Agony and Ecstasy of Fatherhood: The Journey of Fathers of Children with Intellectual Disability

Abstract

INTRODUCTION

Raising a child with an intellectual disability has often been associated with higher levels of parenting stress and psychological distress. Several studies have examined the maternal acceptance of children with intellectual disability yet only a few studied the father's experiences in this regard. The researcher tried to fill this gap in the existing literature.

METHODS

This phenomenological study was set forth to describe the fundamental meaning structure of the lived experiences of fathers of children with intellectual disability using Giorgi's descriptive phenomenology. The researcher interviewed six (6) fathers using an expert-validated semi-structured interview guide questionnaire to obtain in-depth information about the father's lived experiences.

RESULTS

The results revealed seven emerging themes namely: (1) the struggles within, (2) dealing with the external forces, (3) seeking support and assistance, (4) meeting the child's needs and expectations, (5) investing on relationships, (6) deep feeling of uncertainty and (7) resignation to the higher being. Practical implications, conclusions, recommendations of the study were also elucidated.

DISCUSSIONS

Based on the findings, the researcher made several recommendations and identified directions for conducting future research. The most important were: increasing public awareness of children with special needs, increasing the availability of medical practitioners in the field that can be accessible to all and creating a support group for fathers.