Gender Differences in the Psychological Adjustment of Parents of Young, Developmentally Disabled Children

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Abstract
Psychological distress, as expressed through symptoms of depression, was studied in a cross‐sectional sample of parents providing homecare to developmentally disabled children. Mothers and fathers were interviewed separately in 73 households. The intent of the study was to explore predictors of symptoms of depression to better understand what child, family and life circumstances might be differentially related to psychological stress in the cohorts of men and women. Hierarchical regression analyses showed similar levels of variance explained in depression of mothers (42%) and fathers (40%). Mothers with younger children, and fathers with male children, appeared to be at higher risk for depression. Personal or intra‐psychic coping resources (self esteem), and strong‐tie social support resources (spousal relationship) were found to be significant predictors of depression in both mothers and fathers. Informal respite resources were related to mothers’ well‐being.