This study aims to develop parents educational programs to affirmatively change mothers’ raising behaviors for their children with development disorders.
A survey for requirements for devising the parents educational program was conducted, targeting...
This study aims to develop parents educational programs to affirmatively change mothers’ raising behaviors for their children with development disorders.
A survey for requirements for devising the parents educational program was conducted, targeting mothers with 18 year-old or under children with development disorders in Gwangju and Jeollanam-do. A total of 500 copies of questionnaire were distributed, and 302 copies were collected. Of them, 274 effective copies were finally analyzed. To verify the effect of the parents education program devised on the basis of the study of previous research literature and a survey of requirements, the test group and the control group, each comprised of ten mothers, were established. Test tools used to measure mothers’ raising behaviors and raising behavior-related variables include raising behavior test, raising stress test, and parenting sense of competence, self-respect test, and depression test.
Using the SPSS/WIN 14.0, the collected data was analyzed; Cronbach's αwas calculated, as well as frequency, percentage, average, standard deviation, and t-test were conducted. Also, to analyze the ex ante and ex post examination scores of the test group and the control group, a paired t-test was conducted.
The major findings of this research are outlined as follows. First, regarding the information and knowledge of requirements for the parents educational program, respondents indicated their requirements with the following intensity of necessity; information on how to understand and cope with problem behaviors of children, and information on children's education and career. Regarding the home guidance for children, respondents indicated their requirements with the following intensity; methods to discipline children with regard to their problem behaviors, guidance on child learning, methods to facilitate interaction, and methods to improve communications. With regard to family support and characteristics, respondents indicated their requirements with the following intensity of necessity; information on programs in support of disabled children, learning the role of parents and siblings in consideration of disabled children, and utilization of family's leisure time.
Second, the parents educational program for mothers with children of development disorders consisted of twelve sessions including those for development games, cognition-behavior, and self-growth. In the first session, mothers were introduced to overall program contents to be motivated, and game activities were conducted to form friendly relations between them. In the second session, subjects were made to be aware of their raising patterns and to have insights into themselves with the theme of understanding of characteristics of raising behaviors. In the third session, with the theme of child development and its problems, a program was offered to enable mothers to understand child development and behavioral problems, and to know what was lacking in their relationships with children. In the fourth session, with the theme of entering the world of children, subjects played role-playing dramas to know the importance of games and physical contact. In the fifth session, with the theme of adjustment in the world of children, subjects conducted activities suitable for the development levels of children to learn interaction. In the sixth session, with the theme of conforming to the world of children, children were made to lead the first situation of a game, and to practice the method to adjust to the game. In the seventh session, with the theme of enhancing the level of interaction, in an effort to boost the interaction between them, mothers and children conducted activities to boost the verbal and non-verbal reaction. In the eighth session, with the theme of actual activities for changing the characteristics of raising behaviors, subjects, in natural game-playing situations, learned individualized communication strategies on the basis of one on one coaching. In the ninth session, with the theme of analysis of activities, mothers analyzed their videotaped raising behaviors to compare with those of other mothers, determined needed strategies and were given feedbacks. In the tenth session, as in the eighth session, subjects strengthened their individualized desirable communication strategies. In the eleventh session, with the theme of analysis of activities, subjects recognized their changed images, and conducted activities relating to the strategy to promote child development. In the twelfth session, with the theme of firming activities, subjects reviewed overall programs and firmed behaviors to continually change their raising behaviors.
Third, the parents educational program was found to be effective in affirmatively changing mothers’ raising behaviors and related variables. Likewise, affectionate, reactional, consistent, positive and overprotective raising behaviors increased, while unattended, and coercive raising behaviors were reduced. Also, the program was found to be effective in enhancing mothers’ parenting sense of competence and self-respect, and in significantly reducing stress of raising and depression symptoms in the serious depression group. At a score of 4.20 points, mothers also showed a high satisfaction about the program.
This research attempted to raise mothers’ understanding of problem behaviors of children, help mothers interact with children and provide resultant feedbacks through training in an effort to affirmatively improve mothers’ raising behaviors. It attempted to improve mothers’ raising behaviors specifically and realistically, and to trigger a change in mothers’ psychological characteristics relating to raising behaviors so as to foster affirmative raising behaviors, thus offering a parents educational program targeted at mothers with children of development disorders that can be used in diverse situations.
This research offers the significance that it proposed a highly practicable parents educational program to be used for mothers with development disorders in diverse fields.