Causal attributions and blame: associations with mothers' adjustment to the birth of a child with Down syndrome

Abstract

The main purpose of this study is to explore the associations between causal attributions to others, blaming others and mothers' adjustment to the birth of a child with Down syndrome (DS). Participants (n = 214) rated causal attributions to others and blaming others, and completed five measures of adjustment: anger, anxiety, depression, parenting stress, and attitudes towards the child. The adjustment of three groups of mothers was compared: (i) those who made no attributions to others (ii) those who made causal attributions but did not blame, and (iii) those who blamed others. Four years after the births of their children with DS, 16% of mothers blamed others and 17% made causal attributions but did not blame others for this outcome. Those who blamed others had higher levels of anger, anxiety, depression, parenting stress and more negative attitudes towards their children with DS than did those who made causal attributions but did not blame, and those who made who made no attributions to others. The adjustment of the latter two groups did not differ. Investigating blame rather than causal attributions may be a more fruitful area for future research aimed at understanding and facilitating adjustment to illness and other negative life events.

Knowledge and Awareness Regarding Trisomy 21 among Parents of School Going Down Syndromes in Islamabad and Rawalpindi: a Descriptive Cross-Sectional Study

“…Alosaimi et also discussed that in Saudi Arabia majority of parents were informed with the diagnosis of their child with DS after the delivery by pediatrician, obstetric or gynecologist 8 . The same complain is noted in the study by Skoto and Hall S that parents were informed about the diagnosis of child either after birth or complains of developmental delay and one in two mother got depressed after finding out that their child has DS respectively 11 .…”

Bridging Uncharted Waters in Georgia: Down Syndrome Association of Atlanta Outreach to Latino/a Families

“…English speaking parents were quick to correct them, telling them the diagnosis of Down Syndrome was not their fault, and stressing that their children are not sick, but rather have special needs. This is not insignificant, as attributions about the causes of Down Syndrome have implications for maternal adjustment and mental health (Hall & Marteau, 2003).…”

Exploring how mothers of a child with a genetic disorder experience their couple relationship in a low socio‐economic setting

“…Self-blame and other-blame are other coping strategies which are frequently reported in the international literature, but little has been written about their use in African or low-resourced settings (Hall & Marteau, 2003;Hastings et al, 2005). Self-blame can be understood as a mechanism to defend against overwhelming feelings of helplessness.…”