Parental Burnout—A Model of Risk Factors and Protective Resources Among Mothers of Children with/Without Special Needs

Parents of children With Special Needs and Disabilities (W-SND) who require long-term healthcare are at high risk of Parental Burnout (PB). However, most studies have focused on PB among parents of children Without Special Needs (WO-SN). This study aimed to develop a new model explaining PB of mothe...

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Main Authors: Yifat Findling, Michal Itzhaki, Sivia Barnoy
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-11-01
Series:European Journal of Investigation in Health, Psychology and Education
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2254-9625/14/11/189
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author Yifat Findling
Michal Itzhaki
Sivia Barnoy
author_facet Yifat Findling
Michal Itzhaki
Sivia Barnoy
author_sort Yifat Findling
collection DOAJ
description Parents of children With Special Needs and Disabilities (W-SND) who require long-term healthcare are at high risk of Parental Burnout (PB). However, most studies have focused on PB among parents of children Without Special Needs (WO-SN). This study aimed to develop a new model explaining PB of mothers of children W-SND/WO-SN. The main hypothesis was that the nexus of correlations between risk factors of PB (severity of child’s disability/challenge, perceived caregiver burden) and protective resources (social support, learned resourcefulness, deep emotion work) will explain the variance of PB of mothers of children W-SND and WO-SN. A questionnaire assessing PB, its risk factors, and protective resources was completed by 352 Israeli mothers of children W-SND (mean age 36.9) or WO-SN (mean age 32.3). The child’s disabilities were communicative, physical, intellectual and developmental. The main results are that mothers of children W-SND reported higher PB, higher caregiver burden, and a higher severity of disability. About 50% of PB variance was significantly explained by the nexus of correlations between selected risk and protective factors. Among all mothers, the more social support they received, the higher their learned-resourcefulness. However, learned resourcefulness mediates the correlation between caregiver burden and PB among mothers of children W-SND. Accordingly, it is important to increase awareness among healthcare professionals regarding the risk factors and symptoms of PB, and to develop workshops on protective resources in order to prevent PB and promote mothers’ well-being. Further research should be conducted among fathers and parents from diverse cultures.
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spelling doaj-art-ec4944de9ddf41d19ed3e236350ea4582025-08-20T01:53:45ZengMDPI AGEuropean Journal of Investigation in Health, Psychology and Education2174-81442254-96252024-11-0114112883290010.3390/ejihpe14110189Parental Burnout—A Model of Risk Factors and Protective Resources Among Mothers of Children with/Without Special NeedsYifat Findling0Michal Itzhaki1Sivia Barnoy2Department of Nursing, School of Health Professions, Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, IsraelDepartment of Nursing, School of Health Professions, Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, IsraelDepartment of Nursing, School of Health Professions, Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, IsraelParents of children With Special Needs and Disabilities (W-SND) who require long-term healthcare are at high risk of Parental Burnout (PB). However, most studies have focused on PB among parents of children Without Special Needs (WO-SN). This study aimed to develop a new model explaining PB of mothers of children W-SND/WO-SN. The main hypothesis was that the nexus of correlations between risk factors of PB (severity of child’s disability/challenge, perceived caregiver burden) and protective resources (social support, learned resourcefulness, deep emotion work) will explain the variance of PB of mothers of children W-SND and WO-SN. A questionnaire assessing PB, its risk factors, and protective resources was completed by 352 Israeli mothers of children W-SND (mean age 36.9) or WO-SN (mean age 32.3). The child’s disabilities were communicative, physical, intellectual and developmental. The main results are that mothers of children W-SND reported higher PB, higher caregiver burden, and a higher severity of disability. About 50% of PB variance was significantly explained by the nexus of correlations between selected risk and protective factors. Among all mothers, the more social support they received, the higher their learned-resourcefulness. However, learned resourcefulness mediates the correlation between caregiver burden and PB among mothers of children W-SND. Accordingly, it is important to increase awareness among healthcare professionals regarding the risk factors and symptoms of PB, and to develop workshops on protective resources in order to prevent PB and promote mothers’ well-being. Further research should be conducted among fathers and parents from diverse cultures.https://www.mdpi.com/2254-9625/14/11/189parental burnoutmothers of children with special needscaregiver burdensocial supportemotion worklearned resourcefulness
spellingShingle Yifat Findling
Michal Itzhaki
Sivia Barnoy
Parental Burnout—A Model of Risk Factors and Protective Resources Among Mothers of Children with/Without Special Needs
European Journal of Investigation in Health, Psychology and Education
parental burnout
mothers of children with special needs
caregiver burden
social support
emotion work
learned resourcefulness
title Parental Burnout—A Model of Risk Factors and Protective Resources Among Mothers of Children with/Without Special Needs
title_full Parental Burnout—A Model of Risk Factors and Protective Resources Among Mothers of Children with/Without Special Needs
title_fullStr Parental Burnout—A Model of Risk Factors and Protective Resources Among Mothers of Children with/Without Special Needs
title_full_unstemmed Parental Burnout—A Model of Risk Factors and Protective Resources Among Mothers of Children with/Without Special Needs
title_short Parental Burnout—A Model of Risk Factors and Protective Resources Among Mothers of Children with/Without Special Needs
title_sort parental burnout a model of risk factors and protective resources among mothers of children with without special needs
topic parental burnout
mothers of children with special needs
caregiver burden
social support
emotion work
learned resourcefulness
url https://www.mdpi.com/2254-9625/14/11/189
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