The Level of Well-being of 6-12 Year Old Children with Disabilities from the Point of View of Parents

Abstract

Well-being is a balanced way for a disabled child to interact with himself and others and feel comfortable and happy in the activities of his daily life. It also indicates the safety of the mentally disabled child, and that he is free from mental disorders and diseases. This achieves high levels of compatibility, and adaptability to his life quality. Therefore, this study aimed to reveal the level of well-being of children aged 6-12 years with disabilities from the point of view of their parents. Also, it attempted to show any statistical differences in them according to the variables of the disabled child's gender, the type of disability, and the severity of the disability. The descriptive survey method was used. The questionnaire was used as a tool for collecting data. It was applied to a purposive sample of 295 parents of children aged 6-12 years with disabilities in Najran region, southern Saudi Arabia, in 2022. The results showed a weak degree of well-being level for children aged 6-12) years with disabilities from the point of view of the study sample. The results also revealed statistically significant differences in the level of well-being among children aged 6-12 years with disabilities due to the gender of the disabled child in favor of males, the type of disability in favor of learning disabilities, and the severity of disability in favor of the simple disability. The study suggested multiple recommendations focusing on engaging disabled children in extracurricular activities, providing psychological support programs for them, and directing future research to work on identifying ways to confront the difficulties that hinder the progress of disabled children toward acceptable levels of well-being.