Effects of Parental Support Group on Perceived Stress and Self-Esteem among Parents of Children with Special Needs

Parents are the fundamental and most important connection in the care, education, and supervision of children with special needs. When parenting a special child, they face many challenges, including tremendous physical and psychological concerns associated with child care and unprecedented stress. The present study aims to assess the effects of parental support groups on the self-esteem and perceived stress of parents of children with special needs. A cross-sectional study was conducted, and data from 100 parents of children with special needs was collected through convenience sampling using Perceived Stress Scale (PSS; Cohen, et al., 1983) and Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (SES; Rosenberg, 1989). The results showed that parents who were a part of parental support groups had better self-esteem but higher perceived stress. t-test showed a significant difference in self-esteem in relation to membership of parental support groups (t=2.127, p=0.03). However, there was no significant difference in perceived stress in reference to membership of parental support groups (t=1.575, p=0.119). Pearson’s correlation showed a statistically significant association (r=0.611) between self-esteem and perceived stress at 0.01 levels. There is an urgent need for medical, psychological, and educational professionals to provide family-based interventions to assist parents raising a child with a disability.