Background: For many people with intellectual disabilities, the parenting role is inaccessible and/or constrained. This study provides insight into the lived experiences of parents with intellectual disabilities regarding violence and limiting their rights to parenthood in Poland. Method: Twenty-seven parents with intellectual disabilities who…

Qualitative studies of autistic people's pregnancy experiences have indicated sensory and communication related barriers to accessing adequate prenatal healthcare. However, quantitative work on the topic is scarce. This online survey study explored pregnancy experiences among 417 autistic and 524 non-autistic people. Compared with non-autistic…

Research has found 96% of autistic individuals experience sensory processing difficulties, and being a parent presents many sensory demands that may be especially challenging for autistic mothers. Despite the high prevalence, no research exists exploring the sensory experiences of autistic mothers, highlighting the gap in current knowledge.…

Little is known about the parenting experiences of autistic mothers, yet there is reason to believe that autistic mothers of non-autistic daughters have a unique set of experiences, especially during their daughters' adolescence. Seven autistic mothers of adolescent (n = 5) and adult (n = 2) non-autistic daughters were interviewed about their…

Background: Mothers with learning disabilities are at higher risk of child removal and mental health difficulties and may face more barriers to developing attachment relationships with their children. Mothers with learning disabilities' voices are still underrepresented in research, with less known about those who are actively parenting their…

Parental capacity is one of the main aspects assessed by social workers as part of child protection investigations. The aim of this study is to explore the social workers' perceptions of assessing the parental capacity of parents with intellectual disabilities in child protection investigations. Four focus group interviews were conducted with…

The experiences of autistic parents when interacting with statutory services for their autistic children is not well understood. This study investigates the experiences of autistic parents' interactions with statutory services, including education and healthcare, in relation to their autistic children. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was…

This multiple case study explores the phenomena of being raised by parents with intellectual disabilities from the adult child's perspective. Autoethnographic data was collected from the author and 4 non-disabled adults who were raised by mothers who had intellectual disabilities. The significance of the parent's disability, parent/child…

Background: It is highly recommended that professionals promote caregivers' capacity-building to use intervention strategies to support children with developmental delays or disabilities in natural learning environments, particularly in the earliest years of life. There is a gap, however, in understanding the extent to which these professionals…

Background: Evidence suggests that parents with intellectual disabilities can be "good enough" parents with appropriate support that focuses on the whole family. This paper brings together theories of vulnerability with an ethics of care approach to reflect on challenges for practitioners in supporting parents, drawing upon data from a…

The Title I, Part A program (Title I) is legislation included in the Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 (ESSA), the latest reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). Title I, Part A was designed to ensure that all children have a fair, equal, and significant opportunity to obtain a high-quality education and…

Women are expected to aspire to norms of femininity that include ideal motherhood, where mothers are positioned as ever available, ever nurturing providers of active, involved and expert mothering--indeed, being a caregiver is a master status for adult women in modernity. While this may be the case for all women, mothers who are disabled can have…

Women are normatively expected to provide nurturance to the men in their lives through emotional support, and to the children in their lives through active, involved and expert mothering--indeed, being a caregiver is a master status for adult women in modernity. While this may be the case for all women, mothers who are disabled can have more a…

Despite a dark history marked by the eugenics movement, increasing numbers of people with disabilities are choosing to become parents. Recent research reveals that more than 4 million parents--6 percent of American mothers and fathers--are disabled. This number will unquestionably increase as more people with disabilities exercise a broader range…

This paper examines the development of fieldwork methodology in a study that investigated the parenting experiences and parent support needs of a group of parents with an intellectual disability. It considers the ways in which the original planning for the project changed as the fieldwork unfolded, requiring adaptations to our methodological…