Parental awareness of developmental delays in their children

[出版社版]In some children, a developmental problem surfaces through group activities in a kindergarten. The purpose of the current study was to examine how to provide information and support to parents of such children. A questionnaire survey to parents of preschoolers was conducted to clarify the awareness of developmental problems in their children, the content of the awareness and the use of expert organization. The parents were divided into three groups according to the developmental properties of their children. Non developmental disability group (Non DD Group) comprised parents of children with disorders that were diagnosed during infancy, for example, Down syndrome. Developmental disability group I (Group I) consisted of parents of children with intellectual disabilities and diagnosis as developmental disabilities. Parents of children with mild intellectual disabilities or without intellectual disabilities composed the developmental disability group II (Group II). The percentage of parents in Group II who were notified of the developmental delay in their children on the occasion of a health examination for young children was less than half of the parents in Group I. However, there was no difference in the ratio of participants who noticed the developmental aberration of their children between the two groups. The parents of Group II became aware of such aberration through the specific behavior of their children in a group activity in kindergarten, for instance, the difficulty of being seated in the classroom. This finding suggests the importance of sharing information on the behavior of children in the group activity between teachers and parents. In addition, psychological support for parents based on a close cooperation with external expert organization is required