Parenting is regarded as the most amazing experience a person can have, and it is true to say that parents are essential in assisting children in growing and developing to the fullest extent possible. However, the most beautiful phase may become challenging if the child deviates from normalcy. Speaking of children with disabilities, parents of…

Autism-Assistance Dogs (AADs) are highly-skilled service animals trained primarily to ensure the safety of an autistic child by preventing elopement and mitigating 'meltdowns'. Although anecdotal accounts and case-studies have indicated that AADs confer benefits above and beyond safety, empirical support anchored in validated clinical, behavioral,…

Background: Siblings of children with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) may be at elevated risk for poor psychological adjustment (Mazaheri, M. M., Rae-Seebach, R. D., Preston, H. E., Schmidt, M., Kountz-Edwards, S., Field, N., Cassidy, S., Packman, Wet al. (2013). The impact of Prader-Willi syndrome on the family's quality of life and caregiving, and…

This study aimed to explore parents' perceptions regarding the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on their children, with and without disabilities, from psychological, academic and social aspects. The study sample comprised 310 parents of children in Saudi Arabia both with and without disabilities. A questionnaire was prepared for the purpose of…

A child's disability affects not only that child but also their caregivers. This study compares the quality of life (QoL) of Saudi mothers (primary caregivers) of children with Cerebral Palsy (CP) and Down Syndrome (DS) and mothers whose children do not have a disability, and explores its relationship with socioeconomic status. Two hundred mothers…

The public dimension of the body became paramount in the first half of the 20th century, when the image of the modern man, with his virile stereotypes, became a cliché, in strict connection with nation building first and totalitarian ideologies later. Yet, different cultural and educational trends advocated for life reform and liberation of the…

The impact of trauma among young children is gaining attention. About one in four children experience potentially traumatic events before their third birthday. The rate of trauma among children with disabilities is unclear; however, evidence suggests that the rate of abuse and neglect is higher for individuals with disabilities than for those…

To investigate how having a child without a disability is related to maternal mental health and its predictors, we compared mothers of a single child with intellectual disabilities (single-child group, n = 117) and mothers of children with and without intellectual disabilities (multiple-children group, n = 457), in Japan. Compared to the…

The mental health impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on PK-12 youth is likely an urgent and enduring concern, yet research on this topic is still emerging. To synthesize current knowledge, the researchers conducted a systematic review of empirical studies exploring the mental health impacts of COVID-19. Five themes emerged…

In the United States 40% of all traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are in children under the age 14. This means a portion of the school age population is exposed to head injury every year. The effect this injury and experience can have on a child varies, but it is important for educators, counselors, and family to understand the psychosocial…

With the rapid increase in the rate of children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), there has been a surge in treatment interventions and outcome measures. Treatment interventions consist of evidence-based practices and programs that lack scientific validation. Parents' selection of a treatment or multiple treatments is often based on…

The authors were invited to teach clinical social work in the Palestinian West Bank. In order to teach, we designed a study exploring how 65 Palestinian social work students described the psychological and social effects of working under occupation. Students described social stressors of poverty, unemployment, lack of infrastructure, violence,…

Parental grief reactions have typically been examined in situations where parents have a child diagnosed with a major medical or mental health condition. This study used the grief and loss model as conceptualized by Kubler-Ross (1969), Lamb (1988), and Kubler-Ross and Kessler (2005) as a foundation in examining parental reactions when a child has…

The aim of this study was to conduct a preliminary analysis of relations between child and environmental variables, including factors related to communication aid provision, and participation in informal everyday activities in a sample of children with complex communication needs. Ninety-seven caregivers of children provided with communication…

Maternal ratings of explosiveness, opposition, and aggression were analyzed in 1609 children 6-16 years of age. Behavior problems were common in autism, ADHD-Combined type, and depression, whereas children with ADHD-Inattentive type, anxiety disorder, and acquired brain injury did not differ from typical controls. More than 40% of children with…