Caring, Employment, and Quality of Life: Comparison of Employed and Nonemployed Mothers of Adults With Intellectual Disability

Abstract

The effects of caregiving on mothers of adults with intellectual disability was examined by determining whether there are differences in quality of life and related factors between mothers with different employment status. Study participants were 302 working-age mothers who had adult children with intellectual disability based on the 2008 census survey on intellectual disability carried out in Hsinchu, City, Taiwan. Results revealed that nonemployed mothers are more likely to have a lower level of health status, including the WHOQOL Physical Health domain, than are mothers employed fulltime. Multiple regression analysis showed that mothers' quality of life was significantly determined by the availability of a person with whom they could share care work, family income, social support, and employment status.

Universal Breadwinner Versus Universal Caregiver Model: Fathers' Involvement in Caregiving and Well‐Being of Mothers of Offspring with Intellectual Disabilities

“…A higher score indicates a better quality of life ( α = 0.93 for the overall scale in this study; for more details about the scale, see Chou et al . and Yao et al . ).…”

“…Our findings, based on Table , echo two recent Taiwanese studies (Chou et al . , ), showing that those families where both fathers and mothers were non‐employed should be the primary focus of support and social intervention. In addition, non‐employed mothers with employed fathers are younger but still have a lower level of quality of life than employed mothers, they still need external support to share their caregiving work to improve their quality of life.…”

Reconciliation of work and care among lone mothers of adults with intellectual disabilities: the role and limits of care capital

“…Its participants were recruited from parental groups, day care service centres and among the respondents of an earlier survey on health and social care issues among adults with ID and their family carers (see Chou et al . ). Each participant completed a semi‐structured interview.…”

Physical and psychological health of family carers co‐residing with an adult relative with an intellectual disability

“…Factors associated with negative outcomes for carer well‐being include care recipient having more profound or severe intellectual disability and poorer adaptive behaviours (Chou, Pu, Fu, & Kröger, ; Llewellyn, McConnell, Gething, Cant, & Kendig, ), challenging behaviours (Minnes, Woodford, & Passey, ; Walden, Pistrang, & Joyce, ), the presence of epilepsy (Esbensen, Seltzer, & Greenberg, ; Kerr, Turky, & Huber, ), socio‐economic hardship (Chou, Pu, Kröger, & Fu, ; Eisenhower & Blacher, ) and co‐residency (Seltzer et al., ). Seltzer et al.…”