The Mother\u27s Perception of the Effect of a Mentally Retarded Child on the Marital Relationship

This thesis reports research concerning the relationship between the length of time a retarded child remained in the home and its effect on the marital relationship. The following hypothesis was tested: the longer a mentally retarded child remained in the home, the less satisfying the marital relationship as perceived by the mother. Forty-four mothers were contacted, of whom 27 participated in the study. Mental retardation in their children had been determined by prior evaluation at the Psychological Service Center, Fort Hays Kansas State College. Two measurements of marital satisfaction were obtained from the mothers, one through an interview covering four areas of the marital relationship, and one through administration of five scales of Parent al Attitude Research Instrument. The data were divided into three groups according to the chronological age of the child; each group represented nine mothers. When an analysis of variance technique was applied to the data, and a significant difference was obtained on the Parental Attitude Research Instrument, the significant difference was not in the direction predicted by the hypothesis. No significant differences were obtained from the interview data. Although the hypothesis was rejected since the results did not support it, the study yielded considerable information relating to specific problems faced by parents of retarded children, and it suggested areas in which further research is needed