Background and Methods  We review articles pertaining to attitudes towards sexuality, sterilization, procreation and parenting by people with intellectual disabilities. Most empirical studies were conducted after the appearance of the principles of normalization and role valorization in the 1970s. Results  Across studies, special education teachers and university students appear to hold more positive attitudes towards sexuality and sexuality education programs than parents and service workers. People with intellectual disabilities have conservative attitudes towards sexual intercourse and homosexuality, but may be accepting intimate contact by familiar persons. Despite the ban on involuntary sterilization, it appears that many parents and teachers of persons with intellectual disabilities still support it as a form of contraception, especially for persons with severe intellectual disabilities. Likewise, attitudes towards parenting by persons with intellectual disabilities remain negative, and these attitudes may adversely affect the provision of competency‐enhancing supports and services for parents with intellectual disabilities and their children. Conclusions  It is recommended that new studies should be undertaken, comparing attitudes across different groups involved with persons with intellectual disabilities and examining the impact of prejudicial attitudes on sexual expression and parenting by persons with intellectual disabilities.

Background  There is a general agreement in the literature that no systematic correlation exists between parental intellectual disability per se and parenting performance. Yet, a few studies in the field of parents and parenting with intellectual disability have explored other potential determinants of parenting and child outcomes. In this study, we examined the relationship between maternal social support, psychological well‐being, parenting style, quality of the home environment and child problem behaviours. Materials and Methods  The sample included 32 mothers recruited through agencies that offer services exclusively to persons with intellectual disabilities and their families, and each mother’s oldest child in the 2‐ to 13‐year age range. In a series of semi‐structured interviews, participating mothers completed a demographic and social support questionnaire, the SF‐36 (health measure), the Parenting Stress Index, the HOME Inventory and the Child Behavior Checklist. Parenting style was assessed using the Canadian National Longitudinal Study on Children and Youth parenting questionnaire. Results  On an average, the participating mothers reported poorer physical and mental health compared with population norms. However, a few reported clinically significant levels of parenting stress. Overall, the target children did not have significant problem behaviours, but these were more common in older children. Main findings include a significant correlation between parenting stress, parenting style and perceived child problem behaviours. Conclusion  Global assessment, including health status (mental and physical) and level of parenting stress, as well as everyday life and parenting skills is recommended as basis for designing individualized supports and services for mothers with intellectual disabilities.

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The authors examined decision making and service referral in child maltreatment investigations involving children of parents with cognitive impairments using the Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect (CIS-2003) core-data. The CIS-2003 includes process and outcome data on a total of 1,243 child investigations (n = 1,170 weighted) in which parental cognitive impairment was noted. Employing binary logistic regression analyses, the authors found that perceived parent noncooperation was the most potent predictor of court application. Alternative dispute resolution was rarely utilized. The findings from this study highlight the need for development and utilization of alternative dispute resolution strategies, worker training, dissemination of evidence-based parent training programs, and implementation of strategies to alleviate poverty and strengthen the social relationships of parents with cognitive impairments and promote a healthy start to life for their children.

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