Social networking of families of children with disability

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the difference in establishing contacts of families with social environment of families in relation to the presence of a child with a disability in the family, as well as determining the existence of the connection between families' characteristics and levels of social contacts. The survey was conducted on a sample of 74 parents of children aged 3 to 8 years (M = 5.02). The sample was divided into two sub-samples. The first sample consisted of parents who had a child with disabilities (N = 32; 43.24%), and the second consisted of parents of children with typical development (42; 56.76%). For the assessment the social networking of the families the Personal Network Matrix (PNM, Dunst, Trivette, & Deal, 1988) was used. The obtained results show that parents of children with disabilities significantly differ from the parents of children with typical development regarding total realization of social contacts with their environment, as well as that parents of children with typical development achieve significantly more social contacts with their parents, other relatives and friends. On the other hand, parents of children with disabilities intensively engage in contact with community of health centers, social services and other agencies and institutions. The higher level of income of the parent positively correlate with frequent social contacts of families who have children with typical development. Divorces, single parenthood and extramarital relations, negatively correlate to the achievement of social contacts in the sub-sample of families with children with disabilities.