The psychological adjustment of siblings of children with disabilities: the role of the family and the wider social community

Research has consistently shown that siblings of young children with a developmental delay or disability are impacted in various ways by growing up with a brother or sister with a disability. While most siblings of children with disabilities adapt relatively well, a small percentage are vulnerable to developing adjustment problems. Until recently, researchers have studied siblings in isolation, ascribing little meaning to the family system surrounding them. With a greater emphasis given to ecological models of disability; however, both researchers and practitioners have identified the importance of the family and community context in promoting sibling development and adjustment. The aim of the overall research was to explore siblings daily experiences (hassles and uplifts), and to better understand what factors across an individual (coping, temperament, daily hassles and uplifts), family (differential parenting, family functioning, parental wellbeing) and community level (connectedness to supports) that are contributing to sibling adjustment. Method A mixed methods research design was used in the current research. The qualitative component consisted of a sample of seven siblings who experienced a range of daily hassles and uplifts associated with growing up with a brother or sister with a disability. The information generated by semi-structured interviews was used to develop a self-report measurement tool, entitled ‘Me and My Sib: The Daily Experience Scale for Siblings of Children with Disabilities’. This measure was incorporated into the quantitative component of this research. The sample in this study consisted of 78 sibling-parent dyads that were recruited from several early childhood intervention centres, a special school, and other major organisations (e.g., Down syndrome Victoria, Autism Victoria, Very Special Kids) in the State of Victoria, Australia. Each group of siblings and parents completed a self-report questionnaire, which elicited information about factors at a sibling level (temperament, coping, daily hassles and uplifts), family level (family functioning, parental wellbeing, differential parenting), and wider social community level (hassles and uplifts experienced by siblings in their interactions within the community; sibling and parents’ perceived connectedness to their support network). Results Results revealed that various sibling, family and wider social community level factors were associated with different psychological outcomes for brothers and sisters of children with a development delay or disability. Specifically, siblings’ perceived social connectedness was found to be the greatest predictor of self-concept, over and above individual and family characteristics. Sibling temperament, parental well-being and siblings’ perception of differential parenting were found to account for a significant proportion of unique variance in siblings’ total difficulties. Conclusion The current research has enabled measurement of siblings’ daily hassles and uplifts across the various systems they operate within and in relation to their own psychological adjustment. As a result, the conceptualisation of adjustment has expanded by focusing on those factors at a individual, family and community level that are contributing to both positive and adverse psychological outcomes in siblings of children with a disability