Mutual Liking, Enjoyment, and Shared Interactions in the Closest Relationships between Children with Developmental Disabilities and Peers in Inclusive School Settings

Qualities in friendship – Within an outside perspective – Definitions expressed by adolescents with mild intellectual disabilities

“…Among these adolescents, social interaction provided opportunities for good experiences, which further strengthened their interest in sharing new enjoyable experiences. The adolescents experienced joy in shared activities, and they expressed feelings of happiness, similar to the findings of Webster and Carter (2013) in their study. Matheson et al (2007) also found that teens were socially engaged in ways that provided Sigstad satisfaction and that they wanted more of.…”

“…The results of the study by Webster and Carter (2013) appear to be in accordance with those of Tipton et al (2013). An evaluation of dyads that included children with intellectual disabilities and their three closest peers indicated that only some of the relationships appeared to be friendships that were characterized by the same components that are usually used to define friendships among the typically developed.…”

“…The results of friendship among those with intellectual disabilities may also deviate from the results among their typically developed peers because of different expectations and perceptions of friendship (Heiman, 2000;Jobling et al, 2000;Matheson et al, 2007;Siperstein et al, 1997;Webster and Carter, 2013). Individuals with intellectual disabilities define closeness as a property of friendship, although others might consider their friendships differently and possibly to a lesser degree.…”

“…Compared with the friendships between peers without learning problems, friendship dyads that include children with learning problems have been characterized by less verbal communication, collaborative decision-making, limited emotional exchange, less frequently shared enjoyment, an asymmetric distribution of roles and an absence of mutual interest (Siperstein et al, 1997). Webster and Carter (2013) found that only some friendship dyads among students with intellectual disabilities were characterized by shared interactions, mutual enjoyment and mutual preference, in contrast to studies of close friendship among the typically developed (Howes, 1983).…”

‘I didn't used to have much friends’: exploring the friendship concepts and capabilities of a boy with autism and severe learning disabilities

“…Webster & Carter () noted that the consideration of friendships in typically developing children and children with disabilities has generally centred on the ‘nomination’ of a friend, with subsequent research assuming that the nomination reflects an actual friendship. They suggest that whilst this may be a reasonable deduction in relation to typically developing children, it may be less so for children with disabilities, whose concepts of friendships may differ.…”