The purpose of this study was to explore patronage and usage of the children's section of a public library. Patrons of the children's section of a public library in a small Northern Arizona city were observed for a total of 24 h over 12 sessions. Analytic induction was used to formulate categories based on field notes made during these…

In India, Acts and legislations are in place for persons with mental retardation. Three major Acts namely Rehabilitation Council of India Act (1992), Persons with Disabilities (Equal opportunities, protection of rights and full participation) Act (1995) and National Trust for welfare of persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental retardation and…

Although frameworks now exist for quality provision for under-threes, discourses underpinning policy remain conflicted. The split between care and education is still firmly entrenched in provision and a gap remains between rhetoric and practice. This paper explores how Early Years Professional Status, which requires practitioners to engage…

This study measured the quality of life of two groups of families with children who had severe developmental disabilities-families whose child lived at home and families whose child lived in a residential facility. Participants were 54 primary caregivers of children who had severe intellectual disabilities and who lacked the ability to both…

Previous research has highlighted that factors such as large workload, role ambiguity, lack of support from colleagues, and challenging behaviour are associated with higher levels of burnout within the disability support worker (DSW) population. The aim of this research was to investigate which factors contribute the most to the prediction of the…

Background: In Latin America, there is limited research on the prevalence of mental disorders in children and adolescents. This Chilean survey is the first national representative survey in the Latin American region to examine the prevalence of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-IV (DSM-IV) psychiatric disorders in the region in children and…

The child-caregiver relationship has long been recognized as crucial to social-emotional functioning and later development. Specifically, the consistency with which caregivers interact with young children in warm, supportive ways is related to optimal early development. This may be especially critical in the families formed by international…

Aging is a complex process that involves factors such as cultural, ethnic, and gender differences and is unique to each individual. Love, sexual intimacy, and sexuality are characteristics that help define individuals and often contribute to how well they will continue to live and age. Enhanced knowledge and healthy attitudes about sexual needs…

A caregiver of a child or adult with special needs, who is concerned about who will advocate for them when he/she no longer can, may want to consider developing a microboard to oversee their long-term life quality. A microboard is a legally recognized "agency" with the sole purpose of providing support to an individual with developmental or other…

Respite care services have been linked to variety of positive outcomes for caregivers and families alike. The purpose of the current study was to examine the association of receiving respite care with academic achievement for children with disabilities across time. The study employed a nationally representative sample of children to examine this…

Assessment is a critical step in determining appropriate support services. This article discusses "caregiver assessment," a systematic process of gathering information to describe a caregiving situation. Caregiver assessment identifies the particular problems, needs, resources, and strengths of the family caregiver and approaches issues from the…

Background: There is little information available related to the reproductive health of people with intellectual disability (ID). The aims of the present study are to describe caregiver attitudes and to examine determinants of gynaecological health for women with ID. Method: We recruited 1152 caregivers (response rate = 71.87%) and analysed their…

Teachers' view of children and childhood is rapidly changing in response to the pressures of modern life, new research on brain development and learning, as well as the belief that many young children in the United States are not ready for school. There are powerful messages coming from commercial, social, and political interests, as well as from…

From the moment of birth, children form and develop relationships with others in their world based on exchange. Children recognize that engaging in such encounters offers them the opportunity to enter into a relationship with another individual and to nurture that relationship through the exchange of messages and gifts, items and ideas. At Boulder…

Caring for Quality and Partners in Family Child Care are home visiting programs designed to improve the quality of home-based child care. This article describes the experiences of two different home visitors to demonstrate how programs such as these can help providers improve the overall quality of care, increase children's development, and lead…