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[The psychodynamics in families with a handicapped child]
1Institut f. Psychologie, Univ. Erlangen-Nürnberg.
Praxis Der Kinderpsychologie Und Kinderpsychiatrie
|September 1, 1991
Insights
Parents
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Pediatrics
- Sociology
Background:
- Parental responses to having a child with a disability.
- Impact on future reproductive decisions.
Observation:
- Analysis of objective data on parental desires for subsequent children.
- Exploration of irrational parental reactions, including guilt, anxiety, and aggression.
Findings:
- Objective data reveals the impact of a handicapped child's birth on parental decisions about having more children.
- Irrational reactions like guilt, anxiety, and aggression are common.
- Adolescent issues and psychotherapeutic interventions are relevant.
Implications:
- Understanding parental psychological responses is crucial for support.
- Psychotherapeutic interventions can aid families coping with disabilities.
- Community support centers play a role in family counseling.
Abstract:
Parental reactions to the birth of a handicapped child are reported. The effect on the wish to give birth to further children after a handicapped child has been born is described on the basis of objective data. Thereafter irrational reactions to the birth of a handicapped child are discussed. Topics as feelings of guilt, anxiety, aggression, problems of adolescence and possibilities of psychotherapeutic aid are mentioned. Finally a case study from a Community Youth- and Family Counseling Center is given.