IS THERE A DIFFERENCE IN THE QUALITY OF LIFE ASSESSMENT BETWEEN PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES AND PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITHOUT DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES: A META-ANALYSIS

Ovo metaanalitičko istraživanje provedeno je s ciljem integriranja nalaza dobivenih u pojedinačnim istraživanjima koja su se bavila ispitivanjem razlika u subjektivnoj procjeni kvalitete života između roditelja djece s teškoćama u razvoju i roditelja djece bez teškoća u razvoju, odnosno opće populacije. Metaanaliza je provedena na uzorku od 14 pojedinačnih istraživanja i sadržavala je 2 088 ispitanika iz grupe roditelja djece s teškoćama u razvoju, 783 ispitanika roditelja djece bez teškoća u razvoju u sedam istraživanja, dok su se u preostalih sedam istraživanja za usporedbu koristile norme izgrađene na osnovi rezultata populacije bez invaliditeta za dano geografsko područje. Vrijednost standardizirane razlike između aritmetičkih sredina je d = -0,24 i pokazuje nam da postoji statistički značajna razlika, male veličine, između roditelja djece s teškoćama u razvoju i roditelja djece bez teškoća u razvoju, odnosno populacije bez invaliditeta, u pogledu subjektivne procjene kvalitete života (z = -2,06, p < 0,05), pri čemu je lošija kvaliteta života roditelja djece s teškoćama u razvoju. Pokazalo se da unutar grupe roditelja djece s teškoćama u razvoju ne postoji razlika u subjektivnoj procjeni kvalitete života između majki i očeva. Rezultati ovog istraživanja ukazuju na postojanje potrebe za razvojem boljih i specifičnijih intervencija namijenjenih pomoći i podršci ovoj grupi korisnika, ali treba imati u vidu ograničenja proizašla iz metodologije ovog rada, te se budućim istraživačima upućuje preporuka da isprave nedostatke ovog istraživanja kako bi se unaprijedile kvaliteta i valjanost nalaza.This meta-analysis was conducted with the aim of integrating the results of individual studies concerning differences in subjective quality of life assessment of parents of children with developmental disabilities and parents of children without developmental disabilities or the general population. The meta-analysis was conducted on a sample of 14 individual studies and covered 2088 parents of children with developmental disabilities and 783 parents of children without disabilities across seven studies, while the remaining seven studies were compared against standards based on results for the population without disabilities for a given geographical area. The standardized difference score between arithmetic means is d=0.24 and points to a statistically significant difference of low intensity between parents of children with developmental disabilities and parents of children without developmental disabilities or population without disabilities in terms of the subjective quality of life assessment (z= -2.06, p= 0.039) with the quality of life rated lower by parents of children with developmental disabilities. Within the group of parents of children with developmental disabilities no difference in the quality of life assessment was established between mothers and fathers. The results of the study indicate the need for developing better and more focused interventions aimed at providing support and assistance to this group. However, it should be kept in mind that this study has methodology-related limitations and future researchers are therefore advised to address the shortcomings of this study in order to improve the quality and validity of results