Social support networks and psychological well-being of mothers with intellectual disabilities

Background The study aims to investigate the impact of social support networks of mothers with intellectual disabilities (N=15) on their psychological well-being and their views of parenting. Methods As part of a semi-structured interview, mothers were asked about who helped them in their parenting role and how recent and how helpful this support had been. Adapted psychological questionnaires were presented which measured affect, assertiveness and self-esteem. Mothers were also asked about the benefits, burdens and future expectations of parenthood. It was hypothesized that the larger, more recent and more helpful the support network was reported to be, the better the psychological well-being and the more positive the views on parenthood. Data analysis included quantitative and qualitative methods. Results Significant associations were found between the number of reported social contacts and positive affect, the recency of reported social contacts and self-esteem, and the lack of self-esteem and reported burdens of parenting. The average number of social contacts reported was 6.8 persons, with only half of these being described as very helpful. Very few non-family members were part of the support networks. Qualitative analysis of mothers' comments revealed a number of themes regarding helpful and unhelpful support. Conclusions These findings confirm the strong associations between supportive social networks, psychological well-being and positive parenting experiences. The results are discussed with reference to previous research, service issues and future research directions.