictor of ambiguous loss, this study quantitatively explored levels of ambiguous loss experienced by caregiver parents. Results showed that ambiguous loss, as exhibited through boundary ambiguity positively correlated with levels of depression, and anxiety, but was negatively correlated with levels of parental efficacy, parental satisfaction and familial/friend social support. The results of this needs assessment provided a quantitative gauge of boundary ambiguity among caregiver parents that currently did not exist. Based on these results, a pilot intervention was developed to improve individual and family resilience The results of this needs assessment will potentially inform the larger systems that attempt to provide timely support and auxiliary resources to caregiver parents.
Counseling, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Children with Disabilities - Family Relationships; Parents of Children with Disabilities; Disabled Children - Psychology; Parent-Child Relations; Caregivers - Psychology; Needs Assessment, Caregiver Roles; Boundary Ambiguity; Ambiguous Loss; Parental Efficacy; Parental Satisfaction
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