he Relationship between Family Social Support and Self-efficacy of Mothers of Children with Intellectual Disabilities

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

10.34172/JHAD.92388

Abstract

Background: Self-efficacy can play a role not only in a person›s feelings towards herself but also in achieving goals. This concept, which makes up the central core of Bandura›s social cognitive theory, emphasizes the role of observational learning and social experience in creating individuals’ personalities. Accordingly, the present study aimed to examine the relationship between family social support and self-efficacy of mothers of children with intellectual disabilities.
Methods: The participants in this cross-sectional study were selected through convenience sampling. The research sample consisted of 55 mothers of children with intellectual disabilities studying in primary schools for exceptional children (aged 7 to 12) in Tehran, Iran. Data were collected using the Family Social Support Questionnaire and the General Self-Efficacy Scale. The normality of the data distribution was checked using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. The correlation between the variables was assessed through the Pearson’s correlation test with SPSS version 25 software.
Results: The data showed a significant positive correlation (r = 0.624) between family social support (with a mean score of 242.53) and the self-efficacy of mothers of students with intellectual disabilities (with a mean score of 48.51) (P < 0.001). There were also significant relationships between different support dimensions (emotional, informational, instrumental, and seeking support) and self-efficacy (P < 0.001), and the correlation coefficients for them were 0.515, 0.427, 0.753, and 767, respectively. Seeking support and instrumental support had a higher correlation with self-efficacy.
Conclusion: The findings confirmed social support and all its components (emotional support, informational support, instrumental support, and seeking support) had a direct and positive relationship with the self-efficacy of mothers with intellectually disabled children. Educational and clinical planners and experts can plan effective interventions to gain awareness of and access to social family support and promote self-efficacy and mental health in mothers of children with intellectual disabilities.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

  1. Nolte SR. The Importance of Addressing Stress in Parents of Hearing-Impaired Children [dissertation]. Program in Audiology and Communication Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine; 2011.
  2. Luijkx J, van der Putten AAJ, Vlaskamp C. Time use of parents raising children with severe or profound intellectual and multiple disabilities. Child Care Health Dev. 2017;43(4):518-26. doi: 1111/cch.12446.
  3. Dong Y, Xu L, Wu S, Qin W, Hu F, Li M, et al. The mediating effect of perceived social support on mental health and life satisfaction among residents: a cross-sectional analysis of 8500 subjects in Taian city, China. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022;19(22):14756. doi: 3390/ijerph192214756.
  4. Afrooz Q, Taghizadeh H. Comparison of perceived social support and mental health of mothers of children with and without hearing-impairment. J Except Educ. 2014;2(124):7-17.
  5. Ohashi A, Higuchi M, Labeeb SA, Mohamed AG, Chiang C, Aoyama A. Family support for women’s health-seeking behavior: a qualitative study in rural southern Egypt (Upper Egypt). Nagoya J Med Sci. 2014;76(1-2):17-25.
  6. Rousta N, Jahangir P. Predicting family functioning based on social support among married women resorting to health houses of district 1 of Tehran. Int J Biol Pharm Allied Sci. 2016;5(7):1729-42.
  7. Yang Y, Zhang Y, Xiang A. Information interaction and social support: exploring help-seeking in online communities during public health emergencies. BMC Public Health. 2023;23(1):1250. doi: 1186/s12889-023-16151-3.
  8. Wang J, Mann F, Lloyd-Evans B, Ma R, Johnson S. Associations between loneliness and perceived social support and outcomes of mental health problems: a systematic review. BMC Psychiatry. 2018;18(1):156. doi: 1186/s12888-018-1736-5.
  9. Alloway R, Bebbington P. The buffer theory of social support--a review of the literature. Psychol Med. 1987;17(1):91-108. doi: 1017/s0033291700013015.
  10. Li S, Xu Q. Family support as a protective factor for attitudes toward social distancing and in preserving positive mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. J Health Psychol. 2022;27(4):858-67. doi: 1177/1359105320971697.
  11. Meadan H, Halle JW, Ebata AT. Families with children who have autism spectrum disorders: stress and support. Except Child. 2010;77(1):7-36. doi: 1177/001440291007700101.
  12. DeLongis A, Holtzman S. Coping in context: the role of stress, social support, and personality in coping. J Pers. 2005;73(6):1633-56. doi: 1111/j.1467-6494.2005.00361.x.
  13. Siklos S, Kerns KA. Assessing need for social support in parents of children with autism and Down syndrome. J Autism Dev Disord. 2006;36(7):921-33. doi: 1007/s10803-006-0129-7.
  14. Acoba EF. Social support and mental health: the mediating role of perceived stress. Front Psychol. 2024;15:1330720. doi: 3389/fpsyg.2024.1330720.
  15. Landman-Peeters KM, Hartman CA, van der Pompe G, den Boer JA, Minderaa RB, Ormel J. Gender differences in the relation between social support, problems in parent-offspring communication, and depression and anxiety. Soc Sci Med. 2005;60(11):2549-59. doi: 1016/j.socscimed.2004.10.024.
  16. Poon BT, Zaidman-Zait A. Social support for parents of deaf children: moving toward contextualized understanding. J Deaf Stud Deaf Educ. 2014;19(2):176-88. doi: 1093/deafed/ent041.
  17. Mäntymaa M. Early Mother-Infant Interaction: Determinants and Predictivity [dissertation]. Tampere University Press; 2006 .
  18. Berjis M, Hakim Javadi M, Taher M, Gholamali Lavasani M, Hossein Khanzadeh AA. A comparison of the amount of worry, hope and meaning of life in the mothers of deaf children, children with autism, and children with learning disability. J Learn Disabil. 2013;3(1):6-27. [Persian].
  19. van Bysterveldt AK, Westerveld MF, Gillon G, Foster-Cohen S. Personal narrative skills of school-aged children with Down syndrome. Int J Lang Commun Disord. 2012;47(1):95-105. doi: 1111/j.1460-6984.2011.00085.x.
  20. Preiß J, Lang A, Hauser T, Angerer M, Schernhardt P, Schabus M. Maternal characteristics and their relation to early mother-child interaction and cognitive development in toddlers. PLoS ONE. 2025; 20(1): e0301876. doi:1371/journal.pone.0301876.
  21. Hallahan DP, Kauffman JM, Pullen PC. Exceptional Learners: An Introduction to Special Education. 15th ed. Boston: Allyn & Bacon; 2014.
  22. Sarason IG. Test anxiety, stress, and social support. J Pers. 1981;49(1):101-14. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-6494.1981.tb00849.x.
  23. Schulz U, Schwarzer R. [Social Support in coping with illness: the Berlin Social Support Scales (BSSS)]. Diagnostica. 2003;49(2):73-82. doi: 1026/0012-1924.49.2.73.
  24. Aymanns P. Der fragebogen zar erfassang der perzipierten familiaten unterstaetzang and kommanikation (PFUK). Trier universitat Trier Fachbereich Psycllologie. 1991;32:263-9.
  25. Khodapanahi MK, Asghari A, Saleh Sedghpoor B, Katibaei J. Preparing and investigating the reliability and validation of the family social support questionnaire (FSSQ). J Fam Res. 2009;5(20):423-39. [Persian].
  26. Rajabi GH, Chahardolie H, Attari Y. The relationship of family family functions and psycho-social atmosphere of the classroom with maladjustment among the high school female and male students in Malayer. J Educ Psychol. 2007;14(1-2):113-28. [Persian].
  27. Jalali Farahani M. Management of Leisure Time and Recreational Sports. Institute of Publishing and Printing, University of Tehran; 2018.
  28. Suzuki S, Holloway SD, Yamamoto Y, Mindnich JD. Parenting self-efficacy and social support in japan and the United States. J Fam Issues. 2009;30(11):1505-26. doi: 1177/0192513x09336830.
  29. Gao LL, Sun K, Chan SW. Social support and parenting self-efficacy among Chinese women in the perinatal period. Midwifery. 2014;30(5):532-8. doi: 1016/j.midw.2013.06.007.
  30. Ahmadi Z, Ashrafi F, Seyed Fatemi N, Haghani H. Relationship between social support with self-efficacy and blues maternity amonug nulliparous mothers with premature infants admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit. J Pediatr Nurs. 2018;4(4):74-80. [Persian].
  31. Kakabaraei K, Arjmandnia AA, Afrooz GA. Comparison of perceived social support in parents with more than one exceptional children and parents with more than one normal children. Social Psychology Research Quarterly. 2012;2(8):1-10. [Persian].
  32. Sevigny PR, Loutzenhiser L. Predictors of parenting self-efficacy in mothers and fathers of toddlers. Child Care Health Dev. 2010;36(2):179-89. doi: 1111/j.1365-2214.2009.00980.x.
  33. Bornstein MH, Haynes OM, Azuma H, Galperín C, Maital S, Ogino M, et al. A cross-national study of self-evaluations and attributions in parenting: Argentina, Belgium, France, Israel, Italy, Japan, and the United States. Dev Psychol. 1998;34(4):662-76. doi: 1037//0012-1649.34.4.662.
  34. Cochran M, Niego S. Parenting and social networks. In: Bornstein MH, ed. Handbook of Parenting (Volume 3): Status and Social Conditions of Parenting. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum; 1995. p. 393-418.
  35. Hendry J. Marriage in Changing Japan: Community and Society. New York: St. Martin’s; 1981.
  36. Jolivet M. Japan, the Childless Society? The Crisis of Motherhood. London: Routledge; 1997.
  37. Park M, Chesla C. Revisiting Confucianism as a conceptual framework for Asian family study. J Fam Nurs. 2007;13(3):293-311. doi: 1177/1074840707304400.
  38. Lee DT, Ngai IS, Ng MM, Lok IH, Yip AS, Chung TK. Antenatal taboos among Chinese women in Hong Kong. Midwifery. 2009;25(2):104-13. doi: 1016/j.midw.2007.01.008.
  39. Mojaver SH, Rostami S, Jabbari S. The relationship between social support and parents self-efficacy in mothers of students with mental disability. Third International Conference on Recent innovations in Psychology, Counseling and Behavioral Sciences, Tehran. Available from: https://civilica.com/doc/612843/.
  40. Morelli SA, Lee IA, Arnn ME, Zaki J. Emotional and instrumental support provision interact to predict well-being. Emotion. 2015;15(4):484-93. doi: 1037/emo0000084.
  41. Bandy T, Andrews KM, Moore KA. Disadvantaged Families and Child Outcomes: The Importance of Emotional Support for Mothers. Child Trends; 2012. p. 1-9.
  42. Mofokeng M, van der Wath AE. Challenges experienced by parents living with a child with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. J Child Adolesc Ment Health. 2017;29(2):137-45. doi: 2989/17280583.2017.1364253.
  43. Williams NJ, Harries M, Williams AM. Gaining control: a new perspective on the parenting of children with AD/HD. Qual Res Psychol. 2014;11(3):277-97. doi: 1080/14780887.2014.902524.
  44. Peterson MS, Lawman HG, Wilson DK, Fairchild A, Van Horn ML. The association of self-efficacy and parent social support on physical activity in male and female adolescents. Health Psychol. 2013;32(6):666-74. doi: 1037/a0029129.
  45. Friedman MM, King KB. The relationship of emotional and tangible support to psychological well-being among older women with heart failure. Res Nurs Health. 1994;17(6):433-40. doi: 1002/nur.4770170606.
  46. Li MH, Eschenauer R, Persaud V. Between avoidance and problem solving: resilience, self-efficacy, and social support seeking. J Couns Dev. 2018;96(2):132-43. doi: 1002/jcad.12187.
  47. Wu BQ, Afzaal M, Ghaffar A, Naqvi SB. A comparative study of cultural values in Chinese and American parenting reflected in The Joy Luck Club. Int J Engl Linguist. 2020;10(2):244-54. doi: 5539/ijel.v10n2p244.
  48. Jasseer J, Priyanka SJ. Social support in relation to self-efficacy and loneliness among mothers of children with special needs. Int J Creat Res Thoughts. 2018;6(2):428-34.
  49. Yoosefi Lebni J, Ziapour A, Khosravi B, Rahimi Khalifeh Kandi Z. Lived experience of mothers of children with disabilities: a qualitative study of Iran. Z Gesundh Wiss. 2021;29(5):1173-9. doi: 1007/s10389-020-01215-0.
Health and Development Journal
Volume 13, Issue 3
September 2024
Pages 110-117

Files

History

  • Receive Date: 06 July 2024
  • Revise Date: 09 August 2024
  • Accept Date: 13 August 2024

Share

How to cite

Statistics