IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/etc/journl/y2023i28p59-74.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

When motherhood is not enough. Challenges of children with disabilities’ personal assistants

Author

Listed:
  • Atalia Oni?iu
  • Diana Stere

Abstract

The present research aims to investigate the perception of the parent - personal assistant on his/her profession, but also on his/her personal life, with the aim of identifying the challenges, but also the opportunities that this status brings in the lives of the parents. Starting from the purpose of our research, two objectives were pursued, namely to identify the challenges and opportunities of the personal assistant position and to analyze the parents’ perception regarding the decision to become a personal assistant. The study was designed as a qualitative research approach, the interview method was considered the most appropriate to serve the research objectives. The research took place in a day center that offers recovery services to children with disabilities in Timi?oara (Romania), the subjects of our research being exclusively mothers. The research revealed that the decision to become a personal assistant for the child with disabilities is dictated by the affection for the child and the sense of duty towards him as a parent, despite the financial well-being previously ensured by a well-paid job. What impacts the respondents’ lives is not the new job, but the confrontation with the child’s disability. If in some cases the disability was accepted relatively easily, the parents offering each other support, the level of cohesion increasing and benefiting of help from the extended family, we also identified a situation where the family fell apart. The only need claimed by the parents is that of counselling, the respondents complainings were on the difficulties they have to manage with regard to stress, fatigue and lack of free time.

Suggested Citation

  • Atalia Oni?iu & Diana Stere, 2023. "When motherhood is not enough. Challenges of children with disabilities’ personal assistants," Academicus International Scientific Journal, Entrepreneurship Training Center Albania, issue 28, pages 59-74, July.
  • Handle: RePEc:etc:journl:y:2023:i:28:p:59-74
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://academicus.edu.al/nr28/Academicus-MMXXIII-28-059-074.pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://academicus.edu.al/nr28/Academicus-MMXXIII-28-059-074.html
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Narbis Ballhysa & Marita Flagler, 2011. "A Teachers� Perspective of Inclusive Education for Students With Special Needs in a Model Demonstration Project," Academicus International Scientific Journal, Entrepreneurship Training Center Albania, issue 3, pages 121-133, January.
    2. Fina Ferrer & Rosa Vilaseca & Joan Guàrdia Olmos, 2017. "Positive perceptions and perceived control in families with children with intellectual disabilities: relationship to family quality of life," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 51(2), pages 903-918, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Andrew J. Schatkin, 2021. "Has the USA Educational�System Failed? Why it Has Failed and What can be Done," Academicus International Scientific Journal, Entrepreneurship Training Center Albania, issue 23, pages 137-141, January.
    2. Marianna Coppola & Senatore Immacolata & Giuseppe Masullo, 2020. "Parents in Pandemic: parents� perceptions of risks and psychological, relational, and pedagogical needs in childhood during the COVID-19 emergency in Italy," Academicus International Scientific Journal, Entrepreneurship Training Center Albania, issue 22, pages 103-122, July.
    3. Lilian Zindoga & Peter JO Aloka, 2024. "Effectiveness of Mnemonic Instruction in Enhancing of Reading Ability Among Grade Three Learners with Dyslexia in Two Primary Schools in South Africa," Academicus International Scientific Journal, Entrepreneurship Training Center Albania, issue 29, pages 157-173, January.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:etc:journl:y:2023:i:28:p:59-74. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Gabor Vasmatics (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/etctial.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.