Health and Life Satisfaction Among Parents of Children with Physical Disabilities
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Health and Life Satisfaction Among Parents of Children with Physical Disabilities Carolyn M. Shivers 1
& Jessica
Resor 1
# Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2019
Abstract The current study examined patterns of self-reported health and life satisfaction among parents of children with and without physical disabilities. Although research has shown that parents of children with disabilities face numerous challenges, no studies to date have exclusively focused on samples comprised entirely of families at risk for poverty and dissolution. The present study examines potential impacts of child disability on parent well-being above and beyond economic and social factors. The current study used data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study. Statistical analyses compared self-reported physical health and life satisfaction between parents of children with and without disabilities, controlling for numerous demographic and financial factors. The resulting sample was families of 4324 children, including 115 children with physical disabilities. Although parents of children with disabilities reported lower levels of health and life satisfaction over time, these differences did not exist for mothers when controlling for demographic and financial factors. However, child disability still significantly predicted fathers’ health beyond measures of poverty, education, and race. Even among at-risk populations, the presence of a child disability can have an impact on parents’ health and well-being. Parents of children with disabilities at risk for poverty and dissolution likely need additional, specialized supports and services to promote family health. Keywords Physical disabilities . Longitudinal . Fragile families . Poverty . Health . Well-
being
* Carolyn M. Shivers [email protected]
1
Department of Human Development and Family Science, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities
Introduction Child rearing is a rewarding yet difficult task for families. For parents, raising children is generally a source of happiness in their life (Angeles 2010). However, stressors like having a child with a disability or having a low socioeconomic status may impact parents’ life satisfaction. Work and caring for children can take a toll on parents’ health (cite?). Lower income families and those with a child with a disability are often deemed at-risk (Reichman et al. 2001) and may experience an increased risk because of the double identity (Fujiura and Yamaki 2000; Lustig and Strauser 2007). Still, for parents in these families, the impact on their life satisfaction and health is not well understood. Understanding these relationships is necessary to support and provide appropriate interventions for low-income families with a child with a disability. Because of the ambiguity in defining disability, prevalence is difficult to capture (Reichman et al. 2007). In the United States, prevalence rates range from five percent to 17%, based on definition and sample (
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