2016 Gatlinburg Conference Poster
PS-16
Title: Parental Well-Being in Families with Multiple Children with Delays
Authors: Kenya T. Makhiawala, Jillian Tuso, Laura Lee McIntyre
Introduction: It has been well established that parents of children with developmental delays and disabilities (DD) report
significantly more psychological distress compared to parents of typically developing children (Baker, Blacher, Crnic, & EdelBrock,
2002; Estes et al., 2009). Children with DD are at heightened risk for developing behavior problems (Dosen & Day, 2001; Einfeld
& Tonge, 1996). Parenting stress and poor mental health outcomes may be exacerbated by child challenging behavior
(Lecavalier, Leone, & Wiltz, 2005). Little is known about parent well-being in families with multiple children with disabilities or
problem behavior. The purpose of this study was to examine if sibling problem behavior or delay status predicted parenting
stress above the contributions of other child and family factors.
Methods: A sample of 41 families was recruited from a larger, ongoing randomized control trial examining the efficacy of a
parent training intervention (McIntyre, PI). All families had a preschool-aged target child with DD and a sibling between 3 - 8
years. Data were collected through extensive in-home interviews and assessments of family demographics, target child and
sibling problem behavior (CBCL; Achenbach & Rescorla, 2012), target child adaptive behavior (VABS-II; Sparrow & Cicchetti,
2005), parenting stress (PSI-3; Abidin, 1995), and caregiver depression (CES-D; Radloff, 1977).
Results: All target children had a developmental delay and over 40% of siblings (n = 17) were reported by parents to have a
developmental delay (primarily speech/language delays). On average, target children were reported to have slightly elevated
problem behavior (CBCL T score M = 61.95, SD = 12.55), while siblings' problem behaviors were reported to be average (CBCL T
score M = 51.70, SD = 13.99). Although sibling delay status and problem behavior were significantly associated with parenting
stress, sibling variables did not account for unique variance in parenting stress after accounting for problem behavior of the
target child with DD.
Discussion: Prior research has explored parental mental health and well-being within the context of parenting a single child with
a delay; however, very little research has attempted to unpack the relationships between a target child with DD, their sibling,
and parent/family outcomes. Our results suggest that the problem behavior of the child with DD continues to be a strong
predictor of parenting stress further highlighting the need for interventions. A family-systems perspective also warrants
consideration of the relationships among family members and the dynamic interplay among family members. More research is
needed to understand the impact of siblings on parent well-being.
References/Citations:
• Baker, B. L., Blacher, J., Crnic, K. A., & EdelBrock, C. (2002). Behavior problems and parenting stress in families of threeyear-old children with and without developmental delays. American Journal on Mental Retardation, 107(6), 433- 444.
• Einfeld, S. L. & Tonge, J. (1996). Population prevalence of psychopathology in children and adolescents with intellectual
disability: II. Epidemiological findings. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 40(2), 99-109.
• Estes, A., Munson, J., Dawson, G., Koehler, E., Zhou, X., & Abbott, R. (2009). Parenting stress and psychological
functioning among mothers of preschool children with autism and developmental delay. Autism 13(4), 375-387.
Supported by NIH grants R01HD059838 and R01HD059838-03S1 (McIntyre, PI).