Levels of Anxiety and Depression among Mothers of Children with Intellectual Disability: A Study in Indian Context

Abstract

Intellectual disability is a term used when a person has certain limitations in cognitive functioning and skills, which remains throughout the individual’s life. Intellectually disabled individuals may fail to deal with complex socio-cultural phenomenon, as a result of which they have traditionally been stigmatized, isolated and deprived of society’s resources. This leads to the parents, especially mothers, being more prone to develop anxiety and depression in the long run. This study aimed at finding out whether there is a risk of psychological problems among mothers based on the degree of intellectual disability. Purposive sampling method was adopted and a total of 80 mothers having child with intellectual disability from a varied socioeconomic background consented to participate in this study. The participants were measured on anxiety and depression inventories. The results showed that when the degree of intellectual disability in the child progressed, the mother’s risk for depression increased, particularly there were significant differences observed in depression levels of mothers of children with mild intellectual disability and profound intellectual disability. There was no significant relationship was found intellectual disability and anxiety. The findings of the study were discussed in the light of Indian context.